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About the Blue Bus
The Blue Bus Project (TBBP) was founded in 2016 as a means to realize a dream; if art can be democratized, and brought to the streets, it can be harnessed as a powerful tool for enacting social change.
Since its inception, TBBP has implemented over 75 projects in public spaces in Harlem, Governors Island, Jamaica Queens, the Rockaway Peninsula, and the Bronx with the support of the Queens Council on the Arts, Citizens Committee for NYC, Material for the Art (MFTA) and individual donors, and by partnering with individual artists, educational institutions, art organizations and city agencies. To date, TBBP has collaborated with many organizations such as AHRC, Hour Children, Jacob Riis Settlement House, Hunters Point Park Conservancy, Local Project Art Space, Socrates Sculpture Park, Kaufman Studios, NYC Parks, The Museum of the Moving Image, Noguchi Museum, A Blade of Grass, Frank Sinatra School of the Arts, Robert Fulton Houses in Chelsea, Friends of Rockaway 59th Street Playground Association, Court Square Civic Association and more.
About the Driver
Annalisa Iadicicco is the founder of The Blue Bus Project. Born in Italy, she moved to New York in 1997 to pursue her creative career and study photography at the Fashion Institute of Technology. After working in movie and television production she returned to creating art from found objects and materials. Her work speaks to social injustices and environmental problems as a means to explore overlooked issues and encourage conversation and social change.
“I wanted to create a platform, a safe space for artists and communities to merge, interact, explore and stimulate discussion that will lead them to action and social change. And what a better place than the streets! A venue suited for artistic intervention, where people don’t expect to find art but they are organically drawn to it. With all these ideas brewing in mind, one day I saw this school bus parked a few blocks from my house, and day after day I kept biking there just to check on it, until one day I put a note on the window that said: 'If you are selling the bus, give me a call'. 9 months later I got an auspicious call, and suddenly I found myself with this big bus, insurance to pay, a mechanic to deal with, and a colossal dream waiting to become reality. With the help of some friends, I was able to fix it up and put it on the road! Someday I plan to have a fleet of Blue Buses serving communities all over the United States”
- Annalisa Iadicicco -
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What We Believe
Art has the power to bring positive change to society, and when shared with all people, it reinforces the idea that every individual deserves a voice in determining the trajectory of their community. We strive to provide opportunities for self-discovery, create spaces for meaningful self-expression, and encourage people’s imaginations.
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Empower people by nurturing individual expression and accessing their inherent creativity
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Enrich communities by providing a safe space for dialogue and the exchange of ideas
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Empathy is the foundation of a society based on equality, inclusion, and acceptance
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Bridge individuals to their communities by engaging with issues of social and environmental inequality.
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Education is the means to enacting change by bringing awareness and providing the tools to act
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Board of Directors
Joe Monteleone - President
Emilia Muresanu - Treasurer
Carolina Pernafiel - Secretary
Ann Margaret O' Connor
Jessica Sechrist
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Advisory Board
Patrick Smalley
Lawrence (Larry) Foglia
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Artists Collaborators
Priscilla Stadler, Daniel Valle, Beth William Garrett, Plomer Daniel Torres,
Yukio Tsuji, Sara Galassini, Natasha Lardera, Jackie Nowicki, Jarred Bosh, Tyler Gilstrap, Suzie Rzecznik, Steven Orrego Upegui, Jim Koeppel, Mady Dangerously, Maria Liebana, Jean Marie Guyaux, Gildo Spado,
Eduardo Anievas, Ivan Dalia, Jkosart, Cristina Ferrigno, Edyta Halon,
Christina Jorge, Meagan Meehan, Ellen Stenfeld, Jemina Vita, Laura Mega, Maurita Cardone, Krysty Mc Carthy, Christopher Villafuerte, Lavender Suarez, Ahmed El Shaer, Steve Cossman, Mala Kumar, Kamran Shararay, Tiffany Joy Butler, Carla Torres, Peach Tao, Miki Mu.