Photo credit: Jenna Lavallee

Photo credit: Jenna Lavallee

 

About Us

My HomeCourt [MHC] is a nonprofit organization with the mission to foster community engagement through the revitalization of basketball courts and city parks facilitated by cutting-edge Contemporary art.

With support from Providence College and Providence Parks, we commission internationally recognized Contemporary artists to transform under-resourced courts and turn blank surfaces into colorful, living works of art. MHC is borne out of the idea that we all have our own homecourt; it is the place to play ball, build friendships, find safety and refuge from the chaos beyond the park fences. We believe that revitalizing basketball courts empowers the very people who utilize them. The renewed courts become public artworks and inspire the community, neighborhood and city alike. MHC prioritizes working with Rhode Island and nationally based artists.

 

Leadership

 
 
(left to right) Theresa Peterson, Pete Peterson, Kate McNamara, Harold Starks and Jamilee Lacy

(left to right) Theresa Peterson, Pete Peterson, Kate McNamara, Harold Starks and Jamilee Lacy

Kate McNamara, Executive and Creative Director

Kate McNamara is a curator and educator based in Providence, RI. She operates ODD-KIN an alternative art space in East Providence; and currently holds the position of Visiting Critic at Rhode Island School of Art and Design and Academic Curator at Providence College. Previously, McNamara served as Director of Galleries and exhibitions at Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles. While there she curated critically-received exhibitions and commissioned large-scale solo projects with Polly Apfelbaum, Anna Craycroft and Kenzi Shiokava. Prior to joining Otis College, McNamara worked as Director and Chief Curator at the Boston University Art Gallery where she organized exhibitions with Leidy Churchman, Destroy All Monsters, and Vlatka Horvat, among others. McNamara is also co-founder of Cleopatra’s, a former alternative Brooklyn-based project space founded in 2008; and she has held curatorial positions at MoMA PS1, NY and Participant, INC., NY. McNamara received her MA at The Center for Curatorial Studies at Bard College and a BA with a Curatorial Concentration from Hampshire College, MA.

Board of Directors

  • Pete Peterson, Co-Founder and Board Member

  • Theresa Peterson, Co-Founder and Board Member

  • Harold Starks, Co-Founder and Board Member

  • Fran Loosen, Board Member

  • Lois Harada, Board Member

  • Jamilee Lacy, Co-Founder and Board Member Emeritus

Design and Marketing

  • Elizabeth Corkery, Consulting Communications & Design Associate

  • Deb Weinrich, Consulting Public Relations Associate

 
 
Artist Jim Drain addresses the crowd at the grand opening celebration and unveiling ceremony of My HomeCourt at Fargnoli Park in Providence. [Image Credit: The Providence Journal / Kris Craig]

Artist Jim Drain addresses the crowd at the grand opening celebration and unveiling ceremony of My HomeCourt at Fargnoli Park in Providence. [Image Credit: The Providence Journal / Kris Craig]

 

Our Partners & Supporters

We are a dynamic collaboration of organizations who love the city of Providence, the game of basketball, and the power of public art, including:

 

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