Anniversaries can be both moments of reflection and inflection. They inspire us to renew our commitments and help us see the opportunity and possibilities that yet lie ahead. While this time is rife with uncertainty, like many before, America’s 250th should be no different.
Anniversaries can be both moments of reflection and inflection. They inspire us to renew our commitments and help us see the opportunity and possibilities that yet lie ahead. While this time is rife with uncertainty, like many before, America’s 250th should be no different.
This year, alongside the official 250th celebrations, something else will also be happening. Artists, culture bearers, storytellers, organizers, bridge builders, and faith leaders from every state and territory will be helping to reimagine our country and shared future.
This year, alongside the official 250th celebrations, something else will also be happening. Artists, culture bearers, storytellers, organizers, bridge builders, and faith leaders from every state and territory will be helping to reimagine our country and shared future.
This year, alongside the official 250th celebrations, something else will also be happening. Artists, culture bearers, storytellers, organizers, bridge builders, and faith leaders from every state and territory will be helping to reimagine our country and shared future.
This year, alongside the official 250th celebrations, something else will also be happening. Artists, culture bearers, storytellers, organizers, bridge builders, and faith leaders from every state and territory will be helping to reimagine our country and shared future.
Grounded in the practice of Philanthropy as a Creative Act, The Hearthland Foundation put out a call for ideas that will seed our next 50 years, while not ceding human dignity for all and a fuller story of our country.
Grounded in the practice of Philanthropy as a Creative Act, The Hearthland Foundation put out a call for ideas that will seed our next 50 years, while not ceding human dignity for all and a fuller story of our country.
Grounded in the practice of Philanthropy as a Creative Act, The Hearthland Foundation put out a call for ideas that will seed our next 50 years, while not ceding human dignity for all and a fuller story of our country.
Grounded in the practice of Philanthropy as a Creative Act, The Hearthland Foundation put out a call for ideas that will seed our next 50 years, while not ceding human dignity for all and a fuller story of our country.
What came back is as diverse as the country itself. The projects we are supporting span disciplines, cultural traditions, and geography.
From the islands of Hawaii to the coast of Maine, here is a glimpse into what a few of our grantees are up to this summer and fall:
What came back is as diverse as the country itself. The projects we are supporting span disciplines, cultural traditions, and geography.
From the islands of Hawaii to the coast of Maine, here is a glimpse into what a few of our grantees are up to this summer and fall:
What came back is as diverse as the country itself. The projects we are supporting span disciplines, cultural traditions, and geography.
From the islands of Hawaii to the coast of Maine, here is a glimpse into what a few of our grantees are up to this summer and fall:
Decatur, GA
The Backroads Tour launches in Decatur, Georgia. Running until the Fourth of July, the 20-stop tour brings folk and Americana artists to rural communities from coast to coast for intimate concerts celebrating the rebellious joy that built America—and the people who are continuing that tradition today.
Decatur, GA
The Backroads Tour launches in Decatur, Georgia. Running until the Fourth of July, the 20-stop tour brings folk and Americana artists to rural communities from coast to coast for intimate concerts celebrating the rebellious joy that built America—and the people who are continuing that tradition today.
Knoxville, WV
Rural Digital Youth Resiliency Project hosts a community storytelling and zine workshop so young Appalachians can contribute their stories and their hopes to a multimedia project about rural life and futures.
Knoxville, WV
Rural Digital Youth Resiliency Project hosts a community storytelling and zine workshop so young Appalachians can contribute their stories and their hopes to a multimedia project about rural life and futures.
Las Vegas, NV
Bonfire, a group that holds monthly get-togethers for neighbors in Las Vegas, marks the 250th by hosting the Declarations of Interdependence Relay’s Nevada stop. The relay—inspired by the passing of the Olympic torch and designed to inspire connection across state lines—is making its way east. Rather than passing a baton, the community groups participating are passing a box filled with local objects and commitments of care.
Las Vegas, NV
Bonfire, a group that holds monthly get-togethers for neighbors in Las Vegas, marks the 250th by hosting the Declarations of Interdependence Relay’s Nevada stop. The relay—inspired by the passing of the Olympic torch and designed to inspire connection across state lines—is making its way east. Rather than passing a baton, the community groups participating are passing a box filled with local objects and commitments of care.
Philadelphia, PA
In case of fire, speak premieres. The joint production from Martha Graham Dance Company and Philadanco! reinterprets Graham’s influential 1938 work American Document. Drawing on excerpts from seminal American texts and music, the performance explores what it means to be an American today.
