New York’a Lower East Side neighborhood has become a place where young people are allowed to flex their creative muscles, and skaters, tattooed models and rebellious yuppies can all be found wandering the streets. But before its inception into “cool”, the LES was a close community of Jewish residents, who largely shaped the culture of downtown Manhattan. “Jews, a People’s History of the Lower East Side” is a 3-part anthology shedding light on the LES’s rich history.

From the project’s Kickstarter page:

Jews, A People’s History of the Lower East Side is a three volume anthology edited by Clayton Patterson and Dr. Mareleyn Schneider. The first volume addresses the social history of Judaism in the neighborhood. The second and third volumes follow these threads into modern culture, examining contributions to art, business, and community in downtown New York. Compiling more than 150 chapters contributed by an international host of writers, these three volumes investigate individuals, movements, and institutions that have impacted the city, the country, and the entire planet.

The editors have spent the past three years bringing together more than 150 authors to examine how Jews have shaped the culture, landscape, and politics of the Lower East Side over the past two centuries. So far, over $2,200 has been pledged in an effort to reach the $15,000 goal with 45 more days to go. Check out more on the Kickstarter page.

Swoon’s love of New Orleans is well documented. The artist’s latest effort is a fund-raising drive to turn an idea for musical architecture in the Crescent City a reality.  Through Kickstarter, Swoon articulates the plan -

From the salvaged remains of a decrepit Creole Cottage, the Brooklyn-based artist Swoon has re-imagined a permanent, interactive sculpture for the Bywater neighborhood of New Orleans. We call it the Dithyrambalina.  It will look like a house, but it will function like a musical instrument. A growing group of local and national sound artists are working towards interactive instruments that can be built into its walls and floorboards so that visitors can bring the house to life through their touch. Ultimately, musicians will be invited to play the house, performing orchestrated works at block parties for their friends and neighbors. This project is for the love of New Orleans – its architecture, music, culture and its people.

Swoon has designed the look of house and we have formed coalitions with everyone from architects to salvage suppliers. The next phase of our project is to create instrumentation for the house. This Fall our sound artists will publicly test their prototypes in a temporary installation we are calling The Music Box – A Shantytown Sound Laboratory.

A pledge does more than simply push Swoon’s project forward, at various levels there are some fantastic gifts – including tours of the finished site and at the $3000 level a limited Ice Queen print.

View the prints and the Kickstarter film after the jump.

Pow Wow Hawaii is a gathering of creative minds. Art and music events for local communities, on a global scale.

With the success of Pow Wow 2011 Pow Wow will now become an annual event in Honolulu. In 2012 we have doubled the artist list with some larger than life names. We have ambitions to take over the whole street and transform it with art. During one week in February, Hawaii will literally be transformed with creative energy. Beautifying a street that was once considered a bane on the neighborhood into a living gallery.

To support, visit the Pow Wow Kickstarter Page.