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Name of Applicant: Amount Requested: Category: Score: Rebecca Chernow $ 2,500 Artist 76.2 — 5th Description of Project: My project aims to stimulate compassion, inclusivity, and togetherness through the collaborative mediums of art and a shared meal. I would like to ask between 40 and 50 individuals from different communities, cultures, socio-economic backgrounds, and ages all currently residing within the city of Santa Ana to visually map out their goals, dreams, and hopes for the future (all the things they "have on their plate") on the surface of plain, cafeteria -style plates that will ultimately be used as dinnerware for an outdoor communal meal in the center of downtown Santa Ana. As project leader, I will provide small, personalized workshops on how to visualize and draw out abstracted ideas, but will leave plenty of space for each person to develop their own style of expression. For one month the decorated plates will be displayed in a centrally located public viewing space in Grand Central Art Center's project gallery that will also be open for additional community members to participate in the project, and return for the potluck at the close of the show. The meal will be held in front of Grand Central, in the public space near the fountain for one afternoon, and all those in attendance will be asked to bring a small dish to pass. At the end of the meal, each person is invited to take their plate home with them and keep it for future use. The project is a means to shed light on the concurrent realities that fellow citizens of a singular municipal locality experience, but may never have the opportunity to overlap. It is also an invitation for relative strangers to sit down and eat a meal together in public space to share ideas, time, and home -cooked food. Community Benefit: To execute the project, I plan on renting Nancy Alcala's ceramic kiln to fire the enamel onto the plates, and in doing so will be supporting a local artist who has their own community outreach program. I will be utilizing Grand Central Art Center's exhibition space, and will be bringing in individuals who might not otherwise visit Grand Central or downtown Santa Ana. The potluck is also a visual reference to the public meals that have been held in Santa Ana over the years, but contrasts in its more modest size and potluck style. The project itself will bring a vibrant blend of individuals from the creative community, student population, long-time residents of Santa Ana, individuals from what are often considered marginalized socio-economic backgrounds, and families from diverse cultures all into one space, and to one table together, if only for an afternoon. As part of the documentation of the project, I plan on creating a small visual chapbook (with the help of local published author and friend Sarah Garcia) to distribute to the participants, as well as have copies available for purchase through local venues like Libromobile and Grand Central Art Center after the project is complete. 25D-23