The Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) announced the launch of “Arts Elevate” which is part of the Barr Foundation’s “Creative Commonwealth Initiative.” This partnership is designed to enhance and sustain arts and culture in 20 of the 21 communities in GLCF’s catchment area. The Barr Foundation, established in 1987, is a Boston-based foundation with a focus on Arts & Creativity, Climate and Education. GLCF will receive a three-year, $575,000 grant.
“Barr is thrilled to partner with the Greater Lowell Community Foundation team as it takes important steps to better understand the region’s arts ecosystem and forms strategies that can bring greater resources for artists and arts organizations throughout the diverse communities that make up Greater Lowell,” said San San Wong, Director of Arts and Culture for the Barr Foundation.
Barr invests in community foundations as cornerstone institutions in their regions. These place-based philanthropies hold unique potential as civic leaders and catalysts for positive change. They have knowledge, relationships, and credibility to help infuse arts and creativity into civic life. They can convene organizations across sectors, bring new information and insights to decision makers, raise public awareness of key issues and opportunities, attract donors to generate new funding, and spur collaborations that center arts and culture in community.
“We are honored to join the Barr Foundation’s ‘Creative Commonwealth Initiative’ as art has enormous power to enrich lives, bridge divides, spur innovation, and fuel economic growth,” said Jay Linnehan, GLCF’s President and CEO. “Art brings vibrancy to our community, and we look forward to elevating this vibrancy in Greater Lowell with the support of the Barr Foundation.”
This is the second grant GLCF has received from the Barr Foundation. In 2020, with lead support from the Barr Foundation, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation, in partnership with the City of Lowell, the Lowell Plan, and a wide range of organizations across the city, Mosaic Lowell was created. Mosaic Lowell is an arts, cultural and creative economy plan for the City of Lowell. To learn more about GLCF’s “Arts Elevate” initiative, participation in the “Creative Commonwealth Initiative” and our commitment to promoting arts and culture in Greater Lowell, please contact: howard@glcfoundation.org.
