2021-616-E-Arts Commission-BASEMENT Art Space-Restart the Arts

Browse Search

In total, BASEMENT requests $4000. Please explain measures taken by your organization to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. BASEMENT continues to make significant and considerable efforts to protect the health of curators, artists, and members of the community. As a response to the pandemic BASEMENT’s second in- person group exhibition, “Loose Footing,“ was postponed from the Spring of 2020 to August 2021. The exhibition is currently on v iew by appointment until December 2021, as well as during scheduled open hours. For the safety of our three exhibiting artists, we extended the installation period to allow them to install their work indiv idually in BASEMENT. Two of the participating artists spent a week in LEVEL’s pandemic-safe residence while creating site-specific installations in BASEMENT. This new collaboration with LEVEL Retreat was conceiv ed in response to the pandemic but also serv ed to build further connections between v isiting and local artists. All artists, including BASEMENT team members who helped with space preparation and installation, wore masks and practiced social distancing while indoors. All curators and exhibiting artists were fully v accinated against COVID-19. BASEMENT and LEVEL Retreat hosted sev eral intimate outdoor social ev ents to introduce the v isiting artists to local art professionals; all ev ents were intentionally small and held outdoors. The opening reception for “Loose Footing” occurred on August 14th with stringent COVID precautions. Masks were required for entry into BASEMENT, and only four v isitors were allowed inside the gallery at a time. Refreshments were serv ed outdoors on the driv eway. From February 2020 to June 2021 BASEMENT was closed to the public. In March 2020, BASEMENT mov ed all programming to the v irtual domain utilizing platforms such as Zoom, Instagram, and our website. As of now, BASEMENT has conducted 28 v irtual meetings, 10 v irtual studio v isits, and six online ev ents. Our Digital Residency program allowed artists to take ov er our Instagram account for three weeks. Artists were selected after studio v isits with BASEMENT curators and worked with the curators to organize a closing ev ent of their choosing. Prev ious ev ents hav e included a ghost-inhabited- sculpture-story told by sculptor Raul De Lara (TX/NYC), a zine collaboration with a poet and photographer Aaron Turner (AK), and an interactiv e v irtual performance led by interdisciplinary artist Marta Rodriguez Maleck (LA). Digital residents receiv ed a small stipend for their participation. Our newest program, “Studio Snacks,” consists of 30-minute v irtual studio v isits v ia Zoom with local North Carolina artists. Depending on the artist’s preference, the v isits can be spaces to informally critique, share work with community members, receiv e feedback priv ately with basement curators or publicly connect with the broader community. W e plan to host “Studio Snacks” bi-monthly. Through these efforts, we expanded our Instagram followers to number ov er one thousand. DocuSign Envelope ID: B028461D-0E0E-4A6F-813C-EBF4CEE2496B