Welcome to the Truth in Us Art, your source for conversations joining arts, culture, and community. These are stories that matter, and I am your host, Rob Lee. Thank you so much for joining me. Today, I'm discussing inviting light, a major public art project coming to Baltimore's Station North neighborhood in 2025. It is supported by a Bloomberg Philanthropies public art challenge grant and curated by Baltimore's own renowned artist, Derrick Adams.
Rob Lee:We'll explore the project's inspiration and creation in Station North. Today joining me, I have the senior adviser for the mayor's office of arts and culture, Tanya r Miller Hall, and Derrick Adams, the curator behind Inviting Light. Welcome back to the podcast, Tanya, and welcome for the first time, Derrick.
Derrick Adams:I'm Derrick Adams. I'm a multidisciplinary artist, born and raised in Baltimore in the Park Heights area. Living and working in Brooklyn, since, 1993.
Tonya Miller-Hall:That's Brooklyn, New York.
Derrick Adams:Yeah. Brooklyn, New York. Yeah. Thank you. Yeah.
Derrick Adams:Yeah. For guys in Brooklyn and Baltimore. You know, living in Brooklyn, in New York, I've been very present in the creative community in Baltimore ever since I left. I've never disconnected from Baltimore as a city, as my base. I'm constantly in dialogue with the creative community in Baltimore, have been since I left.
Derrick Adams:And I've, been currently, for the past few years, engaged in strengthening the creative community in many different capacities, from nonprofit endeavors, Charm City Cultural Cultivation, with Zora's Den, the Last Resort Artist Retreat, Black Baltimore Digital Database, now working with the mayor's office on Bloomberg inviting light, which, is in collaboration with the, the art advisor for the mayor, which is Tanya Miller here. And among many other things that we've been engaged in creatively, building the creative community and beyond in the city, and I'm happy to be here, in conversation with you too. Thank you.
Tonya Miller-Hall:Yep. Hi. I first of all, thank you, Rob, for inviting us. I am Tanya Miller Hall. I'm the senior adviser for arts and culture.
Tonya Miller-Hall:My role, I am the cultural leader for the city of Baltimore. I this is the first time this is first time in a long time since the nineties, there's been a cultural leader, sitting within the mayor's office at a cabinet level position. And so I'm just really excited, that our current administration, had the the vision to appoint me to this position and certainly now just working through lots of infrastructure, things to build the creative the creative economy for the city of Baltimore.
Rob Lee:Thank you. Thank you. We we have illustrious guests here. I love this. I love this.
Rob Lee:So going into it, going into inviting light, could you, maybe we could start off with Derek and and and go down to Tanya. Could you give us a glimpse into the core concept behind the project? And I have a few other sort of, like, follow-up questions to that, but I at least wanna start with the core concept.
Derrick Adams:Well, from the creative side of, Dividing Light, which is the mayor, initiative that's part of Bloomberg's, funded project is, basically, we won a really major competitive competition from all the cities across The US, to, receive this amazing award, to help, you know, develop certain areas in our communities, specifically the the area surrounding, the Art District surrounding Charles Charles Street, North Avenue, to really think about how to bring light into the community in a way that's not dealing with the ideas relating to surveillance or other areas that are associated with light or the idea of, bright spaces, in cities like Baltimore, working class cities. Usually, light is something that is brought in, in a way to, to, I guess, expose certain things in the neighborhood that you may feel are being done in the dark, you know, on a more negative side. But on the more creative, more community building side, this project was presented, and established to think about integrating light as a form of welcoming, community, members, to feel more comfortable engaging, with each other in that community and the idea that light could also be a source of help or light could be a source of, like illumination, you know.
Derrick Adams:So, I was brought in as the curator for the project, which I was excited to be a part of, mainly because you know I always think about opportunities like this where we could extend these these amazing projects to local artists in Baltimore And, out of the five artists who were chosen, four of them are Baltimore residents. I believe one of them is a Baltimore resident born and raised. The others have been in Baltimore since graduating from art school or at least, undergrad or graduate education in Baltimore, and they consider themselves as a part of the community. They're engaged in other activities in the community beyond this project. And the only person is only one person within this cohort who is not from Baltimore, but they were chosen mainly because their practice is a community based practice.
