Today we’re going to talk about the role of the arts in building a great community that people want to live and work in.
Host Susan Soroko, Director of Creative Economy in BizLaunch at Arlington Economic Development talks with Alissa Maru, Associate Curator at Mason Exhibitions Arlington at George Mason University
Resources
Mason Exhibitions website: http://www.masonexhibitions.org
AED Art Walk Announcement: https://www.arlingtoneconomicdevelopment.com/News-Resources/Events/2024-Arlington-Art-Walk
Art Walk Participants:
ARC 3409 Art Studio artists Courtney Nguyen, Will Salha, Phil Linder, Bryn Wallace; Arlington Art Truck, Arlington Public Art, Arlington Public Library The Shop, Cody Gallery, Fred Schnider Gallery of Art, Mason Exhibitions, The Plaza at Mason Square, Museum of Contemporary Art (MoCA) Arlington, Northside Social Arlington, WHINO
BizLaunch, Arlington’s resource for small businesses: https://www.arlingtoneconomicdevelopment.com/Small-Business/About-BizLaunch
The Innovation Economy podcast is brought to you by Arlington Economic Development: https://www.arlingtoneconomicdevelopment.com
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Transcript
Note: This was AI-generated and only lightly edited.
Susan Soroko: Today, we’re going to talk about the role of the arts in building a great community that people want to live and work in. I’m Susan Sirocco, Director of Creative Economy at Arlington Economic Development. The role of economic development in the public sector is to retain and attract companies and businesses to live, to thrive, for workers to live in Arlington and to have a great community, even in times when things are changing in the work world. So here at economic development, we value the importance of having placemaking and a sector devoted to the arts and creative economy. So to help me discuss this topic, I’d like to welcome Alyssa Maru, Associate Curator at Mason Exhibitions Arlington at George Mason University. Alyssa, welcome to the show. Hi, Sue, I’m so happy to be here. Yeah, you and I have worked together a bunch of times. So why don’t we start with you giving a little background on yourself and your role at Mason Exhibitions Arlington?
Alissa Maru: Sure, fantastic. So I’m a new curator to a new-ish space in Arlington of GMU. Arlington is one of six galleries that George Mason operates. And I’ve been in this role about two years. I’ve started off as primarily just doing the programming, working with communities, doing a lot of outreach to let folks know we’re here and providing a cultural resource for them. And I’ve grown in the role of actually working with artists now. So I facilitate programming and also as the curator here.
Susan Soroko: Tell us a little bit about your background. So what brought you to this role?
Alissa Maru: Sure, yeah, I’ve had, as I say, a zigzag approach to coming into the arts. My background is in marketing and communications. And so I’ve worked in public art. Before coming to Mason, I was at the DC Commission on Arts and Humanities, where I helped run the grant program for public art, so managing the murals and public art program. And then for a while, I also on my own business, where I facilitated live events and did festivals, similar to the one that I brought for art walk called for all night DC, which is I think in its 15th or 16th year now. So it’s we’re taking off as a staple to the DC community, and events like jazz at the salon at the White House. So I’ve had many a role in performing and visual arts.
Susan Soroko: Oh, it’s a perfect setup for an art walk. So those are all skills that are important and really necessary to pull off a terrific event like the Art Walk. So let’s just go back a little bit and talk about the history of the Art Walk. And for folks who may be listening in who are not familiar with Arlington, Virginia or where we are, we are in the district metro area. People think of Arlington and they may think about a cemetery, but we are a lot more than that. And so the Art Walk, getting down to where we are with this event, the Art Walk started about three years ago to highlight the Arlington, Virginia corridor between the Metro stops at Clarendon and Ballston, where it’s peppered with artists’ studios, galleries, and public art along a little bit more than a one-mile strip. And what began as art after hours with a special feature of the Arlington Art Truck, which is a mobile vehicle that does presenting of artists in interactive activities with the public, has grown to include more exhibits, an art market, music, and interactive activities. You and I, Alyssa, have collaborated on the Art Walk and we’ve attracted a lot of foot traffic and we decided to do it again. And even better is that so many of the participating galleries, artists, markets are back on board this year with great enthusiasm. So that’s what I signed up for. How about you?
Alissa Maru: Absolutely. I’m excited for this iteration.
