>>>
>>> SO,
>>> SO, AS COVID CLOSED UP COMMERCE ALL AROUND, BOARDED UP
BUSINESSES BECOME A FAMILIAR
SIGHT ON THE STREETS OF
SEATTLE.
SEATTLE.
SEATTLE. THANKS TO LOCAL ARTISTS ,
ORDINARY PLYWOOD HAVE BECOME
CANVAS FOR INCREDIBLE MURALS
ALL ACROSS OUR CITY.
MARTY GRISWOLD TALKS ABOUT HOW
TO PRESERVE THIS HISTORIC
DISPLAY OF PUBLIC ART.
>> IT ALL CAME OUT OF THIS ART
PROGRAM THAT WE HAD STARTED A
WHILE AGO, BUT WE HONED IT IN
FOR THE COVID-19 DURING THE
PANDEMIC AND WE STARTED
EMERGING FROM THE STAY-AT-HOME
ORDER.
ORDER.
ORDER. WE
ORDER. WE STARTED REALIZING THERE WAS
INCREDIBLE ART EVERYWHERE
AROUND THE CITY.
WE DECIDED SOMEONE HAD TO
BASICALLY CAPTURE IT, RIGHT?
BECAUSE IT'S GOING TO BE COMING
DOWN AS BUSINESSES OPENED UP,
AND NOBODY WOULD KNOW WHAT TO
DO.
DO.
DO. WE
DO. WE SENT A PHOTOGRAPHER AROUND
AND CAPTURED OVER 300 PIECES
THAT WERE AROUND THE CITY.
IT IS A REALLY AMAZING
COLLECTION OF WORK, AND I THINK
IT IS HISTORIC, TOO.
>> MY FAVORITE, I'M ASHAMED TO
SAY THIS KIND OF, BUT MY
FAVORITE WAS TIGER KING, THE
TIGER KING MURAL.
>> IT WAS PERFECT.
IT CAPTURED THE ZEITGEIST OF
THE MOMENT.
THE MOMENT. WE WERE ALL BINGE WATCHING TV
AND THOSE ARTISTS WERE OUT
THERE CREATING INCREDIBLE ART.
AND TAPPING INTO POP-CULTURE
AND WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT FROM
THE COMMUNITY AND JUST BEAUTY
ALL THE WAY AROUND.
I KNOW WHEN I CAME OUT OF THE
STAY-AT-HOME ORDER AND STARTED
LOOKING AROUND AND SEEING
POSITIVE MESSAGES, IT MADE ME
FEEL A LOT BETTER ABOUT MYSELF
AND WHAT WE WERE GOING THROUGH.
YOU WEREN'T ALONE ANYMORE, YOU
WERE PART OF A COMMUNITY.
>> I COULD NOT AGREE WITH YOU
MORE, BECAUSE IT DID FEEL LIKE
WE WERE ALL TOGETHER IN THIS.
SPEAKING OF WONDERFUL THINGS TO
BE DONE, LET'S TALK ABOUT ART
SAVES ME.
SAVES ME.
SAVES ME. WHAT DO YOU ALL DO AND WHAT
HAVE YOU ACHIEVED SO FAR?
>> ART SAVES ME IS A PROGRAM
UNDER ONE UMBRELLA AND ONE
UMBRELLA HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE
1972.
1972.
1972. PRIMARILY WE ARE KNOWN FOR
BUMPER SHOOTS AND PIANO IN THE
PARK WHICH ARE BIG EVENTS OF
THE YEAR.
THE YEAR.
THE YEAR. THIS SPRING WE REALIZED PRETTY
QUICKLY THAT WE WERE GOING TO
HAVE A LOT OF SUMMERTIME
EVENTS.
EVENTS.
EVENTS. SO, AS WE WERE GOING INTO THE
STAY-AT-HOME ORDER, WE WERE
LOOKING FOR WAYS TO ENGAGE IN
STILL SUPPORT THE ARTS
COMMUNITY.
COMMUNITY. IT IS ALL ABOUT THE
TRANSFORMATIVE POWER OF ART AND
CONNECTING WITH ARTISTS IN A
NEW WAY AND HAVING THEN CONNECT
WITH THE COMMUNITY ON SOCIAL
ISSUES, PERSONAL CHALLENGES WE
ALL FACE.
ALL FACE.
ALL FACE. AND SO, WHEN COVID-19 HIT, WE
THOUGHT, THIS IS A REALLY --
THIS JUST SEEMS PERFECT FOR
THIS.
THIS.
THIS. AND
THIS. AND SO WE JUMPED REALLY QUICKLY
AND PUT TOGETHER A CALL FOR
BRANDS AND WE GAVE OUT FIVE
GRANTS TO FIVE REALLY WONDERFUL
ARTISTS FROM EVERY DISCIPLINE
FROM DANCE TO THEATER TO MUSIC
TO VISUAL ARTS, AND REALLY LET
THEM JUST TAKE IT AND RUN WITH
IT.
