Art and Community Capacity-Building

Abstract

Arts programs are increasingly becoming part of public engagement in the context of community health but have mostly been studied in urban and suburban locations. This chapter outlines a successful partnership between an arts in healthcare program and a community health coalition in rural Franklin County, Florida, an area struck by natural and human-made disasters. During a five-year period, the organizations worked in partnership to address the “fragmentation” of the community and its health services and to build community and organizational capacity for public health planning using the arts. The partnership sustained engagement with a variety of communities and institutions in Franklin County, Florida, conducted community assessments, developed public murals and mosaics, created community gardens, gathered stories, and employed Boalian theater strategies. The case study examines the partnership through the lens of a Community Coalition Action Theory framework, offering a narrative of a unique partnership.