Can social change start at your local laundromat? We take a look at how one nonprofit is looking to rebuild communities by putting art into your laundry basket.

In finding innovative ways to create change, sometimes it’s not about what you’re doing but rather how you do it that makes a difference. Many of us know about programs or organizations that sponsor public art, and there are perhaps even more groups out there trying to bring arts education to the masses – though it seems that we can never have enough of either in a time where drastic cuts in school systems across the country means the complete elimination of many arts programs in public schools.

That this is happening in one of world’s true arts capitals should only serve to illustrate the gravity of the situation. Within the last couple of years, the New York City Department of Education found that 32 percent of students in the system received absolutely no arts education, only 29 percent of middle schoolers are provided the minimum arts education as required by the state of New York, and only 4 percent of New York City elementary schools were even equipped to provide the minimum arts requirements.

The Laundromat Project is one of many organizations who try to fill this gap in arts education, while thinking outside of the box in a simple way to achieve their goals. The nonprofit brings arts programming to where people already gather on a regular basis and which serves as a real community hub in many low-income city neighborhoods – the laundromat.

In this short documentary made in collaboration with Flip Video and the Laundromat Project themselves, we see how the organization brings both arts workshops and public art projects to communities who are underserved by the arts due to any number of socioeconomic dilemmas. The organization also sees art making and appreciation as much more than just a pleasant distraction, but as a real way to enhance self-realization and build communities.

The value of the Laundromat Project for me goes beyond what they’re doing, as other organizations also try to achieve similar goals. Rather, it is the fact that they have brought their mission directly to the lives of regular people by being a part of the community which they serve on a day-to-day basis, and creating new possibilities for more than just art.