#tiana webb evans

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Artist:

Tim Okamura

“I spend countless hours in the studio, but studio time is only one facet of a career as an artist. There are so many important aspects to finding and sustaining success, and I’ve often learned the hard way through trial and error... this is definitely a journey of growth. 🙏 So it’s great to see my good friend @dexterwimberly is launching an event that will aid artistic growth and is sure to be an educational and enlightening experience: @artworldconference - basically a TED TALK symposium for the arts with an incredible line up of speakers: @mickalenethomas @youngglobal@sirsargent @tiana_webb_evans @jaejoseph@dannylowgram @alexpaik just to name a few! 💛 #ARTWORLDCONFERENCE2019 takes place April 25-27 in New York City. Register via @artworldconference. Shout out to Dexter and @hdb917 for organizing this important professional development event for artists! 🎨 ⚡️.” 

https://www.instagram.com/timokamura/

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Business of Art | Five Ways to Stake Your Claim in the Arts Ecosystem

Takeaways from the inaugural Art World Conference that can help you focus your creative energies to develop a more purposeful practice.

Art World Conference is a new business and financial literacy conference that includes panel discussions, conversations, and in-depth workshops addressing many of the opportunities and challenges faced by artists and arts professionals. The inaugural conference was held on April 25-27 in Manhattan, and brought 300 people together in dialogue around such topics as storytelling, marketing, investing, and growing and sustaining community. Fiscally Sponsored by The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA), the conference featured an esteemed line-up of speakers, moderators, and panelists including NYFA Board Member Tiana Webb Evans, Caroline Woolard (ABI ‘17), and Doctor’s Hours Consultants Larry Ossei-Mensah and Steven Sergiovanni. Here are five takeaways from the conference that you can apply to your practice today.

Tell Your Story

You know your work inside and out, and how you talk and write about it matters. Don’t rely on art world jargon to tell your story for you, it often distracts and can unintentionally distance people from your work. Says Writer and Critic Antwaun Sargent: “Sometimes language hides what you’re really after, and what you’re trying to say. Jargon can hinder the fullest expression of your work." He recommends that even artists who are uncomfortable writing write about their work. “It’s a good exercise, and it doesn’t need to be structured in a traditional way. Some of the best artists that I’ve come across have some sort of documentation of their work that is written [by them]. It allows for another expression” of their ideas. Curator Sara Raza frames it as a way of articulating the experience of the studio visit through writing: “Think about a set of words that aren’t overly theoretical but show key concerns of practice that articulate where you’re going and what you’re doing."

Learn by Failing

As an artist, you’re constantly experimenting and problem-solving to achieve new heights in your career. The same mindset can be applied to other critical components of your career. “Insanity is defined as doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results,” said Mark Rosen, Associate Director of Marketing, Artsy. “It may be a blow to the ego, but you need to recognize what you’re doing and let it evolve,” he added. Rosen spoke specifically to how artists can find success on Instagram, a question that is on the mind of many creatives. One way to determine whether your posts and stories are resonating? First, use a free app like Planoly to plan out your posts in advance. This is an especially great benefit to artists with limited resources, as they can dedicate a block of time each week to schedule content in bulk. Timing is one of several factors that can help make your posts more or less successful, so test out times in two week increments and see what works best for your feed.

With social media and other components of your practice, re-evaluate regularly, as what may have worked for you in the past is no longer working in the present. “Social is changing every 15 seconds, it will change now and it will change again,” advises Rosen. In another panel discussion, Deborah Obaili, President and Executive Director, Association of Independent Colleges of Art & Design, cited the words of a colleague who encouraged artists to recognize that “what you need from a personal/creative practice standpoint is very different from the kinds of needs you’ll have in 20, 30, 40 years from now. There’s a continual learning curve.”

Resources: Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds (AK Press, 2017) and Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones (Avery, 2018)

Embrace Community

Community matters and can often open the door to new opportunities. Take the example of Prerana Reddy, Director of Programs, A Blade of Grass. She and a group of her peers formed the South Asian Women’s Artist Collective in 1997 to create a space for support and community and means of facilitating and presenting work. One of the members joined the staff of Queens Museum, brought Reddy into the fold, and helped to usher in a new era at the museum where it was more inclusive of its diverse local community. “Being accountable to the local community is not often something that a contemporary art museum does, but over time it became something that the Queens Museum did” and does through today.

