Urbana Public Arts Program and UCIMC are accepting applications to Open Scene

Open Scene Announces Call for Participants:

Now taking applications for stakeholders and youth to join in community collaboration. 

Urbana, IL – The City of Urbana and the Urbana-Champaign Independent Media Center (UCIMC) are thrilled to announce the start of the first phase of Open Scene: Debuts of Youth’s Views in Downtown Urbana. 

We are now taking applications for youth and adult leaders to participate. Blair Ebony Smith has been selected as Project Coordinator, who will carry out this innovative youth media project. Twelve youth and ten community stakeholders will be chosen to take part in the series of workshops and discussions. Together, youth and stakeholders represent Open Scene Leaders, who will develop criteria for artist selection, develop the project’s guiding questions regarding livability and placemaking in downtown Urbana, and participate in two weekend intensives with selected artists. Using techniques learned from workshop intensives, they will help facilitate arts-based civic dialogue workshops for the community and publicly showcase creative work and research. 

“We are happy to join with the City of Urbana to provide more opportunities for marginalized youth to explore their artistic interests and speak their genius through this series of participant-led activities,” said Brian Dolinar, UCIMC Project Director. 

Those who would like to join Open Scene as youth leaders or community stakeholders can pick up application forms at Independent Media Center, City of Urbana, Urbana Free Library, Champaign Public Library, Douglass Branch Library, and Phillips Recreation Center, or apply online at ucimc.org. Ideal candidates should be willing to commit to the year-long project, which includes weekend meetings and events, and youth may participate during afterschool hours. While adult leaders will be volunteers, youth who are involved will receive a $600 stipend. The deadline for adults to apply is September 30, while the deadline for youth leaders is November 1. For more information, contact Blair Ebony Smith at (217) 344-8820 or blairebonysmith@ucimc.org. No one who applies will be refused from participating.  

Open Scene was awarded a $50,000 Our Town grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) in Spring 2016. Through Open Scene, the City of Urbana and the UCIMC will partner together to create a plan for reclaiming the city’s center through arts-based dialogues that directly incorporate the experiences of youth. The five-phase project will be led by a team of community stakeholders, a dozen youth, and four artists from varied disciplines, who together will lead community workshops and create art that identifies the cultural needs of all of Urbana's diverse residents. Women and minorities are encouraged to apply. Showcases of creative work rendered will be open to the public throughout the process. Open Scene's team leadership approach – youth partnering equally with adult community stakeholders – empowers local youth and works as a creative means of civic engagement and strategic planning for Urbana. 

To join in the conversation, use #OpenSceneUrbana on social media. More information about Open Scene can be found at ucimc.org and on our Facebook page Open Scene Urbana.