November 14, 2005
The Arts
From the Trash, a Treasure Chest for the Creative
By BARBARA WHITAKER, NY TIMES

FOR nearly three decades, Materials for the Arts has been bringing together artists and tons of waste destined for trash bins in New York City. Even through lean years and under various city administrations, the program, run by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, has survived and grown.

But as part of a city agency, its future has always been a little unpredictable. Questions about financing and possible cuts come up every budget and each new administration. Three years ago, the group's advisory board took steps to provide greater stability by reorganizing itself as the nonprofit Friends of Materials for the Arts, allowing it to raise money independently.

"Switching to a formal nonprofit has strengthened the partnership," said Kate D. Levin, the city's commissioner for cultural affairs. "Materials for the Arts would not be as nimble and creative as it is without a private partner."

Since forming, FoMA, as the group is known, has helped find money for evening "shopping" hours at its Queens warehouse - allowing teachers to get materials, for nothing, after their workday. It has also found money to pay a coordinator of volunteers, cover the cost of extra haulers when the need develops and support educational programs that teach people how to use the warehouse.

After all, it takes experience to make the most of a collection of buttons and feathers, odd lots of fabric, hinges and sequins in an art project.

Materials for the Arts, which is still a public entity, ranges over 25,000 square feet of warehouse in Long Island City. The shelves are also stocked with things like toaster ovens, rugs, theater curtains, yarn, paint and toothbrushes.

How do toothbrushes factor into an art project? At the group's Costume Ball fund-raising event, sponsored by the Friends just before Halloween, one artist attending the party turned them into a crown for her tooth-fairy costume, all made with materials and items she found in the warehouse.

Harriet Taub, executive director of Materials for the Arts, made a skirt out of zippers. Glue guns were in hot demand as children and adults drew from piles of fake jewelry stones and spools of ribbons to concoct headdresses, scarves and flowing gowns.

"I go into a hardware store and I'm happy," said Jo Beth Ravitz, who works for the nonprofit Studio in a School, which sends artists into New York City public schools to work with children. "But this is like a treasure chest."

Materials for the Arts got its start in 1978 when a young artist named Angela Fremont, who was working for the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, issued a public appeal for a refrigerator to store medicine for animals at the Central Park Zoo. It took minutes for the switchboard to be jammed with calls.

From one person, a desk and a phone, Materials for the Arts has grown into a program with 13 full-time employees and an annual budget of $1.35 million, about $310,000 of which comes from Friends of Material for the Arts. Money is also provided by the city's sanitation and education departments. The Department of Sanitation began working with the Materials for the Arts in the late 80's through its Bureau of Waste Prevention, Reuse and Recycling, and in 1997 the Board of Education began providing support so teachers could have access to the group's supplies.

Last year, Materials for the Arts removed 741 tons of material, valued at just over $4.6 million, from the waste stream, said people in the program.

While the city typically pays for the warehouse, labor and operations, Friends tends to seek out money for special programs like the evening shopping. It also provides resources to improve the project over all.

For example, John Peebles, Friends' president, helped bring together a technical team to create a Web site where organizations can match needs and donations without going through the warehouse. The city bought new computers for the Web site operation while a private donor, through Friends, provided money to build the site and database.

While Materials for the Arts serves hundreds of nonprofit groups each year, it has become the single largest supplier of art supplies to the New York public schools.

"Materials for the Arts has been an enormous benefit for us," said Sharon Dunn, senior instructional manager for arts education with the Department of Education. "Even if schools had the revenues to buy materials, where would you find all this stuff?" She said about 1,100 of the city's 1,400 schools were registered to use the warehouse, and hundreds of teachers make appointments to shop there each year.

Despite its successes, the organization's future is never guaranteed. Vivian Mamelak, a financial analyst who joined the advisory board in the mid-1990's, recalled how one year program money from the Sanitation Department was jeopardized as sanitation officials tried to cut costs.

After all, she said, the Sanitation Department's main job is removing trash, not supporting art projects. Ultimately, the financing was preserved, but Ms. Mamelak said the threat of cuts had helped provide the impetus for creating the private entity.

"There's always those city budgeting and funding issues that hit you in the face," she said. "We felt there needed to be a buffer. Something to ensure the longevity of the program. There's only so much in the city coffers."

The Warehouse

Being in Long Island City is like home to us. In the early 1980's MFTA had space in the basement of PS 1 Institute for Contemporary Art. Our current home is a 25,000 square foot loft in the Center Building.

This building brings with it its own sense of history. Originally an automobile factory for the Ford Motor Company, this building provides MFTA with passenger and freight elevators and a separate loading dock for use by recipients and donors. Outside the glass wall in the MFTA warehouse are the remnants of an assembly line, echoing the buildings industrial past.

The MFTA warehouse is able to provide its users more than ever before. With twice as much space as the old location, the warehouse has a separate room for paints and thousands of feet of floor space for furniture and props. Recipients wind up taking more per visit since the array of supplies is vast and interesting.

Located near six major subway lines means we are conveniently located for many of our donors and recipients. In fact, we are now finding that organizations are able to shop, and explore the arts community in Long Island City while paying a visit to the MFTA warehouse.

MFA Website