It’s one thing to acquire new public art for the city, which is always fun; it’s another thing to take care of that new art so it last for years to come. Maintenance is factored into every art acquisition we make, including public art acquired years ago. However, funding for maintenance is not currently a dedicated allocation in the annual budget, therefore, we rely on other methods to get it done.
Fortunately, the City’s Parks and Recreation Department provides some of the maintenance on pieces located in City parks, and sometimes incorporates additional art maintenance projects into its other programming such as Keep Las Cruces Beautiful (KLCB). This year, KLCB applied for and was awarded a New Mexico Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) grant for a project called “Empowering Youth through Art Cultivation & Community Forestry”. The six-month long grant project “aims to engage 15 youth between the ages of 14 and 25 in the beautification of their community through the cultivation of art and nature.”
The KLBC’s art focus will be on restoring several prominent, aging, and faded murals, which the Las Cruces Public Art (LCPA) program had previously earmarked as priority maintenance projects when funding became available. With an artist acting as the crew leader, the youth will learn by doing the restoration work on the designated murals (which are not under contract to any one artist or team by the way). Participants are not necessarily artists or interested in art related careers but will gain experience working in a creative environment while still learning career skills that can be applied to any field. Youth who are interested in art as a career will gain invaluable experience that could lead to future employment.
What the youth may not realize is, what they accomplish during the short time they participate in the YCC project will make a significant impact on the maintenance goals of the LCPA program, which are to provide regular and consistent maintenance to the Las Cruces Public Art Collection, restore damaged or aging artwork, or to replace art pieces that are beyond repair.
We appreciate that YCC understands the importance of supporting creative economy projects. We appreciate that City departments like Parks & Rec and programs like KLCB believe in public art as a means of beautification. Mostly, we appreciate the benefits that come to LCPA when others join forces to make art happen. For more information about the YCC project, please contact the Parks & Recreation Department at 575/541-2000.