Philadelphia, PA
In case of fire, speak premieres. The joint production from Martha Graham Dance Company and Philadanco! reinterprets Graham’s influential 1938 work American Document. Drawing on excerpts from seminal American texts and music, the performance explores what it means to be an American today.
Rushville, NE
Rushville (population 800) transforms when the Sandhills Institute stages the public art project Self Evident. More than 1,332 T-shirts—each featuring a single word from the Declaration of Independence handwritten by people in all 50 U.S. states and territories—will be hung on a clothesline above Main Street. Neighbors will celebrate the installation at a picnic where they’ll discuss the country’s past, present, and future. This project is one of 13 in a series called Why We Gather, for which artists including Jeffrey Gibson will mount projects in rural communities across the country.
Rushville, NE
Rushville (population 800) transforms when the Sandhills Institute stages the public art project Self Evident. More than 1,332 T-shirts—each featuring a single word from the Declaration of Independence handwritten by people in all 50 U.S. states and territories—will be hung on a clothesline above Main Street. Neighbors will celebrate the installation at a picnic where they’ll discuss the country’s past, present, and future. This project is one of 13 in a series called Why We Gather, for which artists including Jeffrey Gibson will mount projects in rural communities across the country.
Gary, IN
With training and support from Capital B, young people are documenting the stories of Black elders—including historical memories tied to civil rights battles, migrations, and communities built from nothing. The resulting archive will serve as both a community treasure and an explicit counter-narrative to efforts to sanitize the past.
Gary, IN
With training and support from Capital B, young people are documenting the stories of Black elders—including historical memories tied to civil rights battles, migrations, and communities built from nothing. The resulting archive will serve as both a community treasure and an explicit counter-narrative to efforts to sanitize the past.
Los Angeles, CA
Art of the Crossfade brings music and storytelling to California Plaza in downtown L.A. Produced by cultural historian Josh Kun and hip-hop DJ/producer J.PERIOD, Art of the Crossfade uses the DJ crossfader as both method and metaphor to confront polarization and reimagine democratic belonging.
Los Angeles, CA
Art of the Crossfade brings music and storytelling to California Plaza in downtown L.A. Produced by cultural historian Josh Kun and hip-hop DJ/producer J.PERIOD, Art of the Crossfade uses the DJ crossfader as both method and metaphor to confront polarization and reimagine democratic belonging.
Montgomery, AL
Utilizing billboards, projections, and other media, artist Carrie Mae Weems deploys images of small-scale models, maquettes, sculptures, drawings, and paintings in public spaces and on the exteriors of civic buildings. This is just one stop for her 250 & Change project, which posits the question: “What container, what marker, what memorial can hold our collective voices?” In addition to Montgomery, Weems is taking 250 & Change to New York, Chicago, Houston, and Los Angeles.
Montgomery, AL
Utilizing billboards, projections, and other media, artist Carrie Mae Weems deploys images of small-scale models, maquettes, sculptures, drawings, and paintings in public spaces and on the exteriors of civic buildings. This is just one stop for her 250 & Change project, which posits the question: “What container, what marker, what memorial can hold our collective voices?” In addition to Montgomery, Weems is taking 250 & Change to New York, Chicago, Houston, and Los Angeles.
ALL PROJECTS
Afro Charities
American Indigenous Democracy: A Call For Interdependence
American Journalism Project, Inc. | US@250 Fund
American Stories
Amplify 250 | Mobilizing Musicians for America’s 250th
Amplifier | National Creative Assembly for America@250
Art of the Crossfade
ArtPhilly | in case of fire, speak
Artistic Noise, Inc. | A Year of Artistic Advocacy
Barnraisers | Declarations of Interdependence Relay
Between Islands & Diaspora
Black Music Action Coalition | Voices of America
Carrie Mae Weems | 250 & CHANGE
Clockshop | Engagement in California State Parks
Creative Capital | State of the Art Prize
Faith250
Framed in the South
Future Currents
Innovia Foundation | “Making More Possible—Together”
Kinfolk Tech | Ourchives: A People’s History of America’s 250th
Liberation Ventures | America’s 250th Pooled Narrative Fund for Repair / Campaign
Made by Us
Magnum Foundation | Time Capsule: U.S. Dispatches Visual Storytelling Initiative
New America Foundation | Us@250 Fellowship
Next River | Freedom Hotline
Organizing Stories: America at 250
Project Bullhorn | Scaling user-generated content for America’s 250th
Rural Progress | Backroads Tour
Rural Digital Youth Project, Inc. | Appalachia@250: Dreams for a Shared Future
Salt Lick Incubator | Reexamining the Great American Songbook
The 19th | US@250
Why We Gather