Community also extends far beyond the walls of your studio, home, or office. “You’re part of a much larger ecosystem. Part of being in a creative practice is that you have a solid foundation from which to leap from,” said Esther Robinson, Co Executive Director, ArtBuilt, while moderating a discussion on real estate for visual artists. The panel stressed the importance of artists getting involved in their communities and holding state and local government accountable in the fight for affordable live and work space. Said Robinson: Developers “want us to give up. Make sure you know what your own values are and how to move forward.”

Wherever you make connections and foster community, do so authentically. Online, “Genuinely engage with content to help develop relationships. The more love you show, the more love you’ll get,” says Mark Rosen.

Resources: NYC Loft Tenants; Spaceworks; ArtBuilt; Never Eat Alone, Expanded and Updated: And Other Secrets to Success, One Relationship at a Time (Penguin Random House, 2014)

Practice Self-Care

Those in the arts community have a lot to juggle, from keeping up with the day-to-day to the larger pressures of defining success in a challenging industry. Lisa Kim, Director, The Ford Foundation Gallery, got to the heart of it by asking the question, “How can you manage your time and emotional resources wisely?” Alex Paik, Artist and Director, Tiger Strikes Asteroid, takes a refreshing approach: “Once you give up the idea that you can balance everything—just do what you are doing as well as you can while you’re doing it...Being present in the tasks that you’re doing makes them feel a bit more manageable.” Another piece of advice that can be applied widely comes from Prerana Reddy: “Find your time to be alone and whatever it is that’s meditative. You need to be bored to be creative. You need to pass boredom to get to creativity. It’s harder to get there because we don’t give ourselves time to be alone. Find that thing that allows you to be bored enough to rest yourself.”

Protect Your Work

“There’s no art market without the artists,” said Artist Mickalene Thomas in an afternoon panel discussion on Protecting Artists’ Rights that reviewed topics including contracts, copyright, and Fair Use. As artists, you have the power to control your narrative and legacy and you don’t have to do it alone. Artists’ Rights Society (ARS) represents the intellectual property rights of more than 80,000 artists and estates worldwide, including Thomas; it’s free and any artist can join. Pro-tip from Thomas: “When you have one blanket contract, it becomes easier to negotiate the others. Just have a clear understanding of what you want from the project, and write those down. If you do have a lawyer, try to go through it yourself first. When it comes time for the lawyer, it’s more for approval.” Said Attorney Anibal A. Luque: “A template is a great way to start protecting and enforcing your rights. Docracy.com is a great resource for usually artist-friendly templates. Another resource is UpConsel. Most contracts are governed state by state, so if you are getting a template make sure it is state specific.”

Additional Resources: Copyright Alliance, copyright.gov, Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, A Fair(y) Use Tale, Legal Guide for the Visual Artist (Allworth Press, 2010), and nyfa.org.

Telling your story, learning by failing, embracing community, practicing self-care, and protecting your work are just a few of the ways that you can take a more active role in your arts career to initiate positive change and momentum. “There is no prescribed path, and even if there was it wouldn’t hold everyone in this room” said Deana Haggag, President/CEO, United States Artists during her keynote address at the Art World Conference. “Learning together and showing up for one another as needed is the only way to empower our field,” she added.

- Amy Aronoff, Senior Communications Officer

You can find more articles on arts career topics by visiting the Business of Art section of NYFA’s website. Sign up for NYFA News and receive artist resources and upcoming events straight to your inbox.

Have an arts career question? You can contact NYFA staff directly via the NYFA Source Hotline at (800) 232-2789, from Monday - Friday, 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM EST or email source@nyfa.org.

Are you an artist or a new organization interested in expanding your fundraising capacity through NYFA Fiscal Sponsorship? We accept out-of-cycle reviews year-round. No-fee applications are accepted on a quarterly basis, and our next deadline is June 30. Click here to learn more about the program and to apply.

Images: Antwaun Sargent, JiaJia Fei, Sara Raza, and Tiana Webb Evans during the “Defining Your Business: Storytelling” panel discussion and Prerana Reddy, Paddy Johnson, Caroline Woolard, and Alex Paik during the “You As Gatekeeper: Defining Goals and Initiating Opportunities” panel discussion, both at Art World Conference, Image Credit: Art World Conference and Alexa Hoyer.

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Introducing | New NYFA Board Member: Tiana Webb Evans

"First and foremost, stay true to your vision. Audiences are excited by a unique voice or perspective.”

Last week, The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) brought you an interview with new NYFA board member Howard Pyle. This week, we’re pleased to introduce another of NYFA’s newest board members, Tiana Webb Evans. 