Derrick Adams:Their practice is a social practice that engage with communities, across the world, internationally. And, so, adding this fifth person was also, essential to kind of broaden the conversation about where we are as Baltimoreans and where we're going on a more national international scale, because we do also have international communities within the city. And so this was more of a way of kind of thinking about the future of the city and broadening the relationship that we have with people who are coming in, people who have been there from other parts of the world, and how Baltimore is more of a a more expansive city than most people think when they think about, inhabitants, the residents in the city and where they come from. And so this was exciting project to do because it you know, this is another reason that I come to Baltimore often to be involved in these conversations as we plan, this project that's gonna start this year, very soon in the spring.
Rob Lee:Tanya, do you have anything you would like to add in there?
Tonya Miller-Hall:No. Other than, you know, we are I should just say echo that we won this award from Bloomberg's Launch Feeds. We beat out 200 other cities. So only eight cities were given this million dollar, grant to create sort of a public art, practice or public arts, placemaking or such. And so just wanted to do our own bragging bragging rights that we beat out 200 cities, for this one.
Tonya Miller-Hall:I would grant. Yeah.
Rob Lee:And and definitely, we're gonna revisit that in a moment. But I I wanna, comment on sort of the the piece around Station North. Like, you know, this podcast was was born at Station North back in 2019, and, you know, always is one of those areas. It's sort of this creative energy that's that's always there, that's always present. And it's been it's been a few years where folks are like, not the foot traffic isn't there.
Rob Lee:So when I first heard about this project and it happening and then being able to do some of the additional research and coming up with questions, I was super excited for it. From from both your perspectives, and and and maybe it was touched on a bit, but at least when I asked the question, how do you envision, like, inviting light, revitalizing, and sort of bringing that extra attention to the neighborhood? It's it's a gem, and, you know, it's, you know, different venues that are there, but I think often it's overlooked. So sort of have an inviting light there and, you know, sort of, the traffic that could come there and sort of building back up and bringing that attention back to Station North.
Tonya Miller-Hall:Well, you know, Derek, what we forgot to mention, Derek and I have known each other for a very long time since we were teenagers. And so in my day, in our day, Station North that North And Charles Corridor was the center of the universe. Right? So there's lots of nightlife. It was lots of, it was a a diverse community.
Tonya Miller-Hall:And so, certainly, targeting Station North as sort of the partner in this project was essential, because it is the center of the city. And so if we can use a public art project to create a sense of place and togetherness for the community because we know that they're transient community members just because of the Penn Station. They're long time residents. They're long time establishments that's been there since the eighties and nineties that are really starting to see some revitalization. And so this light, project will start to, again, create a sense of place, but also a sense of identity and spark tourism, economic development, and just really, pointing towards greater investment.
Tonya Miller-Hall:From a city's perspective, you know, that's why, you know, it's important to bring these projects to to those kind of communities to really spark investment and opportunities for the longtime residents and community that's in that space.
Derrick Adams:Yeah. And and what I think is so great about both of our involvement in this project is that we know what it used to be. We understand the history and that's the unfortunate nature of the younger generation being exposed to this area now and not understanding the history of and the richness of this particular area within, the Black community and, you know, and beyond. This was always considered a cultural, hub in Baltimore, and it was an area that most people look forward to kind of, visiting during the weekend, you know. And it was very common for people to drop to circle, to drive up and down North Avenue only to slow down in this particular area of Baltimore to be, you know, to see and be seen.
