REGISTRATION BEGINS: February 8, 2023 at 12:00 PM

ONE OF SEVEN COURSES AVAILABLE FOR THE MAY 11 – 14, 2023 MCA WEEKEND WORKSHOP @ HAYSTACK

Art Biz Basics

Instructor: Kim Bernard
Haystack Studio: Visiting Artist 
Materials Fee: $20
Enrollment Limit: 14
Level: All Levels

Class Description:

In this crash course, we’ll tackle the essential info every artist-craftsperson-maker-artisan must know to be a small, creative business: artist-gallery relationships, banking, business plan, business structure, contracts, commissions, copyright, federal and state tax IDs, insurance, marketing, money management, permits, sales, taxes and time management. Kim will tackle these must-know business topics with interactive exercises and a bit of humor. Participants will create a hand-bound-visual-thinking-sketch-note workbook as a personal memento of how these Art Biz Basics apply to their own creative practice.

FOCUS: The focus will be on learning the essential business information participants must know in order to make a fulfilling life and sustainable living with their creative work. This ‘MBA for Makers’ will zero in on exactly how this info is relevant to each individual, and how it should be implemented to maximize time, energy, and results. We’ll make the learning hands-on, interactive and individualized as participants extract the info they can personally apply.

PROCESSES: Participants will each create an Art Biz Sketch Journal as a tool for
learning. The journal will become a record of sketches, notes, entries, observations, and information. This personal memento will serve as a keepsake for revisiting and remembering.

OUTCOMES: Participants should expect a presentation of the art topics listed above, with engaging dialogue, brainstorming, and Q&A. Small group breakouts will follow with conversations about how the material applies to them directly. Topics will be followed by sketch journal time to personalize and process the information. The final outcome will be an illustrative Art Biz Sketch Journal containing images, relevant info, and notes.

Materials:

Participants should bring their own selection of writing and drawing tools. The instructor will provide a notebook/sketchbook for each student. Students should expect to take handwritten notes and sketches throughout the workshop. No laptops are necessary. The instructor will provide handouts on all topics.  Materials fee is $20.00 and should be brought to the workshop to pay the instructor directly.

About the Instructor-

Kim Bernard creates sculpture that is recycled, kinetic, interactive, public, and involves the community. She creates installations upcycled out of trash and is currently focusing on transforming plastic waste into sculpture using her portable recycling machines. She shows her work nationally and has been invited to participate in many exhibits, some of which include the Portland Museum of Art, Currier Museum of Art, Fuller Craft Museum, Harvard University, Art Complex Museum, and UNH Museum of Art. Her work has been reviewed in the Boston Globe, Art News, and Art New England. Bernard is the recipient of the Artist Advancement Grant, Kindling Fund Grant, NEFA grant, 6 Maine Arts Commission Grants as well as funding from the Ellis-Beauregard Foundation. She was an artist-in-residence in the Physics Department at Harvard University and at the University of New England. She received her BFA from Parsons in 1987 and her MFA from Mass Art in 2010. Bernard mentors emerging artists individually and teaches professional development to artists nationally.