Urban ArtWorks’ mission is to engage youth, artists, and communities in the creation of public art that inspires connections and honors their voices.
We envision a world where all people have access to the transformative power of creating public art.
Through public art, we connect young people and emerging artists to communities, opportunities, new skills, accomplishment, and possibility. We build community.
We use a racial equity lens as we develop and implement our goals and strategies. We hold ourselves and invite others to hold us accountable for our commitment to being an anti-racist organization through regularly evaluating and measuring our progress and sharing our outcomes with the community.
We believe that access to art is a human right and that self-expression and creative expression is power. We are committed to honoring the voices of young people and the communities we work with.
We create a space where respect, diversity, and equity are at the forefront of our work. While we work with everyone, we hold primary space for those who have faced barriers to arts, education, and employment because of systemic oppression.
We act with respect and honesty with our community partners, staff, artists, youth apprentices, clients we serve, and each other. Our work is always guided by our mission.
We are strongest when we embrace the creativity and diversity of the community we serve and believe that our deep commitment to cultural and racial equity is an investment in our mission and shared future.