Derrick Adams:And so I, you know, I personally was excited because of my knowledge of the neighborhood as it related to the history of Baltimore. And I think this project has the ability to have people who may have, basically given up on this particular area of Baltimore because of the plight, the blight that exists in certain, corners of this area to really rethink about the possibilities of of social engagement to be reborn again in this neighborhood that people will feel very comfortable, you know, with these installations, and programming around these installations to, entice people to come back and think about this area of, of, engagement. And also to also put out the idea that maybe, you know, future business owners and future entrepreneurs may even consider this neighborhood as a investment area to have your shop in and have these other things that are happening. We have some of that, but I think there's an opportunity to really build this particular area in a way that, it used to used to be, because it is a central part of the city and a very important part of the city that, again, like Tanya was saying, people who are coming from work, who wanna, it's such a big expansion that's happening with Penn Station coming up.
Derrick Adams:So thinking about all the different relationships that are happening around this project is very important for us to consider. So the artists and the works that are here are not only just about light, it's about also, highlighting the creative community that for the most part live around and in this area. And they, you know, regardless of the way other people see this neighborhood, the creative community has been the heartbeat and the bloodline for this community after everyone has else has moved moved away in some ways. People who who probably went to the suburban area of the Baltimore, the creative community are the ones who keep kept this neighborhood, you know, still going, you know, with all of the small, little pubs and bars that are around there, the other little small little creative, communities that occupy different spaces. Like, it's still thriving, but I think that this particular project will give a certain, spotlight on the possibilities of what this neighborhood, could be with more investment.
Derrick Adams:And not just economic investment, but creative investment, and people looking at this neighborhood as an important place to occupy.
Rob Lee:That's really well said. And, yeah, I you know, being there, seeing it, and just hoping for something like like like this to to bring attention and to really have folks look at it from another perspective or take another look at it. You know, again, spending a fair amount of time over there, having friends in different areas that are artists, that are own restaurants and businesses, or even doing maybe the first year of this podcast, like, consistently in that area. Hey. Come on down.
Rob Lee:You know? Come on to Station North. And some of the folks I'm interviewing who, you know, were there, you know, maybe as a DJ in that sort of time in the eighties, like, man, this used to be this. You don't know nothing about this. I'm like, I'm 40, man.
Rob Lee:I'm trying to live. There's only live. Yeah. So I I so going back a little bit to sort of the, you know, just the bragging part. You know?
Rob Lee:We we beat out some people. We we beat out some cities. So, you know, 200 was the number I heard. So in that that level of of competition and sort of the the press and the attention around it, like, hey. You know, Baltimore has, like, arts and culture.
Rob Lee:We should be aware of that. What do you what does that mean for the city to that level of competition to be one of eight cities, but to beat out that 200?
Tonya Miller-Hall:Well, as the governor and the mayor always says, you know, Baltimore is definitely experiencing a renaissance. Right? And this is Baltimore's time, as the governor loves to say, but Baltimore has always had a robust, arts and creative community. Derek and I are examples of that. Certainly, we spent you know, Derek is still in New York.
Tonya Miller-Hall:I'm I spend a large, part of my adult career in New York, and that was where in our generation, that's where kids went to thrive. Right? But now in this new, you know, millennial generation and Gen z, I suppose, you know, when you talk to them, they wanna stay in the city. They wanna help grow the city. They want to be a part of the next wave of great cultural arts leaders.
Tonya Miller-Hall:Right? So this really does point to that Baltimore has is a city of artists and a city of great thinkers and great innovators. And so this project is not a surprise to us that we beat out 200 other cities. That's no surprise. I think that people, sleep on Baltimore and still consider it a a blue collar town.
Tonya Miller-Hall:And it does have blue collar in its roots, but we have some of the most important cultural institutions in the world here in Baltimore City, and we're retaining talent, you know, with MICA and the BMA and Peabody and the b like, all of these cultural institutions have, you know, gold star, artists and musicians and, you know, blue chip artists. And so this is there's no wonder that we are a city of artists and that we beat out 200 other cities in The US.
Derrick Adams:Yeah. I mean, the most exciting thing about being from Baltimore, and, you know, and existing in other spaces, the city itself is very well known. I think, you know, on the global stage, people are aware of the creative, contributions that Baltimoreans have have added to the ecosystem over time, starting from, you know, everyone from, like a Yeebie Blake or, you know, Kev Holloway or, you know, Billie Holiday, you know, or, you know, thinking about, so many so many people.
