The Bridge Progressive Arts Initiative hosted its monthly meeting of The Arts Incubator Thursday evening at its Monticello Road headquarters.
Serena Gruia, programming manager for the Bridge, said the Incubator is a support group and salon for local artists and creative thinkers in the Charlottesville community.
“Usually in school you have that experience where you have a lot of exposure to what other people are doing,” Gruia said. “But once you get out of school, that same environment doesn’t exist, or you have to seek it out. So we’re trying to create that environment for out-of-school people.”
Since its founding in 2007, the Bridge's central focus has been community outreach, working to foster collaboration between creative thinkers and Charlottesville’s various public and government agencies.
Fourth-year College student Daillen Culver, an intern at the Bridge, said community engagement is one of organization's biggest draws.
“What really stands out about the Bridge is their commitment to community development,” Culver said. “All of their initiatives are geared towards understanding and connecting with the values of Charlottesville and its many communities.”
One initiative in particular partners with doctors and nurses from the University Medical Center and Martha Jefferson hospital to tackle infant mortality — a severe problem in Central Virginia. Gruia said they wanted to figure out how arts could address issues faced by the medical community with a fresh perspective.
“We bring everyone together and then think about the issue and figure out ways that art and design can address the needs,” Gruia said.
This past summer, the Bridge, in partnership with the city and Piedmont Council for the Arts, received a $50,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to support a two-year project. The project, known as Play the City, will engage the Charlottesville community in redeveloping the city through artistic endeavors.
“Through this initiative, we hope to engage local residents in the redevelopment of specific areas near the Downtown Mall,” Culver said. “Many of these residents have been underrepresented in past development endeavors, and through the arts we hope to empower them and make sure their voices are heard.”
Second-year College student Sara Ho, also an intern at the Bridge, said University students should get involved in these community programs.
“I think it’s very easy for students to live in a bubble within the University,” Ho said. “Charlottesville is an amazingly creative and vibrant town. We have events all the time that are open to the public and students are encouraged to come.”
This collaborative spirit is the Bridge's overarching objective, Gruia said
“There’s just a general idea that people can communicate and collaborate through the arts,” Gruia said. “We feel like everyone has creativity within them, and being able to elevate the dialogue using arts is something that we particularly excel at.”
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