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dominic@dpacommunications.com | 781.789.5074
#ArtWeekAtHome Launches May 1
The reimagined 2020 ArtWeek Festival will celebrate the creative Commonwealth from
May 1-10
Boston, Mass. (April 21, 2020) – The Boch Center, the producer of the annual ArtWeek festival which is presented
by the Highland Street Foundation, has announced that it is launching #ArtWeekAtHome on May 1st. The
reimagined format replaces the original ArtWeek that would have featured almost 800 creative events in over 170
communities across the state, including many free events for families, children, residents, and visitors.
“We were so disappointed to have cancelled ArtWeek due to the pandemic crisis, especially since it had grown
over 30% from the year before after expanding statewide in 2018,” said Joe Spaulding, President and CEO of the
Boch Center. “But the response from event hosts and partners inspired us to think outside the box.
#ArtWeekAtHome celebrates the creative community and its response to this unprecedented period, as ArtWeek
partners and event hosts continue to bring joy, comfort, and inspiration to thousands of people every day during
this crisis.”
“We have been proud to spotlight hundreds of arts and cultural partners over the years through our Free Fun
Friday program and our partnership with ArtWeek,” stated Blake Jordan, Executive Director of the Highland Street
Foundation. “#ArtWeekAtHome is a creative way to keep those partners and the amazing contributions they make
every day to our communities center stage - especially during these times,” he added.
On May 1st, the original festival kick-off day, ArtWeek event hosts and partners will post links on social media to
their online content including tours, concerts, at-home activities, or other creative programs while tagging
#ArtWeekAtHome and @ArtWeekMA. As part of the kick-off, a ten-day ArtWeek Bingo game will also launch to
keep creative juices flowing throughout the week with daily artistic prompts and themed challenges celebrating
different genres. The week-long schedule includes nods to music, museums, dance, crafts, theater, literature, the
outdoors/public art, film, history, and the culinary arts. The following week, #ArtWeekAtHome highlights will be
shared at www.artweekma.org and on different social media channels.
About ArtWeek
Presented by Highland Street Foundation and produced by the Boch Center, ArtWeek is an annual award-winning
innovative festival. Due to the global COVID 19 pandemic, the 2020 festival as originally conceived was cancelled
and #ArtWeekAtHome was launched as a reimagined format. The original ArtWeek 2020 was going to feature
almost 800 unique and creative experiences, including many artwalks, open studios, and town-wide celebrations
that were hands-on, interactive or offer behind-the-scenes access to artists or the creative process. ArtWeek was
born in Boston in 2013, expanded statewide in 2018, and by 2020 had exploded to over 170 towns and
neighborhoods across Massachusetts as the signature nonprofit community program of the Boch Center. To find
out more to www.artweekma.org or @ArtWeekMA.
Statewide ArtWeek 2020 champions included the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Office of
Travel & Tourism and the Mass Cultural Council, who also served as ArtWeek’s Creative Communities sponsor.
Additional support came from the Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau, and the Cape Cod Foundation
Fund for the Arts and the Carolyn Van Vleck Pratt Fund for the Arts. Lead Media partners at the Diamond Level
included iHeart Media, WCVB Channel 5, El Planeta, and Entercom (103.3. AMP, MAGIC 106.7, MIX 104.1). They
were joined by Platinum Level media sponsors including WBUR, WGBH, Boston Central, Boston Parents Paper,
The Daily Hampshire Gazette/The Valley Advocate, and the Media News Group (Boston Herald, The Lowell Sun,
Sentinel Enterprise, The Valley Dispatch, and Nashoba Valley Voice), as well as many others across the state.
ArtWeek’s 2020 expansion and virtual celebration has also been powered by an extensive network of more than
170 creative collaborators at the statewide, regional and community level.
About Highland Street Foundation
Since its establishment in 1989, Highland Street Foundation has donated more than $200 million to many worthy
non-profit organizations. It is committed to addressing the needs and concerns of children and families primarily
in Massachusetts and California specifically in the areas of education, housing, mentoring, health care,
environment and the arts. To learn more about Highland Street Foundation, please visit www.highlandstreet.org.
About the Boch Center
The Boch Center is one of the nation’s leading nonprofit performing arts institutions and a guardian of the historic
Wang and Shubert Theatres. As New England’s largest cultural venue, the Boch Center is home to theater, classical
and popular music, dance, comedy, opera, Broadway musicals, family entertainment, and more. Located in
Boston’s historic Theater District, the Boch Center also offers a diverse mix of educational and community
outreach initiatives, including the City Spotlights Leadership Program
and ArtWeek; collaborates with artists and local nonprofit arts organizations; preserves historic venues; and acts
as a champion for Greater Boston’s arts and cultural community. Learn more at bochcenter.org.
About the Mass Cultural Council
The Mass Cultural Council is a state agency that promotes excellence, inclusion, education, and diversity in the
arts, humanities, and sciences to foster a rich cultural life for all Massachusetts residents and contributes to the
vitality of our communities and economy. The Council pursues this mission through a wide range of grants,
initiatives, and advocacy for artists, communities, organizations, and schools. Mass Cultural Council also runs
the Massachusetts Cultural Facilities Fund in partnership with MassDevelopment. For more information, please
visit www.massculturalcouncil.org.
About the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism (MOTT)
MOTT’s mission is to promote Massachusetts as both a leisure and business travel destination for domestic and
international markets and to contribute to the growth of the Commonwealth’s economy. MOTT works closely
with 16 regional tourism councils across the state, and with larger tourism alliances such as Discover New England
and BrandUSA. For more information on visiting Massachusetts, go to massvacation.com.
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