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July 16-July 22, 2021
Long Island City’s Materials for
the Arts launches citywide tour
BY BILL PARRY
Legendary singer and songwriter
Paul Simon became so
enamored with Materials for
the Arts (MFTA) during a tour
of its Long Island City facility
that the Kew Gardens native
played a benefit concert in the
warehouse on Northern Boulevard
in 2017. Following a New
York Rangers victory in the
Winter Classic at Citi Field in
2018, the NHL donated nearly
18,000 square feet of plywood
that was used to build the outdoor
hockey rink to MFTA, an
organization that collects unneeded
items from businesses
and individuals and finds
where they can be useful.
Now, as part of the Summer
of NYC, the city program
run by the Department of Cultural
Affairs will launch the
MFTA Citywide Tour, distributing
free supplies throughout
the five boroughs during the
month of July.
While members have visited
the MFTA in person for
decades, and MFTA’s Curbside
Pickup program has continued
to serve the arts community
during the pandemic, the
MFTA Citywide Tour is a new
initiative to ensure that arts
groups, public schools and other
cultural organizations have
the tools they need to help New
Yorkers reconnect and revive
communities across the city.
“Arts and culture contribute
to healthy communities,
and they are critical pieces of
New York City’s recovery from
the pandemic,” NYC Department
of Cultural Affairs Deputy
Commissioner Sheelah
Feinberg said. “Throughout
the MFTA Citywide Tour, we
Materials for the Arts in Long Island City is embarking on its first-ever citywide tour to distribute supplies to public schools, art
educators and cultural organizations. Courtesy of MFTA
are helping ensure that arts
educators and cultural workers
have direct, local access
to an amazing range of free
supplies. MFTA gives them
the tools they need to connect
New Yorkers with cultural
programs throughout the
Summer of NYC.”
Throughout the rest of July,
MFTA’s freight truck, filled
with markers, paper, ribbons,
fabric, furniture, office supplies
and other reusable materials,
will visit neighborhoods
in each borough, targeting areas
that might have a harder
time accessing transportation
to MFTA’s facility at 33-00
Northern Blvd. At designated
stops, staff will provide materials
to MFTA member arts organizations
and DOE schools
and, as always, the supplies
will be provided free of charge.
“We are overjoyed to provide
materials needed to support
dynamic arts programming
across the five boroughs,
as our city’s art organizations
and institutions reopen, and
schools begin summer programming,”
Materials for the
Arts Managing Director Tara
Sansone said. “It is necessary
to support the arts in every
corner of NYC, and we are especially
proud to bring supplies to
communities across the city.”
In order to demonstrate
how to use the unique variety
of materials offered, the MFTA
Education team will offer
hands-on workshops teaching
shoppers how to incorporate
nontraditional art materials
into projects. NYC nonprofits,
arts organizations, and
schools interested in receiving
supplies should visit MFTA’s
website.
“It is so exciting for DOE
schools citywide to have greater
access to supplies and programming
that supports arts
education, especially in this
time of reinvigoration and recovery,”
NYC DOE Director of
Sustainability Meredith Mc-
Dermott said. “The mission
and knowledge that MFTA
provides is unique, immersive,
and also creatively supports
sustainability. We are so grateful
to our partners at MFTA for
providing this Citywide Tour,
as it will certainly allow more
students and educators to reconnect
through memorable,
enjoyable teaching and learning
this summer and beyond.”
Reach reporter Bill Parry
by e-mail at bparry@schneps
media.com or by phone at (718)
260–4538.
Vol. 7 No. 29 32 total pages
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