WHAT: Poetry Potluck – A reading by the poets of San Francisco’s Neighborhood Arts Program – including San Francisco’s past Poet Laureates and today’s poet activists from some of San Francisco's diverse, multicultural neighborhoods.
San Francisco Arts Commission’s Neighborhood Arts Program is celebrating the anniversary of 40 years of funding arts and programs in San Francisco’s neighborhoods and their cultural Arts Centers. Glide Memorial Church was a major platform for poetry and cultural festivals in the mid 60's before the advent of cultural centers in various neighborhoods. Poets Gary Snyder, Lenore Kandell, Michael McClure, Alan Ginsberg, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Bob Kaufman and other beat generation artists were featured on Glide's stage. Many voices among the African American, Latino, Asian American, Native American and South Asian communities were given a stage for grassroots activism and movements of the times. Maya Angelou, David Henderson, Ntozake Shange, Janice Mirikitani and Robert Vargas were among those speaking out through poetry for civil and human rights. The Poetry Potluck celebrates the rich political history of San Francisco’s poetry movement, and its influence on the nation and around the world.
Light refreshments provided by Benkyodo, a family-owned and operated Japanese confections store in Japantown since 1906.
WHEN: Friday, May 2 from 7 – 10pm
WHERE: Glide Memorial Church, 330 Ellis Street, San Francisco
WHO: Roberto Vargas, Janice Mirikitani, Jack Hirschman,
Nina Serrano, Al Robles, Alejandro Murgia and others
INFO: http://sfartscommission.org/CAE/NAP/ or
by calling (415) 252-2598
BACKGROUND:
About the Neighborhood Arts Festival
In 1967, a group of artists and arts activists brought a radical notion to the San Francisco Arts Commission: fund artists and arts organizations to work in neighborhood and community settings. The program was called the Neighborhood Arts Program. Its tagline was, “Nurturing arts for and by the people where they live and work,” and the total budget for the first fiscal year was $25,000, which was provided by the Arts Commission President at the time, Harold Zellerbach.
To honor the 40th anniversary of the program (now called the Community Arts and Education Program), the Neighborhood Arts Festival is featuring a series of free events that showcase the dynamic artistic and cultural legacy that defines San Francisco neighborhoods today. In conjunction with the celebration, a special-edition program guide will be distributed highlighting performances, exhibitions, panel discussions, and walking tours taking place throughout the city this spring. It will also include a guide to San Francisco-based community artists and arts organizations.
The festival takes place in venues throughout San Francisco with historical significance for art and politics, including San Francisco State University, International Hotel Manilatown Center, Glide Memorial Church, SomArts Cultural Center, African American Art & Culture Complex, Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts, and the Bayview Opera House.
# # # #