Artists Working In Community

Winter Intensive returns, starting January 26, 2023!

Artists Working in Community is a three-part, bi-weekly series led by Springboard for the Arts’ Community Development Director, Ricardo Beaird, and Community Development Program Manager, Amanda Cortés.

Using Springboard for the Arts’ Handbook for Artists Working in Community as a guide, Beaird and Cortés will push artists to think about their own passions and goals when it comes to working with communities in the public realm. Honoring the handbook’s definitions of public art and artist, this series will demonstrate how artists can facilitate community-led projects, share best practices for community-engaged work, and develop collaboration skills.

This will be a dynamic, activity-based series with possible homework assignments between sessions. Attendees will be expected to participate and be present throughout the program.

Sessions will be held online via Zoom on Thursdays from 4:00 – 6:00 PM ET, January 26, February 9, and February 23, 2023.

About Springboard for the Arts

Founded in 1991, Springboard for the Arts works at the intersection of arts and economic and community development, helping local artists and communities thrive together. Our mission is to cultivate vibrant communities by connecting artists with the resources they need to make a living and a life. We define artists broadly, from any and all disciplines and experiences, from culture bearers and craft artists to classically trained, from those who receive commissions to those who sing in choir or carve spoons – recognizing that creative people are in every community and on every block in a city or few acres in a rural area.

As a national leader in creative community development, our approach is rooted in the principles of community organizing and focuses on a “lots of little” strategy that surfaces unrecognized leaders in communities, builds public narratives from a multiplicity of perspectives and voices; unearths and supports community health and economic vibrancy; and, creates low-risk on ramps for cross-sector collaboration. This equity-based model centers the lives and experiences of the people in and of the place; values the relationships, partnerships, and creative capacity that artists and communities build together and aims to build power and agency for individuals, neighborhoods and communities. We deliver programs locally and catalyze action nationally by sharing our adaptable strategies through free toolkits, consulting services, workshops and trainings.

About Ricardo Beaird

Ricardo Beaird is a theater maker, teaching artist, and cheese curd enthusiast originally from Nashville, Tennessee. Their recent work is informed by the unfinished business of ghosts, dis/connection through the internet, and sometimes Beyoncé. In addition to performing with Pangea World Theater, Park Square Theatre, Red Eye Theater and Ten Thousand Things Theater, Beaird is a Core Artist with Full Circle Theatre, advisory council member with the queer-led theater collective Lightning Rod, and an Artist Council member for the 2021 and 2022 Northern Spark Arts Festival. Ricardo brings deep experience in collective visioning, workshop facilitation, and community organizing. Currently at Springboard for the Arts, Ricardo supports and co-facilitates the Creative Community Leadership Institute, a cohort-based learning space for artists, culture bearers, community organizers, and other leaders who want to deepen their impact through creative community building.

About Amanda Cortés

Amanda works at the intersection of racial justice, grassroots community development, art, and culture. She is the proud daughter of Mexican immigrants and draws inspiration from her upbringing in working class, Latinx communities on Chicago’s southwest side. Her practice includes cultural organizing, civic engagement, artist career coaching, and audio storytelling. Amanda’s independent work explores alternative models for community-owned real estate property with the Pilsen Housing Cooperative, a limited equity co-op for artists and working families on Chicago’s Lower West Side. Amanda is a board member of the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council in the Twin Cities Metro, and is a member of the Chicago ACT Collective. In her work at Springboard for the Arts, Amanda supports logistics for the Creative Community Leadership Institute, a cohort-based learning space that serves Minnesota, South Dakota and North Dakota artists, and Art-Train, a virtual technical assistance training for artists and staff at government agencies, community non-profits and arts councils.

Registration

This three-part series is limited to 25 participants. Registrants must sign up for the entire series; there are no standalone sessions. This series will not be recorded. Please plan accordingly to attend.

There are two options for series registration:

$45 includes a hard copy of the Handbook for Artists Working in Community + shipping. Registration for this option will close on Sunday, January 8, 2023 to allow time for shipping. 

$30 includes a PDF download of the Handbook for Artists Working in Community.    Registration for this option will close at noon on Thursday, January 26, 2023.

In order to ensure that the Handbook is delivered in time for the series, we ask that only registrants living within the continental U.S. select the hard copy ticket option. If you reside outside of the continental U.S., please select the PDF download ticket option.

When you select the hard copy ticket option, you will be prompted to enter your shipping information.

The button below will redirect you to Eventbrite where you will make your ticket selection and complete your purchase.