What is DVAA?

Since 1931, DVAA has served as a home for marginalized voices and a catalyst for social change. Founded by 16 Italian immigrants seeking creative refuge, DVAA continues to connect diverse communities through art that challenges, empowers, and transforms. Approaching a century of service, we remain a vital force in Philadelphia’s cultural landscape, equipping artists to reimagine the future and confront today’s challenges.

Annually, we offer over a hundred events and programs, including our monthly exhibitions, the DVAA Fellowship & Residency program, artist-led workshops, professional development workshops, K-12 educational workshops, and neighborhood events. We work with more than 100 cultural partners and countless creatives each year. DVAA is member-led and staff-facilitated, with members shaping our mission-aligned programming by serving on committees and offering their time and skills at events. Membership is open to all, with sliding-scale fees from $0-$300 based on personal declared need.

DVAA’s 2024 Annual Report

Mission

DVAA is an intergenerational artist collaborative that promotes creativity as a tool to build collective resilience.

Vision

We envision a future where people use art to create new, equitable worlds

Values

At DVAA, our work is guided by the following principles:

1) We foster a communal culture of respect and belief in one another’s truths.
2) We lean into the discomfort of conflict to actively listen, show compassion, and grow together
3) We strive to create accessible programming and spaces for all.
4) We value joy as a fundamental part of life for everyone.
5) We are committed to advancing equity and justice, creating spaces that challenge oppression and amplify marginalized voices in all aspects of our work.
6) We strive to create sustainable practices in our programming and operations, recognizing our role in fostering environmental stewardship for a more equitable future.
7) We embrace creativity as a tool for experimentation and innovation, encouraging bold ideas and new ways of thinking to address social and cultural challenges.
8) We believe in the power of collaboration to build bridges between communities and generations, fostering connections that inspire collective action and solidarity.
9) DVAA believes Black Lives Matter and respects and honors the Lenni Lenape people originally from the land we occupy. We prioritize the needs of both communities in our work and ask all those who interact with our space to do the same.

Postcard from Da Vinci Art Alliance, 1940

DVAA’s history:

Da Vinci Art Alliance (DVAA) was founded in 1931 by sixteen Italian immigrant artists and collectors at a time when immigrants were barred from major artistic, academic, and scientific institutions. DVAA was a creative refuge where members could show their works, hold meetings, engage in social activities, and offer intellectual and cultural exchanges and events. Together, they chose as their namesake the master of the Italian Renaissance, Leonardo da Vinci. In 1966, DVAA permanently moved to 704 Catharine Street in South Philly, across the street from Fleisher Art Memorial, then known as the Graphic Sketch Club, a spot strategically picked due to the strong relationship between members at both institutions.

We’ve lived a lot of lives as an organization over the last 94 years, with a lot of incredible people and their art gracing our walls, floors, and ceilings. What hasn’t changed is that we continue to utilize art making and appreciation as a tool of connection to build relationships between disparate people who use DVAA as a creative refuge.