How Artists Are Helping Governments Reach Everyday People

What do table tennis, letterpress printing and drum circles have in common? Government officials are using them to lure citizens into conversations about their community. The city of Bloomington, Minn., for instance, wants to improve the South Loop, an underutilized neighborhood that houses the Mall of America. “Right now the area is composed of a lot of parking lots, some businesses, a lot of hotels,” says Alejandra Pelinka, Bloomington’s director of creative placemaking and engagement. “It’s not a residential mixed-use space, and we really want to develop that.”