Mission Arts & Performance Project

What is a Street-Level Curator?

The term "street-level curator" is one we have fashioned to meet the need of conceptualizing the role of a person who straddles the two world of arts presenting and community organizing/engagement. Bridging these two worlds is an endeavor that lies at the very heart of the Mission Arts & Performance Project. We believe that the arts should be as accessible as ones neighborhood corner store, serving as a regular and integral part of community life. It is for this reason that the MAPP seeks out alternative spaces such as residential garages, gardens, cafes, and street corners, to stage makeshift exhibits, installations and performances. Such locations represent some of the most open, inclusive, and least intimidating contexts for presenting artistic work. They also stand as structures that everyday people have access to, in the sense that it enables people to imagine that they themselves have the capacity to turn an everyday space into a creative setting for arts and culture in their neighborhood.

DEVELOPMENT & EXPERIMENTATION
The MAPP needs more street-level curators.

The MAPP serves as a platform for both development and experimentation. training ground for curators/organizers

That is to say, that individuals who are just starting out in arts presenting and community/cultural engagement are able to develop skills in an informal and supportive context, while experienced practitioners are able to experiment with, and/or present, new ideas and material that may still be in progress without the demands of formalized presentations. In either case, street-level curators are able to reach new and diverse audiences and witness how both their artists, and the environment they create, can impact the people in their community.

If you are interested in becoming a street-level curator for the MAPP, please contact us. We welcome curators at all levels of development and will do our best to support your initiative.