ArtSurround is a new collaborative effort, launched in early 2022, among the public, private, and nonprofit sectors to enhance Sonoma County’s creative vitality by supporting artists and infusing the arts into our public realm. The program engages businesses and public agencies that endeavor to enhance community livability through the arts, and fosters public imagination by supporting artists who work at the intersection of inspiration and effective community arts engagement. This program engages two different cohorts:  an Artist Cohort and an Advocate Cohort, who will work on parallel tracks to increase community arts engagement across Sonoma County.

The Advocate Cohort includes staff from cities, towns, arts organizations and businesses who will engage with artists to incorporate their work into public spaces. Art projects will be designed to engage the surrounding neighborhoods and communities in creative processes as the art works are developed.

The Artist Cohort is open to Sonoma County artists interested in developing skills and best practices in their own public art and community engagement work. The artists receive training and then are invited to develop proposals for Advocate’s sites. The artist projects are funded by Creative Sonoma and its partners. Details on how to apply to the Artist Cohort Training and Grant are at www.CreativeSonoma.org/as-grant/.

At the end of first cycle of ArtSurround, it is anticipated that a dozen or more public art projects will have been produced by Artist Cohort members in multiple communities throughout Sonoma County.