Art: Consume and Advocate.

The Pink Line Project often refers to itself as a purveyor of art and creativity in the Greater Washington, DC area. Our goal is to catalyze the culturally curious to participate and engage with the creative world around them.

But experiencing art is not just about consuming a product.  A couple of weeks ago, our very own Philippa Hughes was honored with a Distinguished Service to the Humanities Award for her role as one of DC’s most creative innovators.  During the event, the conversation – moderated by WAMU 88.5's Kojo Nnamdi – became less about what each person did to deserve the award, and more about what they are doing to make sure that the arts and humanities still exist in the community.

“We must all be advocates” was the concluding charge. It is not enough for the art community to just consume the arts and buy the tickets – it must also make sure that the arts stay at the forefront of the community’s priorities and politics. We must keep the arts alive if we expect to experience them in the future.

It is an understatement to say that this has not been the easiest of messages, as the arts and humanities are usually the first to go amidst financial crisis. But it’s something that we believe in and want to see thrive in DC. Thankfully, we think DC’s residents – individuals and businesses alike – want to see it too.

We see this not only in our flourishing arts calendar, but also events at local businesses that help support the arts and arts advocacy.  One happening we are particularly excited about is next week’s cupcakes-for-creativity promo at Georgetown’s brand new Sprinkles Cupcakes location. From October 29^th through November 6^th, Sprinkles Cupcakes Georgetown will be donating 100% of their proceeds from their red velvet and vegan red velvet cupcakes to Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in every community in America (including DC!). Americans for the Arts does this by serving and leading the network of organizations and individuals who cultivate, promote, sustain, and support the arts across the country.

To kick off the week-long “cupcakes for the arts” support, actress and GW alum Kerry Washington will be on hand from 3-5pm this Saturday, October 29 to serve the Americans for the Arts cupcakes in person at Sprinkles Cupcakes Georgetown.

It is an encouraging testament to business and arts partnerships around the city, that even corporations like Sprinkles Cupcakes can act as arts advocates, encouraging its consumers to not only consume their product, but to also consume the arts and advocate on their behalf. We look forward to seeing more of these unique partnerships in the future and hope that you will keep The Pink Line Project up to date on all of the many joint ventures happening across the District. Sure, we care about promoting the arts. But we also care about the community’s promotion of it too.

So go eat a cupcake. Experience art. And be an advocate.