3 cities across the US. 
18  pieces of public art in each city by local emergent artists. 
30+ community partnerships.
1 movement to inspire change. 

Be the Change is a 2022-2023 art and activism initiative that is inspired by the Jewish tenet of justice and drawing from the ritualistic Jewish Tzedakah box. Launched in Boston in 2022, with life in Cincinnati in 2022 and LA in 2023, Be the Change helps viewers connect to issues of injustice and empower them to become agents of change.  

Be the Change is about making space to talk about injustice – and to give us all action steps to be agents of change in our local and global communities.

The tzedakah box (based on the root word tzedek, Hebrew for justice) is a small box in which Jews traditionally collect loose change on Shabbat and other occasions to be donated to the needy. Beyond just giving money, the goal of Be the Change is to help us all become artivists – activists through the art.

Featured Artists

Boston

Find Us In The Fenway!

Cincinnati

Los Angeles

Coming Spring 2023.

Past EVENTS

All Events are Free to the Public

virtual DIscussions

Artist Interviews

In-Person

Project Roots

In Boston, the  Jewish Arts Collaborative , is the lead producer of Be the Change  launching the national project in August of 2022  in the Fenway neighborhood in Boston.  Artist Caron Tabb was inspired to create the exhibit concept in partnership with Ruth Messinger (former CEO and President of American Jewish World Service).

From there,  Ish  takes the lead in Cincinnati, in collaboration with Cincy Nice, in Fall 2022 and then the Skirball Center for the Arts in Los Angeles in 2023.

Making Real Change: Using Art to Drive Policy

The Be the Change sculptures make space for us all to understand how we can make change in our community. To guide this, each piece in  Be the Change  is underpinned by active legislation, defined in collaboration with JALSA (Jewish Alliance for Law & Social Action).

made possible by

Production Partners

The Jewish Arts Collaborative, lead producer, launches in the Boston Fenway area in Fall 2022 in collaboration with Samuels & Associates .

Ish takes the lead in Cincinnati, in collaboration with Cincy Nice in Fall 2022 (September – November). 

The Skirball Cultural Center in LA joins us in 2022/2023 (details TBD). 

Tzedek Box will be a lead online partner, co-hosting events, and conversation via their Tzedek Box app throughout the duration of the project. 

Boston Program Partners

Partnerships with diverse local organizations are central to Be the Change. Each of the host cities will partner community groups, schools, senior centers, and more to engage community through the art. 

Connecting Vietnam
Eastern Woodlands Rematriation Collective
Jewish Community Relations Council of Boston