Webb Evans is founder and managing director of ESP Group, a public relations agency specializing in the strategic promotion of agents of culture with international clients spanning across the art, architecture, interior, and industrial design industries. Webb Evans’ experience includes branding, communications, strategic and event planning, and business development. Before launching ESP Group in 2014, Webb Evans served as Communications Director at Phillips Auctioneers; Vice President of the Hospitality and Real Estate group at Nadine Johnson & Associates; and Business Director of Studio Sofield. She shares her expertise by serving on NYFA’s Board and the boards of Project for Empty Space Gallery and the Female Design Council. Webb Evans is also a member of the Laundromat Project’s National Advisory Board.

NYFA: Why did you decide to join the NYFA board?

Tiana Webb Evans: I have been a member of New York’s creative community for over two decades and have witnessed the impact NYFA has on our industry. Whether through its grant programs, the access to opportunities via its inexhaustible classifieds, or the sharing of expertise through its professional development workshops, NYFA as a service institution plays an undeniably important role in the arts by helping to promote cultural production in New York and beyond.

The opportunity to be part of the stewardship of such an important institution, one that supports some of the greatest thinkers and creators of our time, was an exciting prospect. After meeting NYFA’s passionate executive team and nominating board members, there was no question that NYFA’s board was the right place to be. Although so much work has already been done, I was able to identify where I could add value, which to me is the most important reason for joining any board.

NYFA: What do you hope to bring to NYFA as a board member?

TWE: As a communications professional and an entrepreneur, I am keenly interested in matters of branding, messaging, strategy, and organizational development. NYFA has a vast and varied treasure trove of services that are available to artists. I’m most interested in the dissemination of this information as well as the cultivation and development of NYFA’s users.

NYFA: What advice do you have for emerging artists?

TWE: Most of the emerging artists I know have been on a fast-track to gallery representation or are actively entering the broader conversation through media. When you are just starting out it is easy to feel like an outsider, but the “Art World” is an ecosystem, and although it is a competitive, it also can be a supportive community if you understand how it all works.

First and foremost, stay true to your vision. Audiences are excited by a unique voice or perspective. Be present, go to openings, share your work, and make new friends (aka network), because social activity is at the core of this dynamic community and eventually leads to meeting curators, collectors, dealers, and writers—who are all components of a healthy art biome. Apply for residencies, apply for grants, just apply because you might be surprised by the response. This is part of the job of being an artist. 

Take the time use and understand social media because is it a powerful tool where you can control the narrative and develop a supportive audience. Social media is also an avenue that you can use to interact with galleries, institutions, and artists. Being part of a community requires an exchange of support and ideas. 

Last but not least, NYFA is a service organization designed to help you guide and grow your career. Please visit or reach out via phone or email, there is always someone available to help answer your questions. 

- Interview conducted by Ryan Hudak, Executive Assistant

Image: Tiana Webb Evans, Courtesy of Tiana Webb Evans

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Introducing | New NYFA Board Member: Justin Tobin

“I want my kids and their generation to live in a world where art and artists can continue to make a difference in people's everyday lives. The best way to ensure that is through the support of organizations like NYFA, which is why I’m proud and excited to be involved.”

The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) recently named four new members to its Board of Trustees: Tiana Webb Evans, Lorin Gu, Howard Pyle, and Justin Tobin. We are pleased to share our recent conversation with Justin Tobin, founder and president of DDG.

DDG is a consultancy that works with Fortune 500 companies to guide the development and growth of their innovation practices; help them adopt different ways of working; and create a new set of processes, metrics, and mindsets in order to become more entrepreneurial in their approach to growth and innovation. Tobin founded DDG to be a company built on great people who are diverse but like-minded in their passion for innovation, growth, and blazing new trails for companies, in 2009. Previously, Tobin was Vice President of Interactive Strategy and Transformation at American Express, where he developed Amex’s first social media strategy and mobile offering. Tobin is a New Yorker, born-and-raised, who lives in Greenwich Village with his wife and two children. In his spare time, he’s a Level III-Certified snowboard instructor.

NYFA: Why did you decide to join the NYFA board?

