Just steps from the bustling intersection of University Boulevard and New Hampshire Avenue a few miles from the University of Maryland, a stretch of asphalt was transformed into an arts and culture district for a few hours on a spring Saturday, offering a glimpse of a possible future for the community of Langley Park, Md.
Blooms and Beats, a semester-long creative placemaking project developed by the University of Maryland’s Creative Placemaking Minor brought together music, public art, whimsical seating and activity to envision a space both culturally connected and pedestrian focused in a community undergoing rapid change; home to a future stop on Maryland’s Purple Line light rail line, the idea, said Professor Ronit Eisenbach, is about sustaining what is in place, while dreaming about what could be possible.
“We’re trying to imagine a place for gathering, that supports these businesses and the culture that’s here,” she said.
Supported by the University of Maryland’s Purple Line Corridor Coalition, Arts for All and Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability, students, faculty and community members transformed existing planters into works of art, led activities for kids and debuted constructed seating areas for gathering. The project demonstrates the role art and design can play amidst change—how it can unite people, offer inspiration and drive change for the public good.