Urban Arts Institute

Founded in 1980 and associated with Massachusetts College of Art and Design since 2000, the Urban Arts Institute works to promote excellence in public art and design. This mission is accomplished through services, which facilitate public art and design projects, through educational programs for professionals and students, and through public policy advocacy. It is a resource for the MassArt community, artists, city and state agencies, architects, landscape architects, urban planners and other constituencies interested in the quality of the built environment. UrbanArts is committed to the practice of integrated design, sustainable approaches, and fully accessible spaces.

Art in public places: Provides services to implement public art projects for private and public-sector clients in New England and across the country. UrbanArts administers public art commissions for public agencies and institutions as well as for private sector clients. These projects are funded through fee-for-service contracts.

Arts and community development: Creates neighborhood-based collaborative design projects that involve citizens in planning for the future of their communities. By forging community partnerships, UrbanArts promotes the incorporation of art at an early stage in urban revitalization and community-building efforts, with support from private and public grants.

Education and resources: Offers educational programs for the public and access to resources for artists, community groups and design professionals seeking to implement public art programs. UrbanArts maintains a national artist registry and related databases representing over 2,000 artists and a library of resource materials on public art. It also sponsors lectures, panel discussions, and workshops on a variety of relevant topics.