Art is a business and artists should run it.
The Clark Hulings Fund for Visual
Artists (CHF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that equips
professional visual artists to be self-sustaining entrepreneurs.
Professional artists are essential members of society: they
contribute to GDP, revitalize neighborhoods, and are critical to
social, civic and business innovation. They give voice to our
concerns, and add beauty and meaning to our lives. Yet only 30% of
them support themselves through the creation of their art. In today’s
art business, everyone profits except the artists.
The irony is that artists are uniquely positioned to persuade an
audience. Their job is to communicate, to create wonder, and to
balance advocacy and freedom. They are naturally inclined to excel at
marketing and sales. Likewise, they routinely map out and implement
complicated projects requiring engineering, vendor management,
logistics, and all kinds of other “business” issues.
CHF shows them how to apply all of this talent, experience and
hard-earned expertise to the business of art so they can reap the
lion's share reward from it. CHF's incredibly active educational
programs for working artists include:
- Digital Education
- In Person Education ("boots on the ground")
- Graduate Fellowships
- Other Programs to Empower Working Artists
“The sense that we are understood as working artists is potent.” - Aaron Laux, CHF Business Accelerator Fellow
“I had more sales in the past two months than I had in all of last year….For this and so many other reasons, I am so grateful to be a part of this program.” - Kristin LeVier, CHF Business Accelerator Fellow
All money raised in this campaign will directly support the ability of professional artists to support themselves through the creation of their art. Contributions will go towards the development of a digital learning portal from which artists can learn first-hand entrepreneurial skills to ensure that their businesses thrive.
Click here to learn more about The Clark Hulings Fund for Visual Artists
