A quartet of local arts organizations are teaming up to offer two days of professional development workshops for artists in November.
Co-sponsored by Spring Green-based Arts Lab, the Spring Green Area Arts Coalition, the Sauk County Arts and Culture Committee and Mineral Point-based Shake Rag Alley Center for the Arts with support from the Wisconsin Arts Board, the 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Nov. 10-11 sessions will be taught by artist Helen Klebesadel at Arts Lab (formerly the Wisconsin Artist Showcase) at 143 Washington St., Spring Green. Participants can register for one or both days for $25, which includes lunch catered by the Kitchen at Arcadia Books.
Klebesadel earned her MFA at UW-Madison and is an artist best known for her environmental and women-centered artworks. Her watercolors push the traditional boundaries of the medium in scale, content and technique. Klebesadel was a tenured professor and chair of the art department at Lawrence University before becoming director of the UW System Women’s and Gender Studies Consortium at UW-Madison. She is a past national president of the Women’s Caucus for Art and served on the Wisconsin Arts Board for seven years. She likes to share what she has gleaned along the way on her art path from farm girl to professional artist, in part because it makes her a better artist.
At 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Nov. 10, day one of the Artrepreneur Professional Development Workshop will focus on “Envisioning or Re-Visioning the Art Career You Want to Have.” Participants will define the vision of where they want to be artistically and professionally, and begin to chart a path of the steps to get there based on personal values and career goals. This overview process will help participants think specifically about how to turn a vague dream into a plan with specific goals and an abbreviated business plan. For more established artists already on a path, this workshop can help decide if it’s time to recalculate and adjust the path.
In addition to providing opportunities to network with other area artists, Klebesadel said the workshop will “approach vision building that treats your business planning like you are planning a series of artworks.”
On day two, Klebesadel will lead a workshop on “Portfolio and Social Media for Artists” that will review artist statements, résumés and work samples. “We’ll identify communication tools to fit your needs, craft engaging messaging, and build a basic promotions strategy with actionable steps to get the word out,” Klebesadel said. Participants will learn core functionality and best practices to help build an online social media strategy for their artistic business and consider whether such tools as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Etsy and/or Instagram are best for you.
To register for either or both workshops, go to www.shakeragalley.com/november or call Shake Rag Alley Center for the Arts at (608) 987-3292. For more information about Klebesadel, see http://Klebesadel.com.