Are you wondering about taking your artwork out of the gallery and into the public sphere?
Our region is growing and stepping onto a national stage for foodies, sport fans and, more and more, the arts. As the attention of both locals and the tourist market is captured by large-scale, public art there is a growing need to develop the next generation of local artists who can successfully create these works.
Long-lasting art careers require professional support and development that extends beyond the selection of materials. Artists seeking to move their work from the personal scale to the public scale require training in the business and planning skills necessary to work with civic groups, architects and municipal leaders in order to bring their work to our public spaces.
The Momentum 360: - Making Your Own Opportunities with Public Art course provides emerging Durham artists with the tools they need to succeed as public artists in our community and around our state.
What You'll Learn
How to identify which art calls are right for you.
How to develop your professional support materials (CV, slides, image list, references, letter of interest)
How to perform your due diligence (site visits, phone conferences, email inquiries, budgeting, accessibility studies and more) via in-class case studies
Budgeting, cost evaluations and financial aspects via case studies
Behind-the-scenes insights from public arts professionals (architects, engineers, arts administrators, vendors)
'What Not To Do’: business school-style case studies of successful and unsuccessful projects
Participants will work on and complete a real, live public art call with the support and assistance of the instructors! Many participants choose to submit their project to the call and past participants have sucessfully been chosen as lead and team artists on submitted calls. Participant outcomes will vary, but we encourage participants to submit.
This full 6-week course will be delivered live in a virtual classroom and will include interactive elements. Participants will also receive one-on-one mentoring and peer-to-peer connections.
To get the most out of this class, participants are encouraged to set aside 1-2 hours per week (outside of class time) to work on their art calls and other class activities.
The class will also include optional in-person field trips and site visits.
This program is sponsored by the City of Durham’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development. Priority will be given to artists that live or work in Durham county, but all artists are invited to apply.
DAVID WILSON
David Wilson is a Durham-based public artist who employs his background in design, sculpture, and creative placemaking to create site-specific work that explores the social, historical, and functional context of a site, as well as the architectural and urban phenomenology of a space.
Through collaboration, he embraces his role as a creative facilitator that helps shape an understanding on how art connects with community, as an urban space and how its territory, trajectories, and interpretations combine to separate it from surrounding non-urban environments.
Wilson has served as Lead Artist for multiple high-profile public commissions in throughout the South East. Learn more about David's work on his website.
CYNTHIA DEIS
Cynthia Deis is a Raleigh-based artist, writer and educator with experience in a variety of mediums. She serves as the Triangle ArtWorks Director of Educational Programming. Her background as a production jewelry designer and retail store owner provides her with an artist’s understanding of business and entrepreneurial issues. Certified in REAL Entrepreneurship and REAL Craft courses, she also teaches and consults on email marketing and pricing with artists and craftspeople. Cynthia brings her knowledge of the art business world and her financial background to this course. Learn more about her work here.
We strive to host inclusive, accessible events that enable everyone to engage fully. To request accommodation or for inquiries about accessibility, please contact ArtSwell@TriangleArtWorks.org or 919-244-4358. We will do our best to facilitate any requests made within two weeks of the event, but the earlier you can alert us to your access needs, the easier it will be to facilitate.