Susan Soroko: So, you know, universities are showing up more and more as integral to a community, especially in an urban area. I mean, this is something that we’ve certainly been very well aware of. Our relationship with universities, especially George Mason, has really blossomed over the years between economic development and universities, and particularly on the tech side and more and more on the on the creative side. So talk about the role of Mason Exhibitions in the Art Walk and the intersection of a university in an engaged neighborhood. Sure thing.
Alissa Maru: So I think that the primary thing for the university and its location is its accessibility. Arlington is directly across the street from the Virginia Square GMU Metro stop on the Orange and Silver Line. And this is paramount with looking at how arts accessibility is a major factor for communicating and reaching new audiences. So not only does the gallery serve our students, but we are in a retail space, ground level with the Orange County community as well. So we have a strong duality of demographic to serve here. and having an engaged student population for Mason. And with each exhibition, I like to layer in a lot of, of course, moments to educate. We do a lot of work here that is social action focused. So I’ve had a lot of intersections of art and programming that have delved into like climate change, motherhood, Afrofuturism, and things that are kind of current art. The last show that we just had was artists from the Ukraine. So we’re able to respond and really connect with the current opportunities and possible struggles that people are experiencing and want to discuss and dialogue and learn about more. So we really drill down on opportunities to share our professors and our knowledge within the university with the Arlington community.
Susan Soroko: Well, you’ve definitely demonstrated over time what that intersection and what that synthesis is really between a university and in the public sector, especially with economic development. And we really appreciate that. So what can people expect this year at the Art Walk? I’m going to go over a few of the highlights and I’m going to let folks know what else they can expect along the way. But along the walk from the North Side Social Arlington to Marymount’s Cody Gallery in Ballston, you’ll be passing galleries, artist studios, and plenty of public art. And I’ll make a plug for public art in Arlington is celebrating its 40th anniversary of stellar award-winning public art throughout the whole community. At the Museum of Contemporary Art Arlington, which we lovingly call MOCA, is kicking off a national biennial exhibit celebration with extended hours, an art market on the lawn, and a cash bar reception from 5 to 8 p.m. In addition to those highlights, you will find this really lovely 3409 Art Studios, the Arc 3409 condominium building on Wilson Boulevard, has four art galleries on the north side of the building where you can contact the artists and stop in to see them at work. The Arlington Art Truck, which has been integral to the Art Walk every year, will have a preview event at Ballston’s Welburn Square on Thursday, October 3rd from 3 to 7, as part of the Mega Mart, and it features artist Scott Pennington. It’s a great The public art, it will be showing on the screens that are in the galley outside of Mason Exhibitions. So folks coming by will get to see the digital display of many of the pieces that are part of this stellar collection. We are partnered with the Arlington Public Library. Their maker studio, The Shop, will be open for until 5 p.m. on the 5th. and we’ll be showing folks some of the equipment that they have and some of the ways that the public can come in and really learn about 3D printing and a variety of different maker equipment and to find their own pace to make their own work. We have also Cody Gallery at Marymount University on the far end at Ballston at 1000 North Glebe Road, part of the new Marymount campus there. Fred Schneider Gallery, just a hidden gem on North Quincy Street, always showing just phenomenally new, interesting art. And of course, you’ve been hearing from Melissa about Mason Exhibitions. And then Mason Square, where George Mason has really renovated their newest piece of their Civic Plaza. Last year, we had the pleasure of working with George Mason to present the Civic Sculpture, which will be part of craft activities, and engage people in conversation about what civic life is like. And if you’re ready to make your voice heard and count, the League of Women Voters will be on hand to register eligible voters. We’re pretty excited about that. So MOCA, across the two blocks from Mason Exhibition, And at the far end is Northside Social Arlington, where there will be some live music, a little exhibit inside the cafe, and it’s the vibe of a contemporary little cafe that we all love. topping it off. We love Wino. Wino is the part art gallery, part restaurant, all vibe. And they are in the Ballston Quarter Mall, and they’ve been a terrific partner through all this. So have I missed anybody, Alyssa? I don’t think so.
