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Erie Arts & Culture is proud to present this week's Friday Feature! K Sanz is an Erie staple in the Hip Hop scene. From interweaving his raps over blazing hot tracks to getting behind the lens and capturing the culture on camera, he has contributed to the arena in significant ways. His mark has been made, and he continues to add to this legacy through meaningful music and energy. 

Erie Arts & Culture is proud to present this week's Friday Feature! Leslie Lawrence has the world in her hands as she utilizes the magic of her lens to capture the wonders of life around her. Grabbing inspiration from her early beginnings in Africa, she has found a way to alchemize her appreciation for her new home in the United States, turning her perspective into Art that we all can appreciate. I had the pleasure of getting to know her story more in-depth, which has allowed me to find her talents that much more awe-inspiring.

Let's give a warm welcome to our second Visiting Artist of 2023, Kris Rumman.

Starting March 1, Erie Arts & Culture will accept applications for grants administered through the Erie Arts Endowment Subfunds: the Lydia McCain Fund, the Clarence E. Beyers Fund, and the Virginia P. Vieser Fund. Read more about each program below.

Erie Arts & Culture is proud to present this week's Friday Feature! Harv Gorton is what you'd like to call a "rod practictioner", which is someone who specializes in the art of making custom fishing rods. Dedicating his talents and time to his unique skillset, he makes the sport of Fishing fun and exciting for his clients who want a rod that fits their personality. Kelly Armor had the opportunity to learn more about Harv and shared his story for this week's Friday Feature!

Let's give a warm welcome to our first Visiting Artist of 2023, Katherine Toukhy.

In early 2020, Erie Arts & Culture launched a visiting artist residency program in collaboration with Long Road Projects. Through this program, Erie Arts & Culture and Long Road Projects provide contemporary artists with dedicated time and space to reflect, research, and create new bodies of work – outside of their usual environments. This program also creates opportunities for new perspectives and creative processes to be shared, which in turn positively impacts the cultural and creative landscape in Northwestern Pennsylvania. 

This visiting artist residency program is made possible through the generous support of a privately funded grant from The Erie Community Foundation. 

Erie Arts & Culture pays special tribute to an Erie trailblazer who contributed an immense amount of passion and creativity to the Music and Art culture of the city. Jon Box created an abundance of avenues for local artists and performers to express themselves in an environment of love, acceptance, and encouragement. Dedicating his energies to raising awareness for the less fortunate, he would organize events specifically to donate proceeds to local organizations, and inspire collaboration amongst those in attendance. As an entrepreneur, he utilized his love for Hip Hop to start his own clothing line, The Box Streetware, which included stylish T-shirts that would always be infused with inspirational messages. Jon Box carried with him such an upbeat personality that it was hard not to feel empowered after just one conversation with him. His vision for Erie was carried out through his works, and he will not be forgotten. 

Erie Arts & Culture is proud to present this week's Friday Feature! DJ Vanni has brought the hypest, most infectious energy to Erie nightlife for many years. His DJ sets are known to bring the most undeniable celebratory vibes, and he has even taken his talents on the road to "Wow" the big city events. It's hard to deny this artist's contribution to the Hip Hop culture of Erie, Pa, and I was fortunate to be able to learn a little bit more about what inspires this DJ to make history every chance he gets.

We are proud of our accomplishments last quarter, and we invite you to read and share our 2022 Q4 Impact Report! Please download the pdf to learn about our most recent programs, services, and impact on the community. We also welcome a conversation with you if you have questions about any of our programs and initiatives. You can reach our Executive Director at [email protected] if you have any questions. 

Your support helps us leverage the power of the arts and humanities to address the vital needs and interests of Erie. Together, we can make a positive impact in our community.

Thank you to all musicians who contributed to the Valentine's Day Playlist!

EAC is proud to support your work.

We invite all music lovers in the region to support these musicians by sharing this playlist with friends, subscribing to the playlist on spotify, and browsing the bios and links of the artists below.

Here is a direct link to share the playlist:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2OsX2y9qFOVqhhN4iu2zrh?si=d127736f4f9744fd

We will also play this list and celebrate the musicians at our Creative Crowd Gathering on Feb 14 from 5:30 - 7:30 at GROUNDED Printshop.

Congratulations to the Appreciation Awards Recipients!

For more than three decades, the Arts and Culture Appreciation Awards have recognized and honored those individuals, businesses, and organizations who use arts-based disciplines or deliver cultural programming to positively impact the Erie community.

We wish to recognize and celebrate community members for their support and contribution to the creative and cultural sector.  This year’s community award recipients will be celebrated at the Creative Crowd event on Feb 14 from 5:30 - 7:30 PM at GROUNDED Printshop.

In 2022, EAC facilitated 11 Creative Crowd meet ups! Three individuals share their experience in our latest blog post.