Tonya Miller-Hall:Andre DeShield.
Derrick Adams:Andre DeShield. Yeah. Andre DeShield. Exactly. Exactly.
Derrick Adams:So there's been many, many people from Baltimore who have left the city, to go abroad or to go to other cities to really develop their craft, but also to receive the financial support that was always more challenging living in a blue collar city where art is considered more of a leisurely activity than a sustainable part of, of the fabric of a city, of our city. You know, we've always had artists. We've always had creative, we have Tom Miller. We have people who've done many great things and established certain things. But the idea of having the support, the financial support and the community support has been challenging in the city where there's so many other pressing needs, economic needs that, are, put in the forefront.
Derrick Adams:But it's been tested and analyzed and statistically, recorded that, you know, the creative community is solely responsible in many cities for building the economic, growth. You know, and that's something that we, in Baltimore are now considering an important way of building our city because we've tried so many different types of things, in the past with the city and this, I think, is part of the idea when they say a renaissance. The renaissance is not really for the creative community, the renaissance is a discovery from the non creative community realizing that the creative community is are the real leaders in developing where we should be in the future. So I think that it is a renaissance for the people who may have thought practically about certain things, where art was not necessarily at the top of the list. And I think that now people are starting to realize that art is something that can reduce crime in communities, can give young people hope, they can give them skills with apprenticeships, you know, art most artists who are in these communities are constantly engaging with the younger people in their community.
Derrick Adams:Most people I know who have small nonprofit in Baltimore, they have a consistent group of young, young teenagers hanging out there or doing things with them. And so just imagine if that investment was greater, in these communities with these artists who are working with these, community members, from a young age, to adulthood. How how much more, we would kinda imagine the city, if the leadership, kinda shifted or at least not necessarily shifted, but broke off a little piece, that really pushed the creative community, and acknowledged them as part of the leadership of the city. And I think that that's what we're doing right now. I think that what we've really considered is, like, we've tried so many things.
Derrick Adams:Now we're trying this, and we're trying this in a in a major way. And that's the reason why I come to new to back to Baltimore really much more often than I even did before, to kind of just be a part of this growth that's happening in the city. And I think what's really important is the fact that some people who have left Baltimore has been who who's been, you know, doing things outside of the city and around the world like myself, are the best cheerleaders for the city because we're shining light back onto the city from outside of the city, which is encouraging people to come to the city, to not necessarily live in Baltimore, but some people have moved to Baltimore who I've invited to come, but also to invest in the creative community of Baltimore. Because that's what we need. We need the creative community to be, to have an income, to have, sustainability.
Derrick Adams:Those things that other major cities like a New York or like a LA or Miami, all the people who visit those places don't necessarily live in those places, but they spend money in those places. And that's what helps to build the economic structure of these places. And that's what I wanna do. I do not necessarily encouraging everyone to move to Baltimore to change the cultural dynamic of the city. I'm more interested in getting people to come and invest in Baltimore and the creative community, and they can leave and go back home, but we need the money.
Derrick Adams:And so for me, it's all about bringing the money into the city to support what we wanna do. And, you know, like the way people come to New Orleans, everyone's not living in New Orleans. They go to New Orleans because it's fun, and they like the creative community, and they spend thousands of dollars in New Orleans. That's what I want for Baltimore.
Rob Lee:That's that's great. And I'm going to New Orleans soon, so definitely my eyes, like, kinda lit up. And, just as anecdotally, when I go down there and I they ask why I'm here and I always visit for my birthday, but I wear the flag. I'm from Baltimore. And they're like, oh, you're from Bemore.
Rob Lee:And they really kinda light up because They love
Derrick Adams:it. You know?
Rob Lee:They know. They know what's up. So I got a couple more questions I wanna I wanna get to here because, you know, you I'm let letting the two of you cook a bit. You know? Like you said, the conversations that you're continuing, it's like, alright.
