The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs has selected three artists for its Public Artists in Residence (PAIR) program, including Graduate Center for Planning and the Environment (GCPE) faculty member Ifeoma Ebo.
The program aims to bring creative problem-solving to city agencies addressing urgent civil issues. As part of the program, Ebo will work with the Mayor’s Public Engagement Unit (PEU) over the next 12 months to create public artwork that bridges gaps between government and community. Ebo, who is Principal of Creative Urban Alchemy, an urban planning studio, describes her work as rooted in diasporic understandings of the Black experience.
“I’m honored to collaborate with the Public Engagement Unit—an agency already doing groundbreaking work meeting New Yorkers where they are,” Ebo said. “As someone whose practice centers on transforming institutional relationships through art and community co-creation, this residency is an opportunity to use creative urban alchemy to bridge the gap between vulnerable communities and the services meant to support them. Through participatory design and creative storytelling, we’ll work together with PEU staff and residents across all five boroughs to amplify community voices, make visible the humanity in both seeking and providing help, and reimagine how city services can show up with dignity and cultural responsiveness. This is about transforming how New Yorkers experience government—from fear and confusion to trust and connection—and creating lasting change that communities can see and feel.”
The three selected artists will each receive a $40,000 stipend and spend their first four months shadowing agency employees and attending meetings before proposing collaborative projects. The other selected artists are Stephen Kwok, working with the NYC Department of Small Business Services, and Mauricio Higuera, working with the Mayor’s Office of Housing Recovery Operations.