The capital campaign for the renovation of Self Help Graphics & Art received a major boost with a $250,000 grant from the S. Mark Taper Foundation announced late last month. The Boyle Heights arts organization and cultural center said the funds will support the renovation of its more than a century-old building on East First Street, which is expected to begin in the Spring.
In recognition of the private, non-profit foundation’s gift, the central area of the renovated building will be named the “S. Mark Taper Foundation Community Gathering Space.”
“We’re very excited to receive the notable support of the S. Mark Taper Foundation toward our capital renovation,” SHG outgoing executive director Betty Avila said in a press release.
Already, SHG’s Capital Campaign has garnered nearly $14.9 million, and the organization estimates it needs an additional $2.5 million to complete its fundraising.
The organization expects renovating its building – a former seafood packing site– will allow it to expand its programmatic space and also integrate health and wellness into its workspaces, through much needed green spaces. Updating the building’s ventilation and natural lighting, renovating its historic archive repository and commissioning public artwork for its exterior walls are also part of the planned renovation.
