King Artist Residency

In 2021, the City of Palo Alto Public Art Program launched the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. & Coretta Scott King artist residency program, engaging the community in conversations about equity, inclusion, and belonging in Palo Alto. In the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, for whom King Plaza is named, the Council asked the Public Art Commission to consider commissioning a permanent work signaling the City’s commitment to race, equity, and belonging. The Public Art Commission is committed to a permanent platform for ongoing conversations about equity, inclusion, and belonging in Palo Alto through the arts. As a result, the King Artist Residency Program was established. 

The 2024 King Artist Residency: Artist Alma Landeta

Alma Landeta (they/them) was approved by the Public Art Commission as the 2024 King Artist-in-Residence. Alma Landeta is a trans and mixed-race visual artist and educator who centers queer joy as liberation through drawings, paintings, site-specific installations, and public programming. Their work reflects their lived experiences while celebrating the communities that have held space for them to live authentically. Landeta's background as an educator has taught them how to incorporate culturally responsive and developmentally appropriate frameworks for facilitating social practice art—whether that’s through a collaborative framework for individual portraits, interactive installations, or community workshops.

For their King Residency project Alma Landeta is focusing on the lived experiences of the LGBTQAI+ community members residing and/or working in Palo Alto with the goal of sparking conversations about inclusion, equity, a sense of belonging and bringing Palo Alto’s diverse communities together through better understanding and compassion. 

Alma Landeta is inviting anyone identifying as LGBTQAI+ to participate in the King Residency project by calling the Queeries Hotline at (510) 854-6578 to share their stories and lived experiences with the artist. 

The 2023 King Artist Residency

Artist Kirti Bassendine was the 2023 King Artist-in-Residence, focusing on diverse underserved communities residing and/or working in Palo Alto and experiencing socio-economic or housing instability. Kirti conducted her research phase and worked with Palo Alto Renters Association, Move Mountain View, Alta Housing, Karat School Project, Avenidas, and the Buena Vista Mobile Home Park to engage their communities in storytelling about housing and belonging in Palo Alto. Over the course of her six month community engagement period, Kirti Bassendine held workshops with residents of Buena Vista Mobile Home Park, Alta Housing, Move Mountain View, Avenidas, and the general public. Bassendine's Creative Community Engagement Report(PDF, 115KB) outlines the artist's project scope, methodology, and findings from her outreach.  

The 2022 King Artist Residency

Artist Rayos Magos, a San Jose-native Latinx mixed media artist, was approved by the Public Art Commission as the first Artist-in-Residence with the City of Palo Alto Public Art Program. His residency, Rituals of Resilience, included a six month community engagement process sparking conversations about culture, identity, belonging, and resilience, with a special focus on amplifying voices of Latinx and BIPOC community members and mental health service providers.

Rayos' documentation of personal stories and learned experiences has resulted in a final temporary sculptural artwork called Te Veo, Te Escucho, Te Honro (I See You, I Hear You, I Honor You) and will temporarily remain on view on King Plaza through the beginning of 2024. Artist Rayos Magos created a free downloadable Rituals of Resilience Artbook(PDF, 4MB). Use this artbook to color, draw, or express your thoughts about your rituals of resilience.