IT.
IT. WITHIN ABOUT 14 DAYS, ABOUT TWO
WEEKS WE HAD DONE THE CALL TO
ARTISTS AND WE ACTUALLY AWARDED
THE GRANTS, WHICH IS UNHEARD OF
IN THE NONPROFIT WORLD, RIGHT?
BECAUSE WE KNEW WE HAD TO AND
WE CONNECTED WITH, YOU KNOW, WE
PUT TOGETHER A QUICK AWARD FOR
THE COMMUNITY THAT WAS A PANEL
THAT ACTUALLY LOOKED AT EVERY
SINGLE ONE OF THE GRANT
SUBMISSIONS, AND THEY ALL DID
IT REMOTELY AND WE WERE HAVING
ZOOM CONFERENCES TO DISCUSS IT.
I'M JUST AMAZED AT WHAT A GREAT
JOB THEY DID IN SELECTING
ARTISTS.
ARTISTS.
ARTISTS. SO, THAT WAS THE FIRST PHASE,
AND THEN WE WERE PLANNING ON
LAUNCHING THE ART SAVES ME SITE
SPECIFICALLY TO SHOWCASE THAT
ARTWORK WHEN WE STARTED COMING
OUT OF THE STAY AT HOME AND I
SAW THE MURALS AND I WAS LIKE,
OKAY, WE HAVE TO DO TWO THINGS.
>> RIGHT NOW FROM WHAT I
UNDERSTAND, YOU GUYS ARE
FOCUSING ON THE BLACK LIVES
MATTER MOVEMENT.
MATTER MOVEMENT. TELL US ABOUT THAT EXPEDITION
AND WHO IS GOING TO BENEFIT
FROM THAT SUPPORT?
>> I THINK THIS IS REALLY
IMPORTANT AND IT IS HUGELY
IMPORTANT TO THIS TIME RIGHT
NOW AND WE WANTED TO BE ABLE TO
FIGURE OUT A WAY TO GET BACK.
THERE WERE SOME INCREDIBLE
ARTWORK OUT THERE FOR THE BLACK
LIVES MATTER MOVEMENT WE HAVE
BEEN WORKING ON AND EXHIBIT
THAT WE WILL BE LAUNCHING
WITHIN A FEW DAYS.
IT IS PRIMARILY ALL LACK LIVES
MATTER MURALS AND ALL DONATIONS
THAT COME TO THE WEBSITE
THROUGH THE MONTH OF AUGUST,
AND THAT IS THE THING.
WE ARE TRYING TO RAISE MONEY
FOR ARTISTS AND ANY DONATIONS
THAT WE GATHER FOR THE WEBSITE
GO DIRECTLY TO ARTISTS.
SO -- OR TO THE CAUSE THEY ARE
BEHIND.
BEHIND.
BEHIND. YOU KNOW, WE ARE STILL IN THE
MIDST OF REACHING OUT TO OUR
ARTISTS, BUT SO FAR EVERYBODY
HAS BEEN WONDERFUL TO LET US
SHOWCASE THEIR ART.
BECAUSE IT IS NOT OUR ART, WE
ARE JUST SHOWCASING IT FOR THEM
TRYING TO GIVE THEM A BIT MORE
EXPOSURE.
EXPOSURE.
EXPOSURE. >> WHAT A GREAT PLATFORM THAT
EVERYONE CAN SHARE IN.
FROM WHAT I UNDERSTAND, YOU
ALSO SUPPLY A MEETING FOR
PEOPLE TO CREATE THIS ART,
RIGHT?
RIGHT?
RIGHT? >>
RIGHT? >> IN RECENT DEVELOPMENTS WE
HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH A GROUP
CALLED PAINT FOR CHANGE BECAUSE
WE WANTED TO BE ABLE TO FIND A
WAY TO CHANNEL THOSE FUNDS
DIRECTLY TO ARTISTS.
SO THEY ARE HELPING US.
WE ARE GOING TO BE BY SUPPLIES
AND THEY WILL BE HELPING US
DISTRIBUTE THEM TO DIFFERENT
MURAL ARTIST AROUND THE CITY,
AND WE ARE ALSO HELPING THEM
TRY TO FIND PLATFORMS OR MURAL
SPACE BECAUSE, I GUESS THE
POSITIVE PART OF COVID IS ALL
THOSE WINDOWS WERE BOARDED UP
SO THERE WAS ALL THIS HUGE
BASICALLY --
BASICALLY -- >> CANVASES EVERYWHERE.
>> THEY DISAPPEARED SO WHAT WE
WANT TO DO IS