Programs
Arts For Art has developed major programming initiatives that significantly advance its goal of strengthening the presence of Creative Improvised Arts in community. To ensure accessibility we are making events more affordable and at the door pay/what/you/can, while giving all performers a guarantee.
■ AFA’s flagship event is an intensive week-long gathering of artists and audiences from around the world to hear the best of FreeJazz music, dance and visual arts in an atmosphere that builds community.
■ It celebrates Lifetime Achievements by legends in the field
■ It celebrates the generations of Creative Improvisation in Music, Visual Arts, Poetry and Dance.
■ It features original films on legendary artists.
■ It features panel discussions that focus on concerns of artists and audiences.
■ AFA’s platform for artists from emerging to mid career artists. It showcases their original work that explores a range of contemporary creative possibilities. This series focus is on the new, while honoring artists who are no longer with us, because acknowledging our history makes us stronger. We also honor the diversity of the artists with a sense of social responsibility. In 2026, we focused on a Residency Program.
■ This series takes a direct approach to enlivening our communities with innovative Music and Art with Free performances that take place in community gardens, making innovative Art a neighborhood event.
■ AFA continues to bring improvised music into schools including Creators Academy UAMA and BedStuy New Beginnings Charter School and Institute for Collaborative Education … as well as the Intergenerational Workshop Ensemble for 4 years at The Clemente.
■ AFA has produced 12 documentaries on Vision Artists including Amina Claudine Myers “Reflections”; Charles Gayle “Consecration;” and “Ashimba” on Cooper-Moore and “Bringing on the Hallelujah” on Kidd Jordan. In addition we have streamed hundreds of performances on our YouTube Chanel https://www.youtube.com/@ArtsforArt
■ AFA embraces a Creative Response addressing injustice through transformative Art that inspires and empowers. In addition to events that bring attention to social concerns, AFA holds Town Hall Meetings / Panel discussions / Salons where artists network & address the personal, political, and practical concerns of being an artist in contemporary society.
■ AFA has been developing a new website mapping the evolution of NYC’s freejazz movement from the 1960’s forward. freejazz.nyc. This is an ongoing process.