Rob Lee:Check that one off. That's covered. Don't wanna ask that again. But the the the collaborative effort of just all the parties involved, whether it be the the the two of you, whether it be Bloomberg, can you talk a bit about sort of how collaboration came together, and to to celebrate this this project, to celebrate the the local art and to bring or local artists and to bring attention to, you know, Station North?
Tonya Miller-Hall:So we we okay. Let me start over. So the the grant is called the mayor's public art challenge, and so they're really tapped mayors of all cities to really lean into this public arts challenge. And so my office, the Office of Arts and Culture, collaborated with Central Baltimore Partnership and Neighborhood Design Center, to really work on the grant, application. So and then Central Baltimore partnership oversees Station North.
Tonya Miller-Hall:So, obviously, that made complete sense, as sort of the the the the governing body that oversees the Arts District. And so that's how those three partnerships came together. Then we started. Naturally, I tapped Derek to see if he would be interested in serving as curator for the project. At that point, we had not he had not identified, the five artists, which will be, revealed on Friday at our, launch event at the Parkway in Station North.
Tonya Miller-Hall:But he really was instrumental in sort of tapping into the creative artistic community to really identify who should be a part of who should be a part of this, project. And so each of the the partners, Central Baltimore Partnership and Neighborhood Design Center has different you know, we just have a different scope of work in terms of collaboration, but most of it's in the weeds kinda thing. And Derek really is the architect. And then also, I should mention that Jose Rivera, who is a curated curating some of the community engagement, components, has also been a key, partner in this in this, collaboration.
Rob Lee:So so since it's kinda kinda there, you kinda queued it up a little bit, and we're coming up on, on Friday. So I wanna do, like, the sort of no spoilers version of this. So so, Derek, if you will, could you touch on the Quarturial, the sort of maybe that process in, you know, picking the five artists and, like, who, you know, sort of what went into that? Again, no spoilers, obviously, but what went into that?
Derrick Adams:Well, we're gonna have a big press event on, Friday, the seventh at the Parkway. And so that's gonna be the big announcement of the artist. But for me, the artist who, you know, creating this project, and although this budget may seem very large in numbers, was a project that really helped to support, the creatives who are who are have been, chosen to, create this project, but also it's also supporting other city organizations. You know, because we have to work with engineers, local engineers. We have to work with, BG and E.
Derrick Adams:We have to work with architects. So it's a this this, award has really helped us to support the ecosystem ecosystem of the city. And so not only is it a project that is supporting the creative community, but is also, again, creating the working community in Baltimore. And so with the artists that were chosen, they were not necessarily artists who have worked with electricity before. You know, that was not a criteria necessarily.
Derrick Adams:It was definitely a plus for those who have some experience, but it was also I would look as a curator, I was looking more about the the ability to transform this idea of light into an object that could be part of a conversation that will extend to a social engagement experience for people who inhabit this area and people who would want to come visit this area. So the artists who were chosen were really thinking about light in many different, iterations, not just about the mechanical application of light as it is plugged into the ground and a switch is turned on. They were thinking metaphorically about light, spiritually about light, and things that although the any product would be an object that has a mechanism that turns on, the mechanism was only a vehicle to enhance some of the conceptual framework for each of the artists who were chosen to engage with the community in a certain way. So light is embedded in the sculptural framework of these artists. So it's everything from things that are on buildings, across buildings, in front of buildings, on top of buildings, things that people will be able to see, engage with, take pictures with, have programming around that invite the community to come into.
Derrick Adams:So it's really more of art being used as like a lighthouse in some ways, as a beacon. Just, acknowledging that there is someone out there and we are trying to draw them in. And we're trying to draw them into a welcoming space similar to a lighthouse would do on a on a foggy night. So we're thinking about light in a way that is not just about brightening up the neighborhood. We're thinking about how to do that.
Rob Lee:That's great. It's, you know, I I I'm thinking of so many things and not even doing the pun thing in my head. Like, I was gonna say, that's illuminating. But, you know, it is really but it really is
Derrick Adams:But it is. You know?