Alissa Maru: I was just going to additionally share the activities happening at Mason’s and Arlington. Yes, please do. Sure, sure. So in the gallery, we will have just opened our exhibition of printmaking titled Faces and Figures, Identity Through Printmaking Between South Africa and D.C. This is work of 28 artists from Johannesburg, South Africa, that we are layering in to build community with five printmakers from Washington DC and To have fun with this where I’m bringing in local artists funding Jeffrey’s who will do what she calls a kitchen litho So we’ll be making lithographics from aluminum foil syrup and chocolate I am very excited to see how this how this goes down and we’ll have a DJ as well Just to keep the spirits high throughout the night
Susan Soroko: Oh my gosh, that just sounds delicious. Right?
Alissa Maru: You may want to lift your prey afterwards.
Susan Soroko: On all levels, you’re going to want to hang out there for sure. So, you know, you and I are obviously, you know, big fans of this event. We’ve done it now a couple of years and really love the participation and the response that we get from the general public. Why do you think the Art Walk and programs like it are so important to both residents and businesses?
Alissa Maru: Sure. You know, it’s that the, the desire, and I know from Arlington County as this, this Miss Arlington came to fruition from engagement from Arlington County, from Mason and the developer. So there’s, you know, multiple layers of interest to, to infuse art in the area. It really does have a cultural resource and investment to the economy. You know, arts and being engaged with arts provides, you know, for all ages opportunity to have conversation, to learn, to expand, and to know more things, which we all want to do. And my goal here also, not even, you know, a tertiary layer of being an art space is to be a new term to me called third space, which is in the vein of like, how we like to have coffee and go to a coffee shop and meet our friends, you know, our doors are open for people to come relax, have conversation. You know, we don’t want a quiet gallery always. You know, we are here for conversation, learning, dialogue, and safety. So that, you know, we’re trying to, you know, make this space fold into the community as a space to visit, hang, engage, and learn. So we’re here to be a cultural resource.
Susan Soroko: You know, and I have to commend you that Throughout the Art Walk and all the spaces that are up and down this particular corridor, one thread, and certainly one that both MOCA and Mason exhibitions really have embraced, is the importance of technology as a driver for science, human study, the response to current events. And we’ve demonstrated in many of those spaces along this corridor that those things are really critical. They are not a sidebar to the creative industries, but they are an integral part of how we look at economic development and cultural amenities. So we’re really excited to hear more and more about the ways that all of these creative places and spots along the way are really a bigger demonstration of the unique values that they bring to Arlington. And we really genuinely hope that that’s really what makes Arlington unique so that the businesses that are interested in moving here, staying here, expanding here, thriving here, have a whole lot to pick from. So, Alyssa, as always, it’s a pleasure. Thanks so much for joining the show. One last question before we wrap up the episode. For those in the Arlington, Virginia area and beyond, where can people learn more about the Arlington Art Walk on October 5th?
Alissa Maru: Absolutely. I’m so excited for this day too. So I know information we posted on the ArlingtonEconomicDevelopment.com website, where you could find the maps and all the listings of more detail about each location. And of course, I’ll have it also up on the website for Mason Exhibitions, which is www.MasonExhibitions.com. We’re going to be heavy on the gram as well. and all of our social media accounts to promote each other. A lot of the foundationals beginnings of the Art Walk were for the cultural entities to support each other, build our networks, know each other better as humans and as institutions. So we’ll all be sharing it and engaging.
Susan Soroko: Oh my gosh, you couldn’t have said it better. You are building a community between all of the creatives, the artists, as well as between the residents and the businesses that are here. So Thank you. It’s it’s great. Do you have a last thought or a last word?
Alissa Maru: I do. I just wanted to say thank you for for allowing me to come on. It’s been great to talk about this and share about this fantastic event happening on October 5 from four to seven. I’ll do my shameless plug of sharing again about the exhibition at Mason Exhibitions Arlington, Faces and Figures, Identity through Printmaking Between South Africa and DC, which will be up between September 13th and December 6th. Again, a good amount of programming in between those dates and check the website for more and hope to see you guys there.
Susan Soroko: Excellent. Thank you so much. Again, I’d like to thank Alyssa Maru, Associate Curator at Mason Exhibitions Arlington, for joining the show. You can learn more about Alyssa and Mason Exhibitions and about Arlington Economic Development by following the links in the show notes. Note that there will be a map about the Art Walk that will be available for people to visit many of these cultural amenities throughout the year and not just on October 5th. But we hope to see you there. It’ll be fun.
