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Annual HAF Gala Shines a Light on Artists and the Community That Support Them.
HAF 2014 Festival Scheduled June 28 - 29.

Posted March 17, 2014

On Thursday, March 13th, the Harlem Arts Festival (HAF) executive committee held its third annual gala at MIST Harlem to drum up support and preview some of the acts performing at this year’s festival in June. Neal Ludevig, the organization’s executive director said that the energy in the room reminded him more of “a family reunion” than a fundraising event.

The crowd of almost 150 people was filled with HAF artists past and present, local officials such New York Councilwoman Inez Dickens, former Councilman Robert Jackson, Diane Collier from Community Board 11, Harlem Arts Alliance Chair Voza Rivers, art consultant Baraka Sele and other art lovers and patrons who in one way or another have all supported the festival since it launched in 2012.

To honor the legacy of the late Lynette Velasco, one of the organization’s earliest advocates and Chief of Staff to Councilwoman Dickens, the Harlem Arts Festival created a Community Impact award in her name. The inaugural award was presented to

Harlem Arts Alliance executive director Linda Walton and musician and social activist Fred Ho.

“Lynette was the one who encouraged me to invest in this festival,” said Dickens. “To her, any organization that provided a venue for local Harlem artists to perform, was a no-brainer. And now, thanks to the Harlem Arts Festival’s Lynette Velasco Community Impact award, her name will live on forever.”

“We are extremely grateful to everyone who has helped us turn our vision for the Harlem Arts Festival into reality,” said Ludevig. “The money we raised at this year’s gala will go toward the festival’s production costs, park permits and artist stipends.”

The 2014 Harlem Arts Festival will take place on June 28th and 29th in the Richard Rodgers Amphitheater in Marcus Garvey Park. For more information, visit, harlemartsfestival.com.

About the Harlem Arts Festival

The Harlem Arts Festival is an annual multi-disciplinary event that showcases local performers and visual artists that inspire and nourish the artistic community in Harlem. The festival aims to promote arts education and literacy by implementing arts-related discussion forums, educational workshops, performance opportunities and activities for youth and family. Taking place in the newly renovated Richard Rogers Amphitheater and the surrounding park, the goal of the Harlem Arts Festival is to fuel the prosperity of our neighborhood, and mark the Amphitheater as a world-class cultural venue.

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