Co-Creative Placekeeping in Los Angeles: Artists and Communities Working Together

Co-Creative Placekeeping in Los Angeles explores the efforts of socially engaged art (SEA) practitioners to ensure equitable placekeeping in the city, focusing on how artists engage community members, sustain relationships, and defy the presumption that residents cannot speak for themselves. The book offers a novel examination of SEA's role in community development and gentrification and is a valuable resource for researchers and students of urban studies.

Format: Hardback
Length: 214 pages
Publication date: 05 December 2023
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Co-Creative Placekeeping in Los Angeles is a groundbreaking exploration of the equitable placekeeping efforts of socially engaged art (SEA) practitioners in the vibrant city of Los Angeles. This novel concept, equitable placekeeping, encapsulates the inclination of historically marginalized community members to actively steward the development of their neighborhoods, enhance local amenities, participate in social and cultural production, and assert a collective sense of self-definition. At the same time, it sheds light on the endeavors of SEA artists to support and empower these community members.

Emerging from in-depth interviews with eight Southern California artists and teams, Co-Creative unveils the intricate ways in which artists engage community members, nurture relationships, and challenge the notion that residents cannot speak for themselves. By delving into the creative projects and the underlying phenomena that fuel and sustain them—community, engagement, relationships, and defiance—the book offers a profound understanding of equitable community engagement.

What sets this book apart is its unique approach to foregrounding the how and the why that inspire and necessitate collective creative action. By shifting the focus away from conventional narratives of SEA projects and towards the processes and motivations that drive them, Co-Creative provides a fresh perspective on the role of arts-based community development and gentrification. This book is a valuable resource for anyone studying arts-based community development and gentrification, as it complicates and enriches the ongoing conversation about the undeniable and increasingly controversial role of arts in neighborhood change.

Furthermore, researchers and students of urban studies will find this book of immense interest, as it offers insightful insights into the complex dynamics of urban communities and the ways in which arts can contribute to positive social transformation.

Weight: 590g
Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781032461991