The Public Art Archive is pleased to announce the launch of our special project, “Street Scene: CETA Murals, New Haven, and the Late 1970s.” This virtual exhibition features a content-rich dive into the colorful photographic imagery of the murals, the artists and participants, and scenes of New Haven in the 1970s, when the CETA (Comprehensive Employment and Training Act) program was in play. Built with content researched and organized by Laura A. Macaluso, Ph.D., and the Public Art Archive’s Lori Goldstein and Alison Verplaetse, the exhibition traces the beginnings of the program sourced by the federal government, how the program took shape in New Haven, Connecticut, and the people involved in shaping its legacy in the community. From this special virtual exhibition, viewers will better understand the aspirational ideas behind the CETA mural program to strengthen and uplift New Haven’s community of diverse people.
The last remaining examples of CETA murals were erased from the New Haven landscape during demolition and reconstruction projects in the past 10 years. In an era of renewed work for social justice and equity in the arts, this virtual exhibit comes at an opportune moment to celebrate this groundbreaking work, and to support the role of public art making in New Haven, Connecticut, past, present, and future.
