Dwayne Butcher
Being an artist is hard work. Minimal opportunities for funding, exhibitions, resources, and employment exist for us creatives. Those that do exist are being threatened as we speak. That is why today’s ArtsMemphis event at Memphis Made is so important. I thought it would be useful to the Memphis visual art community to compile a quick list of resources. Being in the studio, as difficult as that is, is just a small component of being an actual working artist.
Visit the ArtsMemphis website for information on grants and RFQ’s for public art projects. Attend one of their many workshops for help on how to best write a proposal seeking these opportunities. Other local visual art resources include the UrbanArt Commission, Crosstown Arts, the Memphis Medical District Collaborative, and the Downtown Memphis Commission.
There are countless websites and organizations that cater to visual artists on the national level. While the effectiveness of the College Art Association’s annual conference can be debated, the resources they offer cannot. There are job postings and exhibition opportunities listed. They also offer help with building a resume, which you may find useful.
NYFA is a must. Any and all visual artists need to know about this resource. If you do not know about it, click the link, now. They offer resources for professional development, the business of art, curatorial services, and loans and funds. Again, a must go-to resource.
Full disclosure, we moved to Baltimore as my wife accepted a position in Career Services for Visual Arts at MICA, She put a lot of work into most of the resources available on their website. There is information available for Building Your Professional Package, Internship and Job Search, Grants, Residencies, and Graduate School listing.
The Foundation for Contemporary Arts offers emergency grants for artists living, working, and paying taxes in the U.S. Applicants seeking funds must have committed performance or exhibition opportunities, providing specific dates at the time of application.
Bay Area Art Grind has been a great resource for me for eight years, when they first started and were known as the SJSU Art Blog. It is not as active now with ongoing opportunities, but they still have an incredible selection of links in the Artist Resources tab.
Now, their website makes me want to throw-up, but the Artist Help Network is an amazing resource for Art World Mailing Lists. They also have many other resources that are useful.
Getting Your Shit Together is probably the best name for a website of all time. GYST offers subscription based services, but they do have plenty of free information on artist’s statements, grant proposals, and website services.
I have several websites and blogs that I try to visit every day for art news, reviews, and commentary, Hyperallergic, Two Coats of Paint, and Art F City. Follow their contributors on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, as they continuously post images and info about exhibitions and artists you would never know about otherwise.
Again, this is just a quick rundown of the sites that I visit most for opportunities and visual art news. This list is nowhere near comprehensive. There are countless others. Post yours in the comments below!! Though there are few resources available to visual artists and we desperately need more artists working not less.