Artists For Humanity

To all who attended Artopia, we are truly grateful to you for making it such a success! Artopia is not just any fundraiser, but one conceived each year by our intergenerational team and brought to life through hard work and steadfast dedication to our mission and work. But it never comes full circle without our broader community showing up. Thank you! For those of you who made a donation—wow! We surpassed our goal and we couldn’t be more thankful for this outpouring of generosity. Ongoing donations are key to sustaining our pioneering mission to empower and inspire teens to build their future! If you have yet to donate, there’s still time to give, no amount is too small. https://lnkd.in/e5cT2hkW 2025 is almost here, and we’re hoping you left Artopia already asking yourself—who will I invite next year?

As the Design Director in AFH's Graphic Design Studio Kelsey Arbona is a recognizable face, as well as a powerful force within our community. Kelsey and the Graphic Design Studio are currently working on a wide variety of pieces, including awards, large-scale graphic murals, interactive designs, and much more! It's clear that Kelsey is not only dedicated to good design, but also to the ways design can inform and transform, both in small and large-scales. “I have always been inspired by the power of design,” Kelsey expresses, “It can educate, persuade, clarify, transform communities, and solve problems. I apply design thinking to every personal and professional challenge in my life.” That being said, she also recognizes the importance of stepping away from the computer and embarking on hands-on creative challenges including calligraphy, hand lettering, collage, and even assembling furniture! When asked what advice she would provide a young Kelsey, she emphasized the importance of exploration and the power of making mistakes. “I would tell my younger self that in design, there are no definitive right or wrong answers—only process. Embrace the journey, stay curious in exploration and experimentation, and fail forward.” Happy Mentor Monday! Behind every success is a long line of failures and AFH is lucky to have mentors like Kelsey to guide AFH teens towards that success! #mentormonday #artistsforhumanity #youthdevelopment #graphicdesign #bostonartists

Get to know Yalvin Zayas, an AFH Teen Designer in Creative Tech Studio! #youthdevelopment #spotlight #animation

When we promised unique culinary creations, we MEANT it! We're excited to announce Asia Mei of Moonshine 152 and Boston Magazine's Best South Boston Neighborhood Restaurant will be featured at Artopia 😋🎉 There are only a 4 days left to buy your tickets! Click the link below to grab a ticket and make sure you’re able to grab a tasty treat from Asia Mei this Saturday (Oct 5) at Artopia. Thank you to the generous sponsors of Artopia! https://lnkd.in/eJxpc6nU #afhartopia #culinarycreations #creativetransformation #artistsforhumanity #bostonparty

Read more about Ananda’s experience at AFH as a teen, a mentor, a former staff member, and a current AFH Artist fellow by clicking the link below! Don’t miss out on the opportunity to get some EXCLUSIVE insight into the work they’re bringing to both the Fellowships culminating exhibition AND Artopia.

“I remain forever grateful to the city that taught me to see the world anew and to never stop searching for flowers amidst the concrete jungle.” — Maya Chin, AFH Alumni Maya Chin, a Chinese American born and raised in Boston, finds comfort in the vibrant energy of her city's streets, particularly reveling in the beauty of the flowers in her community. Through her paintings, Maya captures the essence of Boston's urban beauty, inviting viewers to see the world through her eyes and experience the magic of everyday moments. “Throughout my childhood, my mom adorned me in the elegant folds of the traditional Chinese "qipao" during spring months. It became a cherished tradition to pose among the flowers at the Boston Public Garden or Prudential Center, capturing moments in photographs to share with relatives in China.”  Every month, we collaborate with @pruboston to feature a new AFH teen artist. This month’s featured artist is Maya—a former teen artist who is now an alumna of AFH. Works such as Maya’s “Stop and Smell the Flowers” series, created when she was a teen at AFH, will be displayed on digital kiosks all around Prudential Center. This is an amazing way to give our teen artists a voice and an opportunity to be a part of the public art scene! Don’t forget to “Stop and Smell the Flowers” next time you’re at Prudential Center 🌸💐✨ Follow us and turn your notifications on to be among the first to learn about next month’s talented teen. Pop over to the link below to read the full article and learn more about Maya! https://lnkd.in/eiN9mWHc #artistsforhumanity #prudentialboston #youthdevelopment #bostonartists #artistfeature

