In conjunction with Theatre in the Park’s production of In the Heights, this site-responsive installation by the Johnson County Developmental Supports (JCDS) Emerging Artists highlights diversity as present in the city streets of New York. Through an innovative collaboration with a unique perspective, visitors will see, hear, and feel what it means to finally exhale.
In the Heights is a story of home, family, and finding where you belong…a concept which can be echoed by all who identify as different. We acknowledge these differences in celebration. Diversity is precisely what makes our world so rich. Individuals and groups of all ethnicities, ages, orientations, and capabilities bring forth innovative ideas as an agent of change.
JCDS Emerging Artists Program provides opportunities for individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities to be employed as artists. A second place to call home, the Emerging Artists program provides direct personal growth for each artist involved, including increased social-emotional development, communication skills, and self-esteem, just to name a few. The Emerging Artists art studio is housed inside the Johnson County Arts & Heritage Center, where original works of art are available for sale.
With a group of artists at the helm of this project, Arts Specialist JT Daniels designed an inclusive installation where every artist’s unique style is at the forefront. Visible within the crowd of New York, each artist is represented through a direct tracing of their body which is then fleshed out through their intimate, artistic eye. This concept reaffirms the celebration that is diversity in every form.
This opportunity is supported by a National Endowment for the Arts grant.