Rob Lee:It's it's spotlighting so much, and there are you know, I wanna talk a little bit in this this last piece, if we will, you know, about about the kickoff and sort of what folks can look forward to, you know, on Friday, you know, February 7. Like, you know, I see that it's, you know, some really robust programming and just to degree in which you will, share just a little bit about what folks can expect and just coming on down to, Station North to check out inviting lights kickoff.
Tonya Miller-Hall:I think I mean, the announcement is gonna be the centerpiece of the event, announcing the artists, announcing their work, showcasing their work. There will be, you know, a a presentation. We have invited some elected officials to attend. There will be music. There will be nosh.
Tonya Miller-Hall:There'll be drinks, but really creating a very, you know, engaging opportunity. And this is the first this will be the opportunity for the community at large. We invited we did a broad invitation. So the community at large has been invited. The Station North community, I should say, have been invited to see what will take place in their neighborhood.
Tonya Miller-Hall:And while we often think of this space as a commercial corridor, it is also a neighborhood of local residents. And so we wanna make sure that they are engaged and that they are comfortable with what we're installing. And then there's the arts community, the artists, again, elected officials, some really cool music, hopefully, a short presentation. And then we'll still get to folks will get to meet and sorta and get you know, talk with the artist, talk with Derek, myself, sort of a bit of, you know, conversation.
Derrick Adams:Exactly. For questions. So as well, you know, there will be questions, and we are prepared for those, to answer those questions, because there's a lot of, you know, just interest and understanding what this, award means and how does it affect the community, which I think a lot of community, residents are interested to know. Because again, this is an award that seems and sounds very large, but there is a breakdown of these resources to make this happen. And this particular award was only, is only allocated for this project.
Derrick Adams:Right. So it's not like this award could be used for something else that is a need in the city. This was a award that was, specifically, created for public art. So although there are other things in Baltimore that could use some of this money, we can't give it to them because it's not part of the structure of agreement with this project. So there are gonna be questions about, like, oh, it's a million dollars and maybe we could give it to this.
Derrick Adams:No, we can't. Even if he wanted to, we can. This award was designed and allocated for this particular reason. And the community aspect of it is something that we, within this group, have decided to take on as an added element of this grant. You know, because this grant was just to build this these sculptures, these structures.
Derrick Adams:Sure. But we have another added community engagement that Jose, Ruiz, who is a professor at Brook at, MICA, but but also a curator of social engagement, has been brought on with us to really think about how to use this opportunity to grow the community and help them to understand the significance and the importance of having art in the community. And this is something where we had to apply for an additional grant to facilitate this thing because a lot of the artists who will a lot of the people, not just artists, but people who are, you know, in the in the food industry, the, you know, the the dance industry, the creatives in general will be will also be added to our programming through this additional grant that we could also spread some of the love to other creatives and other people in the city to be a part of this, Bloomberg inviting light, Bloomberg Philanthropy inviting light project. So we are working really hard to really, imagine the benefits of this, not only as a creative project, but as a social project.
Tonya Miller-Hall:And I think those that's a very important point because often, particularly working with within government, folks will often point to why are we spending money on public art when we can fix the holes, you know, you know, potholes or pick collect trash. And those things are very important as well. But I think that Derek raises a great point that this particular grant was allocated specifically for public art. And the value of public art is the transformation of space and community. And so sometimes people don't understand the value of that, but it does help to drive economic and social improvement.
Rob Lee:It's really, really great points, and and it's, thank you for that that added texture there because I think you're right. You know, a lot of folks don't get it. They see the number. The number is the splashy thing and then sort of, well, you could do this. You ever think about this building?
Rob Lee:It's just like, no. This is for this, and it can extend much much wider than that and can be much more impactful than just maybe fixing this thing or what have you. So I think, yeah, it's really, really important.
Tonya Miller-Hall:And it and I often I'm sorry. Just one last point. I often like to say that artists are workers as well, cultural workers, and they need to get paid. Like
Derrick Adams:Yeah. Yeah.