Justin Tobin: The simple answer is that I joined the board because I whole-heartedly believe in NYFA’s mission to empower working artists and emerging arts organizations. Growing up with artist parents, being a musician myself, and now living with my wife and children who are artists, I have learned that artists have a unique role in making the world a better place. Unfortunately, that role is not always valued in the way it should be, especially in today’s world, which makes the role NYFA plays so essential. I want my kids and their generation to live in a world where art and artists can continue to make a difference in people's everyday lives. The best way to ensure that is through the support of organizations like NYFA, which is why I’m proud and excited to be involved.

NYFA: What do you hope to bring to NYFA as a board member?

JT: I hope to bring a sense of what I call “creative pragmatism” to the organization. What this means to me is that, as an entrepreneur, to be successful in my career I have to strike a good balance of both left and right brain thinking. As I mentioned before, I don’t want to just help NYFA survive, I want it to thrive as a more self-sustaining organization. From my point of view, that requires a tremendous amount of analytical and creative thinking on it’s journey to becoming the global beacon for artists it can and should be. I also don’t mind, frankly, being a bit provocative, which can be helpful in conversations as we continue exploring new ideas to accelerate NYFA’s growth.  

NYFA: What advice do you have for emerging artists?

JT: Some of the best advice I ever received growing up was around the importance of learning other languages and sharing your language with others. In the context of NYFA, this means that artists need to help other people, especially non-artists, understand what it means to be an artist. The flip side of that advice is equally important, in that artists need to find ways to understand the non-artist perspective. For example, they should have the opportunity to think like entrepreneurs, to learn the language of commerce. When artists understand non-artists and vice versa, they have more empathy for what the other is trying to do. This can open up all kinds of opportunities and is the same thinking that went into NYFA’s Symposium on Cultural Entrepreneurship that occurred earlier this year. This event was so important because it explored the potential synergies between left and right brain methods which, ultimately, benefits everyone.

- Interview conducted by Ryan Hudak, Executive Assistant

Image: Justin Tobin, Courtesy of Justin Tobin

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NYFA Inducts Sanford Biggers, Karl Kellner, and Min Jin Lee into its Hall of Fame

NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellows and Patron of the Arts celebrated at April 11 Hall of Fame Benefit in Manhattan.

The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) inducted three arts luminaries into its Hall of Fame during its annual benefit on April 11 at Capitale. The evening’s honorees were Sanford Biggers, a visual artist whose work speaks to current social, political, and economic happenings while examining the contexts that bore them; Karl Kellner, patron of the arts, Senior Partner, New York Office Managing Partner, McKinsey & Company, Inc., and a former NYFA Board Member; and Min Jin Lee, novelist of the best-selling books Free Food for Millionaires and Pachinko (Grand Central Publishing, 2007 and 2017). The gala was Co-Chaired by Marc Jason and J. Wesley McDade, both members of NYFA’s Board of Trustees. The silent auction was Co-Chaired by Marjorie W. Martay, a NYFA Board Member, and Marjorie Croes Silverman, a NYFA Leadership Council Member.

Guests included Tom Finkelpearl, Commissioner, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; Anne del Castillo, Acting Commissioner, New York City Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment; artists Derrick Adams, Samira Abbassy, Debi Cornwall, Phyllis Galembo, Ekwa Msangi, Rajesh Parameswaran, Dread Scott (also a NYFA Board Member), Michael Stamm, and Nina Yankowitz; Thomas Bouillonnec, President & CEO, Graff Diamonds; Liz Christensen, Curator, Deutsche Bank;  Cameron Esposito, Comedian; Stephanie Gabriel, Director, Marianne Boesky Gallery; Suzanne Gluck, Literary Agent, William Morris Endeavor Entertainment; Lorin Gu, Founding Partner, Recharge Capital and NYFA Board Member; Colm Kelleher, CEO, Morgan Stanley; Huriyyah Muhammad, Founder, Black TV & Film Collective; Sang Lee, CEO, Volta Talent Strategies; Howard Pyle, SVP, Customer Experience Design, MetLife and NYFA Board Member; Lucy Sexton, Executive Director, New Yorkers for Arts and Culture; Justin Tobin, Founder & President, DDG and NYFA Board Member; Tiana Webb Evans, Founder, ESP Group and NYFA Board Member; and Shelley V. Worrell, Founder, caribBEING. Artist and NYFA Board Member Carmelita Tropicana served as the event emcee.

Nearly 300 guests gathered to celebrate the 2019 Hall of Fame inductees over cocktails, dinner, and a silent auction of art, experiences, and more. All tickets came with a signed, limited-edition print by Biggers that was created exclusively for the event. Each year, the glamorous gala recognizes the sustained achievements of artists who received early career support from NYFA, and the vision and commitment of enlightened patrons of the arts. Biggers and Lee are past recipients of the NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship, which is an individual unrestricted grant made to artists who are living and working in New York State.