“So the whole idea of our part of the show is putting people in our space–which is kind of tiny–but you are supposed to be immersed in the video. You're supposed to feel like you're surrounded by nature.” — Gavin, AFH Video Studio Teen This past week our Video Studio team created clay insects and bugs as part of Video Studio’s interactive to be paired with a video featuring creepy crawlies via the help of a macro lens. After speaking with both Gavin and Tamma about what part of Artopia they were most excited for, they emphasized that they were not only excited to see their studio’s work once fully assembled, but that they were curious about the other studio’s interactives. “I just want to see how everything turns out. I want to experience it too,” Tamma expressed, “I want to see how people react to our work.” Come to Artopia to see, experience, and react to all of our teens’ hard work and don’t forget to say hi to Gavin when you see him on October 5 with his camera! Pop over to the link below to grab a ticket before we run out! https://lnkd.in/eJxpc6nU #afhartopia #artistsforhumanity #videostudio #bostonartists #videographers

Elysse Gonzalez is fascinated by a WIDE variety of subjects, including medicine, art, music, and more. After talking with her for a couple moments, it’s clear that she’s ready to tackle the world full force! As a multi-talented, multi-media artist, Elysse is intrigued by the prospect of working on designing and decorating prosthetics in the future, and is excited by the progress the medical world has made in creating complex circuitry, emphasizing that “stuff is getting really complex now with computer science...you can make a program that just moves things with your brain.” Although she has a long list of future projects to conquer, her current and most pressing project is a landscape painting for Artopia that is influenced by her culture. “I come from Baní. It's a really coastal, small town in the Dominican Republic,” Elysse mentions, ”One thing I most remember from being there was probably the Dominican Independence Day festivals. There's a ton of folklore and a ton of costumes.They had a ton of patterns, too and they popped out at you. I love that, and I wanted to make paintings like that—paintings that pop out at you. Paintings that incorporate some sort of 3D aspect that really catch your attention.” What do you think—does Elysse’s painting catch your eye? Even though the piece is a work in progress, it’s already grabbed our attention! To see Elysse’s Artopia painting in person, don't forget to grab a ticket to Artopia—just around the corner on Oct 5! https://lnkd.in/eJxpc6nU Every Wednesday until October 9, we will be highlighting Hispanic and Latino AFH teens and the work they’ve done inside and outside Artists For Humanity for National Hispanic Heritage Month. Keep an eye out for the next spotlight! #artistsforhumanity #nationalhispanicheritagemonth #youthdevelopment #bostonartists #afhartopia

Artists For Humanity invites you to Artopia—a not-to-be-missed innovative night of community, culture, and creativity alongside culinary delights, eclectic music, and craft cocktails that will leave you feeling inspired! Artopia is an awesome (and fun!) way to support AFH's mission to employ 400+ teens and provide them with jobs, mentorship, and career readiness and education support. In my role, I'm so lucky to interact with all of our teen artists across NYC and Boston, and to see their growth as individuals and artists throughout their employment at AFH. Link to purchase tickets: https://lnkd.in/e7vu5hv2  #afhartopia  #artistsforhumanity

Artists For Humanity is a place of art and design, but it’s also built on community and transformation! Each year, businesses, nonprofits, and members of the community lease The AFH EpiCenter for their events, transforming the space again and again—supporting our Youth Arts Enterprise that mentors and employs nearly 400 teens each year on the floors above the venue!    This past week, the AFH EpiCenter had the pleasure of hosting Boston Medical Center (BMC) Health System’s ‘EQTY 2024: Accelerating Health Justice’ summit featuring conversations about health equity, panels discussing treatment and therapy, and a Keynote Address by Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones.   AFH was honored to host this meeting of the minds, especially as it aligns with our mission towards equity and increased accessibility.   And to top it off, BMC hired us to activate the event reception with one of our signature interactives—when our enterprising and talented teens art direct the completion of a pre-composed canvas, working with event goers to create a memorable and collaborative piece reflecting the purpose of the gathering. Thank you Boston Medical Center Health System for partnering with us for this exciting event!  It was a pleasure working with you and we cannot wait for future events and collaborations. If you’re looking for a place to host your next conference, summit, event, or wedding, or hire us to activate your next event, connect with us via the link in our bio.   #afhepicenter #artistsforhumanity #bostonmedicalcenterhealthsystem #equity #eventvenue