ThreshHold Cooperative will introduce their plans for the creation of a cooperatively owned cultural center in Turners Falls. This will serve as starting place to facilitate a conversation about the potential of reclaiming the term social sculpture and asking how we can create spaces that support art and artists as a creative actions within a social context.
2D artists will learn about options for putting artwork on merchandise online (Print on Demand – POD). Find out about different POD choices & the variety of items one can print on. Diane will demonstrate the process of preparing for & listing an item at Zazzle. Where from there depends on participants’ needs – demos of other PODs, choosing a POD, opening a shop, marketing, tagging, prepping are possibilities.
A presentation of the idea for a new museum in Franklin County, The New England Museum of Art, Craft, and Design. Area art collectors, artists, and other interested parties from the Pioneer Valley area have already begun the initial organizational work to bring this idea to fruition. We see this as a collaborative effort by local individuals, businesses, municipalities, non-profits, schools, and the state.
In this workshop, Artisans of WMASS will host a panel to give an overview of who we are and what we do to a blend of artists, businesses and municipal leaders.
AWM is a non-profit organization that serves as a resource and cooperative organization for artists and artisans within Western Massachusetts. We educate and collaborate with our local communities through public art education and highlight the importance of a vibrant creative culture while raising awareness about the community benefits of the creative economy.
We will discuss our focus areas such as our “Buy Local, Buy Handmade” campaign and our public education work. We will also talk about our goals for growth and development. For example, in the future, AWM is interested in creating a mentorship program that pairs high school and college-aged students with established artists. We are also thinking about possibilities for artist scholarships, annual events and demo days, lecture series and skills workshops, visiting artist/school programs and non-
Learn to navigate the Recorder to promote your events, businesses and organizations. This workshop will explain the how the use of our local newspaper can benefit artists, businesses and towns with wider exposure, broader participation and more reliable, consistent promotion. George Forcier is managing editor and Adam Orth is features editor of the Greenfield Recorder.
Montague (with its village of Turners Falls) is the only town in Franklin County to incorporate cultural development into its official economic development strategy. Find out why the town government embraced this approach, what departments spearheaded it, its’ success in a small town in a rural county with limited resources and low population, future plans, challenges, and implementation examples.
The Arts Extension Service is a national arts service organization and has long had its finger on a national pulse. Everywhere we travel, the question from artists is always the same: Why don’t I know about this? This workshop will introduce artists to institutions, thought-leaders to follow, and resources for funding, artist residency, public arts projects, and other educational resources.
Tens of thousands visit the small New England Village of Shelburne Falls yearly. How do they do it? Learn from those who make it happen. The Shelburne Falls Area Business Association with the towns of Buckland & Shelburne have a strong ongoing relationship that fosters planning for the future. There’s always challenges, staying ahead of the game is what makes the difference!
We all know that social media is a powerful tool, but who is doing it well? This presentation will show the best ways to use Twitter, Facebook and regular blogging to get your business out in front of a wider audience. Using specific examples of successful Social media promoters we will explore the advanced tools you can use to make it easier and reach more people. Discussion included.
The face of America is no longer white. It is composed of an ethnic mix that drives the economy. Whether you’re a business, a solo artist, or a government entity, you must think in multicultural terms in order to grow. This workshop will discuss 1) the importance of marketing to multicultural audiences for personal and/or business growth and 2) will provide the digital tools needed to reach this burgeoning audience.