So on October 29th a few of us got together and chatted about the C3 Arts Visioning document I had created and where we'd like to see things go in the coming months. Below is some text that generally documents that conversation.

We arrived at the next plan of action: A brainstorm and planning session around the theme: Survive, Revive, Thrive which we will put into action during the winter months. Join us Monday, November 9th at 5:30 to give us your two cents and hop into action.(RSVP to: julia@commonwealthcenter.org) If you can't make it respond to this post with your ideas and I'll be sure to bring them to the meeting.

Great!
~Julia

Julia Handschuh, Co-Director
Commonwealth Center for Change

Questions to begin
After reviewing the arts visioning document:
We would like to hear your thoughts about art and community
What is C3 doing that is successful?
What role does/can C3 play in the community? What would make it better?

Is this just Northampton? If it is this leaves a lot of folks out, better to see Northampton as a hub and do events up and down the valley. C3 is focusing on Northampton because we want to develop a clear sense of what we do and do it well before we stretch it further. Recognizing C3’s physical capacity for the work we do and making sure we do not grow too fast.

We’ve identified a lack of studio and exhibition space in Northampton, particularly for contemporary work that resonates with a younger generation or national discourse in contemporary art.

Looking over the Arts Visioning document I see a focus on sharing (space, information, tools, working together, practical) and valuing sharing as integral to building strong creative community. Valley Art Share is great. And, I can’t keep up with electronic/web communication.
What if there was a group of people from across the valley who were supported by C3 to do organizing in their own communities? Where can there be a physical message board to share information? A place to meet? Or presence on radio? What are other ways to get the word out?

When I moved here I didn’t see much happening but people painting landscapes of the Connecticut River and other work at the universities, so when I found out about C3 I thought ‘this is a whole new layer, it’s organizing at a grass roots level’.

C3 brings art into the streets, asking where art lives, and who makes it.

It helps C3 to have a project-based approach like the Kirkland Ave Mural, something that is outside, visible and participatory. We organize, navigate, organize navigate

Like taking stock of what we have and where the energy is and going with that

So how do we engage artists? How do we get artists to participate and submit their work to things?

You have to be direct with them, hit them over the head with it, present clear opportunities and make it clear that C3 has space and will deal with all the red tape (insurance, negotiating for space, working with other orgs and the city) to help artists make and show their work.

If C3 is being restricted with what they can do in donated space then have multiple spaces, so that events can happen simultaneously or roving. Thinking inside and outside the box/system.

Connect with other organizations and venues around the valley and support them in organizing and supporting their neighbors/artists. Too often organizations don’t think to look to each other for help/support/collaboration

Where are there other spaces/groups of artists to connect with?
Leverett Craft Center
Eastworks
Cottage St
Open Square
Race St
Brick House
Arts and Industry
The Rendevous
Shelburne Falls

Valley Art Share has 400+ members and is slowly and steadily growing. They are mostly from Hampshire County. We need to do outreach to Franklin and Hamden. This is a great resource! How can we engage this community?

Look at what draws people, what is successful and do that. What hits a pulse? What events have been the biggest draw?
Offer of studio space
artHAPPENINGS
Still hoping that skill shares will be very successful once we get them under way

Pleasant Space can be a home for regular Skill Shares but there are no tables and chairs.
BOTCH: Bring you Own Tables and Chairs

Then we need to get the word out, a cheap beautiful paper object/postcard/flyer that tells folks what C3 is and what it’s up to.

What if Valley Art Share members had to contribute something? To welcome positive anarchy- positive offers to the community, there could be a huge list of suggestions and in order to be a member you’d have to do one or think of your own. Begin to activate folks.
Artists like to be fired up, the programming and outreach should be edgy. Once they get there they will be glad they came.
This is hot/new/exciting and the outreach should reflect that

What about having a theme that C3 programming focuses around for a particular time period?
Three recent proposals are centered around these things:
Women Activists
Local Farmers/agriculture/food
Immigration, home, identity

How do we choose a theme? What else?
Homelessness
Housing
Gentrification
Unemployment
The economy

The cool thing about Northampton is that we have a captive audience here. It’s a good place for public art, street art because there are so many pedestrians and people are out at night. What about renting public space? Using parking spaces?

We need to own our public spaces, really use them. They are ours, they are the community’s to use.

Think in terms of seasons, we’re entering into Winter. This is something New Englanders have to deal with, something we all understand.
Light is important. After the holidays, January, February & March are hard. Let’s do something about getting through this.

We can do things outside even in the winter. The Art Shanty project in Minnesota happens in the middle of winter. Let’s do a winter carnival, snow people, field, bonfire, create art opportunities that are open and inclusive, that invite the community to participate. That are in public spaces.
Let’s not only make opportunities for theoretical dialogue/discourse (although that’s great too!), let’s also be conscious of bridging the language of art with the broader community.

THEME for the winter months: Survive, Revive, Thrive.

We know how to make storefrontART work in this community, now we need a way for it to sustain itself on volunteer action and be able to grow to other communities. This way C3 can focus on programming.

C3 will organize a gathering of storefront art program coordinators in the area to learn from each other and create a “how-to” packet that can be shared with other communities

We will organize a New Years Art Swap, out with the old in with the new

Phyllis will help to craft a small flyer about C3 that is engaging and enticing

We will meet again on November 9th at 5:30pm to brainstorm around Survive, Revive, Thrive, and divvy up responsibilities to take action