YartArt returns to Watertown for the fifth year in 2025. See more information about the month-long outdoor exhibition that takes place around the city. See more information in the announcement below.
Start planning your art projects! YardArt, a month-long outdoor citywide art exhibition taking place in Watertown, Mass., at the transition of winter to spring, will return for a fifth year in April 2025. During YardArt, residents, institutions, and businesses — in short everyone in the city — is invited to install and display self-made creations in their front yards, windows, or anywhere visible from the street or sidewalk.
YardArt is a community celebration of the inventiveness and the creativity in us all. Displayed pieces showcase the work of professionals, amateurs, hobbyists, adults, children, and students of all ages. Past works have included sculptures, mobiles, painted and covered materials, lighting displays, and art of all types and sizes. There are also group exhibitions in public and communal spaces. Participation is free and open to all.
YardArt provides an opportunity for joy in making and sharing art and in viewing the art of others. Viewers are invited to take self–guided walking or biking tours aided by an online map showing participating locations. Property owners interested in displaying larger pieces in a public space are invited to contact the YardArt Committee as well.
Free registration will open online at www.mosesianarts.org/yardart soon. In April, new YardArt locations will be marked by lawn signs and appear on the interactive online map.
YardArt History
YardArt was the idea of a group of longtime arts advocates in Watertown. During the lingering stages of the Covid-19 pandemic in late 2020, they conceived a way to bring people together, safely socially distanced, and raise the spirits of the community.
Key partnerships were developed with the public schools, the Watertown Office of Community Development and Planning, the Watertown Business Coalition, the Mosesian Center for the Arts, the Watertown Boys and Girls Club, Watertown Cultural Council, Live Well Watertown, Watertown Art Association, the Watertown Free Public Library, and Hatch Makerspace. The Watertown Community Foundation and individual donors provided critical funding support.
The first YardArt launched in Watertown in March 2021 with over 140 original artworks on
display across the city. Reactions to the event were highly enthusiastic. Local media carried
press releases and stories and filmed the installations. Thousands of visitors from all over the local area came to walk the neighborhoods of Watertown and view the art.
New YardArt Leadership
For 2025, YardArt is a project of the newly-designated Watertown Cultural District. Mass Cultural Council, the Commonwealth’s independent state arts agency, approved the city’s application for a cultural district in November 2024. The statewide program is designed to spark local economic growth, strengthen the distinctive local character of communities, and improve the quality of life for families across Massachusetts.
Watertown is home to several annual public cultural events and boasts a long and growing list of arts and cultural assets throughout the city. Watertown Square, the civic center and transportation hub of the city, is a growing cultural center. Its proximity to the Charles River, at the most inland navigable point by water from Boston Harbor, is a cherished feature of Watertown. With a history of amplifying culture and creativity, this new Watertown Cultural District is the next step in this process.
Website: www.mosesianarts.org/yardart
Facebook: www.facebook.com/watertownyardart
Instagram: www.instagram.com/yardartwatertown
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