My Nonprofit Reviews

Wherever I have lived—my native New York City and now Northern Virginia--art of all kinds, visual and otherwise, has been a treasured and given part of my life. My regular middle-class Bronx family didn’t have original works of art covering our walls. We didn’t have sculptural installations in our backyard. But what we had is the rich arts environment of New York City all around us, and we took full advantage of it from my earliest years. So many decades later, when I—now a happy Northern Virginia transplant—retired, it was a no brainer that I would devote some of my precious reclaimed time to an arts-related nonprofit. Public Art Reston, new at the time, swiftly rose high on that list. As the former managing editor of Reston’s hometown newspaper, I brought an insider’s knowledge to that decision--factoring in Public Art Reston’s evident and immediate ability to contribute in important and concrete ways to Reston’s deep-rooted belief that the arts should be an integral part of the community’s cultural life. Ten years after joining its efforts, Public Art Reston has more than confirmed my faith in its mission of creating a new generation of public artworks in Reston—15 since its inception and more planned--that “engage the mind and senses.” Plus, it plays the important role of educating the community about its rich public art history and the value of its previously existing public art inventory. Thank you, Public Art Reston, in addition to your vital community contributions, you have kept this old yet young-at-heart, art-loving former New Yorker thoroughly and meaningfully engaged.