In 2016, I attended the Alliance of Artists Communities (AAC) conference in Portland, Oregon, and wrote about the important take-aways from the impactful week. The lessons I learned apply not only to the artist community world, but to the greater art and contemporary craft fields. This series was a feature on my Crafthaus blog, The MFA Guidebook for Studio Artists.
The grand entrance - for some - of the Benson Hotel in Portland, Oregon, where the 2016 AAC conference was held.
…One thing I have noticed is a tendency when addressing social issues to point to individuals and question individual action. But when there are such visible and palpable overarching disparities, that means something in the system, in the framework, is wrong. To my fellow metalsmiths, jewelers, craft artists: It’s time to look at ours…
Read More
Postcard by Sharita Towne for the Exhibition Our City in Stereo, presented by Newspace Center for Photography in partnership with c3:initiative.
…The artist needs to invite the community members they wish to reach into the discussion, and allow them to define their needs and how they’ll best be served. That should be the starting point, and the rest should grow from there…
Read More
Photo by Erica Thomas, The ARTIST IN RESIDENCE sign is lit whenever someone at the house is doing creative work.
…Too often we wait for acceptance or permission to do what can be done on our own. My charge is this: Think, declare, and do for yourself as an artist, and soon the institutions will catch up with you…
Read More
…The conference opened with what would become major overarching themes of the week – seeking out balance and equity in the field; redefining “excellence”; and highlighting the gap between access and inclusion…
Read More