“A new world is possible!” Celebrate845 Combines Art & Activism
In a world that appears increasingly bleak each day, Jamie Sanin, founder of Celebrate845 reminds people, “A new world is possible!”
Celebrate845 is a Hudson Valley organization that dedicates itself to providing a platform for “historically marginalized, low-income, working-class creatives to share their work with the larger goals of exploring systemic barriers within the arts” along with building “strong, sustainable and healthy communities for all” according to their Instagram page.
As part of this mission, Celebrate845 hosts pop-up and remote events to create space around the arts and social justice in the Hudson Valley.
The creation of Celebrate845 was organic in its art-based origins. A lifelong resident of the Hudson Valley, Sanin grew up with arts in the region but began to become more involved in the art scene in Newburgh after graduating from SUNY New Paltz and wanting to contribute to the growing scene.
“Celebrate was sort of born out of me. Just like as a personal goal, wanting to try to curate an art show” Sanin reflects about the organization’s beginnings. It was a moment for them to step out of their comfort zone and participate in the art scene. “I had never done that before, and I’m like an organized person. So I thought I could probably do this, and maybe it would be fun.”
The first art gallery as part of Celebrate845 began in January 2018 and featured 60 local artists from a variety of creative backgrounds. This initial event was received well, with many people asking Sanin, “What’s next?” From here, Celebrate845 continued to hold art events and created a community of artists and creatives contributing their talents to events and initiatives.
Sanin attributes Celebrate845’s growth from their personal, artistic goal to a recognized artistic niche since 2018 to its ability to leverage the platform for the arts it initially created through arts events and eventually open mic nights. “I think that’s how it’s lasted so long and how it’s grown so organically because just so many people have contributed whether they contributed once or whether they contributed over and over and over. It’s helped it really grow” Sanin explains.
Celebrate845 is unique in the way it emphasizes social justice initiatives with its artistic angle. A goal of the organization that Sanin stresses is how the arts and social justice work together to spread a message on a variety of important issues in the Hudson Valley and nationally. In Sanin’s view, having the role of an artist is a “wonderful gift.”
“What a wonderful way to capture what’s happening, to communicate what’s happening, document, build connection, there’s so much that that art can, there’s a big role that artists can play if they so choose” Sanin posits.
This perspective on art and activism has manifested itself in Celebrate845 being involved in several social justice initiatives over the last few years. Over the summer, Celebrate845 created the hashtag #UpstateArtWeekendDoBetter to educate the Hudson Valley on the implications of Upstate Arts Weekend and its practices in the local arts scene.
Recently, the organization has had members on the ground at local protests and rallies for Palestine with free masks available through the student-led organization, The People’s PPE, for those in attendance for COVID-19 safety.
Additionally, Celebrate845 uses its online presence to share information about local action for Palestine and other causes. As an organization, Celebrate845 does not have an in-person office and uses its online presence and scheduled events around the region to organize.
The most recent arts initiative from Celebrate845 comes in the form of local artists contributing their art to a postcard project. With help from ProPrinters in Hudson, New York, the postcards come in packs with buyers being encouraged to pay what they can between $0–20.
One of the artists involved in the project and a frequent contributor to Celebrate845 is Tiera Nolcox of Newburgh. Nolcox is a poet and writer who found working with Sanin and Celebrate845 an empowering experience. “I’ve always appreciated Jamie because there are a lot of people around here who have also approached me and who have crossed boundaries, who have felt like they were helping me instead of empowering me” Nolcox explains. “As simple as this is, you just feel seen.”
To Nolcox, Celebrate845 can be summarized in a few important words: “human, selfless, humble.” For Sanin, the word is “joyful.”
“I think that’s a pillar, even when stuff is messy and hard and inaccessible. I know that we know, we’re not always going to feel joy, we’re allowed to feel rage, we’re allowed to feel grief. But I think that’s the lens I try to approach it with; we’re celebrating. We’re all here, we all have talents, we have skills, we have each other. There’s so much to celebrate.”
As a grassroots organization with a passion for art, social justice, and community, Celebrate845 encompasses what good can come from authentic care for artistic creation with empowerment for the artists themselves.
To learn more about Celebrate845, visit their website at https://www.celebrate845.com/ and at their Instagram, @Celebrate845.