NYFA Board Chair Judith K. Brodsky described NYFA’s support of working artists and why the arts are especially meaningful. “Artists pave the way for dialogue and understanding among diverse viewpoints and voices, something that we desperately need in today’s world,” said Brodsky.

Karl Kellner was the first honoree of the night to be inducted into NYFA’s Hall of Fame. In his acceptance remarks he described his personal interest in the arts, how it led him to NYFA, and how he’s helped to support NYFA through his work at McKinsey & Company, Inc. Here, he describes the value that the arts bring to society, and why they’re worth fighting for: “Artists play a critical role in the world-at-large. For me, art is one of the most energizing, the most incredibly inspiring parts of the fabric of life. It needs supporters, it needs benefactors, it requires appreciators and even aficionados. So I think art is something that we all need to invest in and the return that you get is something that’s unique and personal, and very, very special.”  

Fellow honoree Sanford Biggers spoke about how he came to be an artist and described the varied influences and materials that he incorporates into his multidisciplinary work. He recounted when he received a NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship, saying: “When I got the NYFA award in 2005, I was not showing with a gallery. I was extremely excited for multiple reasons: number one, I got a check, which was a good thing. But beyond that,” Biggers added, “I was acknowledged as the artist that I was becoming and I was in this interdisciplinary field. It was a validation that I didn’t have to put myself into ‘sculpture’ or ‘painting’ but I could sort of traverse between many different forms including performance and video. And I think that that acknowledgement at that point was extremely important to me, and it was an affirmation.”

Min Jin Lee discussed her process and interests, and reflected on the hardships of being a professional artist, especially as a woman of color. She also described the impact of receiving a NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship: “I needed to have this kind of support that somehow what I did mattered. And that was so important to have NYFA recognize that my little question was worth supporting, and I think that when the average person in this country thinks that art matters, that’s a huge step. Because it is so often seen as less important than food, and housing, and jobs, and healthcare, and all those things are really important for me, too. But I chose this path because I think that literature can create the level of empathy that many things cannot. I believe that, I believe that with everything that I do.”

Following the award ceremony, multidisciplinary artist and choreographer Angel Kaba spoke about her experience as a mentee in NYFA’s Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program. Born in Belgium to parents from the Congo and Martinique, she moved to New York five years ago to chase her dream of being an artist. She recounted how she made $250 a month and lived with eight roommates during her first three years in the city. Kaba, who began to question her artistry, found positive change by participating in NYFA’s Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program: “It was about the support system. That they really cared about us, they really gave us the opportunity to be ourselves, to express, to connect, to learn to share stories and experiences with amazing talented artists of different nationalities. At the end of the program, I learned more about myself than anything else,” she said. Kaba now teaches across the United States and is a member of Alvin Ailey’s extension faculty.

The evening concluded with dessert and remarks from NYFA Executive Director Michael L. Royce. “I think everyone in this room knows that without artists many stories would not be known. Stories allow us to share who we are, what we’ve experienced, and what we imagine. They are a special communication from one individual to another, and as I was thinking about this event I realized that all of us together are making up the story of NYFA,” said Royce.

Past NYFA Awardees include Ida Applebroog, Paul Beatty, James Casebere, Christopher d’Amboise, Anna Deavere Smith, Phil Gilbert, Zhou Long, Christian Marclay, Terry McMillan, Mira Nair, Lynn Nottage, Eric Overmyer, Suzan-Lori Parks, Wendy Perron, Dwight Rhoden, Faith Ringgold, Carolee Schneemann, and Andres Serrano.

There are still items available for purchase in NYFA’s online Benefit Auction, which features artworks, event tickets, and one-of-a-kind experiences. Click here to view and buy now to help support the arts.

Legends Limousine, a family-owned car service based in Park Slope, Brooklyn, is NYFA’s transportation partner for the 2019 NYFA Hall of Fame Benefit.

Sign up for NYFA’s bi-weekly newsletter, NYFA News, to receive announcements about future NYFA events and programs.

Images: Michael L. Royce, Tom Finkelpearl, Karl Kellner, Min Jin Lee, Judith K. Brodsky, and Sanford Biggers; Dread Scott, Sanford Biggers, and Derrick Adams; Angel Kaba and Lorraine Bell; All Images Credit: Jay Brady Photography