The Social Impact of the Arts Project a/k/a SIAP
is a research group started in 1994 in Philadelphia, PA
housed at the University of Pennsylvania, School of Social Policy & Practice.
SIAP conceptualizes the arts, culture, and humanities as integral to urban vitality and social wellbeing and develops ways to measure the impact of this sector on community life. SIAP conducts project-based inquiry with support primarily by external private and public funders. Our work is available for public use with full citation requested. Reports and materials (except where otherwise noted) are downloadable in PDF format. SIAP’s modus operandi is work-in-progress. We welcome comments, questions, and especially updates.
“Natural” Cultural Districts: A Three-City Study (February 2013)
A study of seven grassroots cultural districts in three cities—Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Seattle—undertaken from 2010-2012 with support by Leveraging Investments in Creativity (LINC).
See COMPLETED PROJECTS.
Creative Assets Mapping Database for the City of Philadelphia.
Cultural Asset Mapping Project: Progress Report (December 2012)
SIAP in partnership with The Reinvestment Fund (TRF) and the City of Philadelphia Office of Arts, Culture, and the Creative Economy (OACCE) has developed a spatial database of cultural and community asset data linked to an interactive web tool called CultureBlocks. SIAP’s December 2012 report documents the progress of the SIAP/TRF research agenda associated with CultureBlocks development.
See WORKS IN PROGRESS.
See also the CultureBlocks website, launched on April 30, 2013, at: http://cultureblocks.com
Finkelpearl, Tom. 2013. “Project Row Houses. Interview: Rick Lowe, artist, and Mark J. Stern, professor of social history and urban studies,” in What We Made: Conversations on Art and Social Cooperation, Chapter 5, “Social Vision and a Cooperative Community.” Durham and London: Duke University Press.
Stern, Mark J. and Susan C. Seifert. 2013. “Creative capabilities and community capacity,” In Enhancing Capabilities: The Role of Social Institutions, Hans-Uwe Otto and Holger Ziegler (eds). Opladen, Berlin & Toronto: Barbara Budrich Publishers.
One Man Dancing
14 months in the making, 42 countries,
and a cast of thousands.
Cities and Their Citizens:
Fostering Civic Engagement through the Arts
University of Chicago