A group of local arts boosters plans to mark downtown Bethesda’s theaters, music venues and writing centers with a large, sculptural letter B.
The Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District, managed by the Bethesda Urban Partnership, will place 15 to 20 of the letters throughout Bethesda at places such as The Writer’s Center, Round House Theatre and Imagination Stage.
The letters will be designed and painted by different local artists in an effort to garner more recognition for art venues in Bethesda. The initiative was described in a letter submitted to the county Planning Board by Cathy Bernard, president of the Arts & Entertainment District Board, and David Dabney, executive director of the Bethesda Urban Partnership.
“We are still in the process of raising funds for this initiative as well as future programs to ensure that the Bethesda A&E District is a premier example of an arts destination complete with visual and performing arts initiatives,” the letter read.
BUP spokesperson Stephanie Coppula said the group is still meeting with potential vendors for the project.
Bernard and Dabney asked Planning Board members to consider requiring financial support for arts projects from developers through the county’s new master plan for downtown Bethesda.
BUP and the Arts & Entertainment District have already received financial support for projects from developers looking to satisfy public amenity requirements.
The group opened Studio B, a studio for four local artists, in the basement of the Bethesda Crescent office building last year. Property owner Brookfield donated the space and provided $23,000 for lighting upgrades to BUP’s “Tunnel Vision” exhibit in exchange for getting rid of three pieces of commissioned art during a building renovation.
The developer of a 17-story, 72-unit luxury condominium building promised 2,000 square feet of ground floor space to BUP for another set of artist studios.
The Arts & Entertainment District, designated by the state in 2002, is also hoping to partner with developers to find more spaces for murals as part of its “Paint the Town” project. BUP is offering $15,000 to the artist it chooses to paint the first mural, on a 200-foot-long section of an Arlington Road retaining wall.