Tonya Miller-Hall:You know, this space where artists can do something for the experience or because it's a cool thing. I don't know where folks think, where folks have, gotten this understanding that artists just like to do things because they're making art anyway. They might as well just do it for free. And artists I'm like, there's a workforce. But, you know, that is a work sheet that needs to get paid.
Tonya Miller-Hall:And so, we need to pay the artists with what they're worth as as Derek said, and also supporting the other, businesses that are baked into this project, caterers, you know, production people, lighting people, graphic designers, videographers. All of those people are also a part of this, you know, part of this sort of workforce.
Rob Lee:Yes. It's a lot of it's a lot of moving parts that go into it, and I think it's a really, really good point and more attention around that now, especially, you know, in 2025, obviously. And, you know, exposure is great, but also it doesn't buy you eggs. It doesn't buy you eggs right now. You know?
Rob Lee:Eggs are really expensive. A lot of exposure for eggs.
Derrick Adams:Yeah. But also you need to realize, like, these opportunities are so few and, few in Baltimore for artists. Some of these artists, this is the biggest opportunity for them at this particular time in the city. So whatever the financial structure for this project might be able to sustain them for a particular amount of time in Baltimore before another opportunity comes for them to, to be able to live off of or to exist from. So even though these projects seem very large and they are great and amazing, but I want a bunch of these projects to happen in Baltimore, not just in this particular area.
Derrick Adams:I want different areas in Baltimore to benefit from this and different artists in Baltimore to benefit from this. And so, like, you know, there's I'm hoping there'll be opportunities for really development developing and creating more public art on Pennsylvania Avenue in the historical black district. I hope there will be opportunity to really think about, you know, Fells Point and other areas of Baltimore at some point where art could just be a draw, a tourist draw for people to come to Baltimore just to see the art around town, similar to the way that Philly Mural Program exists and how that has driven the certain support in the community and tourism in Philly, through their art programs. So I think that we are no different in a lot of ways than Philadelphia or even New Orleans when it comes to understanding how important the creative community is and how impactful they are for, you know, visitors and viewership. And I think that this will be the beginning of many other opportunities for us to, to get funding, to receive funding, to be able to, spread this around, sometimes.
Derrick Adams:And I think that this is gonna extend into, like, and I would love to say, into our experience with Artscape this year. And I think that, you know, Artscape is something that is I'm very excited about and excited to be a part of. And I know that the momentum from this is just gonna extend beyond to what we're doing with Artscape, to what we're gonna be doing with our Efren, what we're gonna be doing with all these different creative, engagements in the city. And I think that the wind has picked up, and I think it's just gonna take off, you know, and I'm excited about it.
Rob Lee:It's exciting stuff. Momentum, motion is gonna be a big, 2025 and beyond. So, you know, I'm gonna get ready to close out here and, you know, just invite any sort of closing remarks and, and then I'll wrap up. So for both of you, any closing remarks here, and, we can close out.
Tonya Miller-Hall:I think we covered quite a bit. I don't have any additional remarks to make.
Rob Lee:K. And, Dark, did you have anything she wanted to add?
Derrick Adams:I'm just I'm just excited for the future of the city. You know? Again, like I said, I, you know, I grew up in Baltimore. You know? I still have a house there.
Derrick Adams:When I when I, bought a house in Baltimore, I stay there. When I'm in town, I I use my property for, you know, engagements similar to this to kinda draw attention to the value of the city. I'm really proud of, of of mayor Scott right now with everything that he's been doing to support not only, this endeavor, but just the the the youth culture in Baltimore. I'm very impressed by, you know, when I open up my phone, I look at Instagram, and I see him engage with the community in a way that no other mayor has really done in the future of in the past history of Baltimore. And I'm looking forward to, his role expanding, throughout the city and really, and I'm looking forward to seeing, you know, his involvement in this project and other projects that we have in the pipeline.
Rob Lee:And there you have it, folks. I wanna again thank Tanya r Miller Hall and Derrick Adams for coming on to the podcast to share a bit of insight on inviting light. And for Tanya, for Derrick, I'm Rob Lee saying that there's art, culture, and community in and around your neck of the woods, you've just gotta look for it.
