The visual artist and educator—an alum of the Art, Education, and Community Practice program—is director of community engagement.
As the director of community engagement at The Louis Armstrong House Museum (LAHM) in Queens, Charanya Ramakrishnan (MA ’22, Art, Education, and Community Practice) is engaging and educating the community through the living history of one of the nation’s jazz greats.
Having already received her master’s in social work from Tata Institute of Social Sciences in India, Charanya discovered NYU Steinhardt’s MA in Art, Education, and Community Practice when she began considering pursuing art education in New York City.
“As a visual artist, I wanted to learn more about how I could use the arts for transformation and healing, and New York seemed like the place to be,” says Charanya, who was awarded the Fulbright scholarship for Arts and Cultural Management. “I also wanted to meet more artists, and I appreciated that the Steinhardt program brings together other art practitioners in many contexts, not just in the gallery space.”
Shortly after graduating from Steinhardt, Charanya began working as a project coordinator for the WHO Commission on Arts Practice and the Ethics of Care through Arts & Health @ NYU and the Jameel Arts & Health Lab. She also began working with LAHM as an art educator.
“The Louis Armstrong House Museum is such a special place,” says Charanya, who was promoted to her director role earlier this year, “the jewel of the museum being the landmarked historic house that the Armstrongs lived in, in Corona, Queens, that gives people a material, tangible reference to their legacy. They moved there in 1943 and it’s like they never left.”
As a visual artist, I wanted to learn more about how I could use the arts for transformation and healing, and New York seemed like the place to be.
In her new role, Charanya leverages the museum’s extensive archive collections to build relationships in the community. She is leading the Corona Collection, a project on documenting and collecting the memories of people who grew up in the neighborhood and knew Louis and Lucille. She also works on collaborations with community organizations to help reach people who have been incarcerated and/or have issues with substance abuse.
“Louis was incarcerated at a young age, and it was during his time in a juvenile home that he honed his skill of playing the cornet through an arts education program they offered,” says Charanya. “To honor that legacy, we open up the museum for young folks who are impacted by the justice system to be inspired by his music and life story.”
Charanya’s two worlds converged recently when a group of alumni from her NYU Steinhardt program came to LAHM for a visit.
“It feels nourishing to connect these two important communities together—my academic program that brought me to where I am and my workspace where I spend my days,” says Charanya. “As an alum, having that network extend into my current life is incredible.”
Learn more about the LAHM, plan a visit, or explore the digital archive collections.
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