by Dan Perkins

No more starving artists! That’s the goal of a group of artists in South Florida who have come together to showcase their work in an exciting exhibit called Collabo.

Art can be a complicated concept and an even more complicated business.

The whole notion of the starving artist – the individual who pursues his or her artistic passion despite financial hardships – has been around for a very long time.  Since the Middle Ages, countless Western artists have honed their craft and engaged in creative activity without focusing on the economic dimensions of their work.

While others have made great fortunes from the sale of art, artists have historically received little financial compensation for their labor; and little or no economic benefit from subsequent sales of their work.

One can argue that at the root of the starving artist phenomenon are two conditions: one specific to individual artists, and the other inherent to the nature of art.

Many artists choose to focus on their creative visions and avoid building the social network and business acumen required to garner significant economic return from their efforts.  In addition, many artists lack the interpersonal skills - the confidence, experience and savvy - to demand what the market will bear for their work.

Artists also starve because of the unique nature of art.

While the creation of art is an inherent form of human expression, it is also among the least essential activities for human existence.  Many people – and arguably most people - live their lives without a deep appreciation for or involvement with art. 

The very definition of what constitutes art is subjective and varies across cultures and time.  For a given culture and time, a canvas splattered with blots of paint might represent nothing more than a ruined canvas.  At another point in time, or perhaps in a different culture, that same splattered canvas might be worth a small fortune. 

The array of responses to paint on a canvas reflects the inherent subjective nature of art.

Labeling an object or activity “a work of art” requires a cultivated mind.  When an object or performance is devoid of a ceremonial, religious, political or utilitarian function, its “value” as “a work of art” is determined solely by how the beholder assess the emotional, psychological, physical, and intellectual reactions it induces.

With the value of art lying in the eye of the bolder, it is difficult to apply a traditional market or economic model to a discussion of art. Add youth and race to the equation, and you have an even more perplexing condition.  But such complexities do not intimidate Nerissa Street, president and founder of The Artist Initiative, Inc., a South Florida-based venture that aims to empower artists to succeed economically as well as aesthetically.  She's tackling both issues with amazing results.

Street firmly believes artists can and must succeed as entrepreneurs if they are to endure and make significant contributions to their communities.  She is adamant in her belief that gifted, young black artists must pursue their artistic passions with a business mindset.

“When an artist starves, the community is robbed of the inspiration and creativity that only he or she can provide,” said Street.  “The family is robbed of a valued member, and perhaps more importantly, the artist is robbed of the ability to leave a lasting legacy.”

For Street, the solution to the starving artist phenomenon is COLLABORATION.

Street is the visionary force behind the Collabo exhibit currently featured in Gallery 6 at the Broward County Main Library in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.  The exhibit, which runs through January 20, 2007, features the work of five artists selected by Street for their artistic integrity and their desire to succeed as entrepreneurs.  The artists, who are all from South Florida, include Ed King, Francesca Lalanne, Caiphus Moore, Tonietta Walters, and Khrys Kelly.

The artists selected for the Collabo exhibit provide an exciting mix of artistic visions.  Neo-pop artist, Ed King, examines the relationship between science, nature and humanity in a series of brightly colored paintings that feature a melancholy little girl named Liah, who is an archetype of humanity’s search for meaning amidst a colorful, but often capricious universe.  Liah, along with other child-like images that appear in King’s paintings, is the subject of a line of T-shirts that were sold during the opening of the exhibit.  The T-shirts are just one of the ways King is expanding the market for his art.

The ebb and flow of human relationships is at the core of another series of paintings featured in Collabo.  This series, created by Caiphus Moore, is entitled BUBBLES. Moore uses the mercurial nature of blown bubbles as a metaphor for the various stages of human relationships.

During the opening, Moore wore a T-shirt that bore his stylish logo.  The logo is part of Moore's overall strategy to brand himself and his art.

Francesca Lalanne is the third painter featured in Collabo.  She has created a series of paintings on stained wood entitled METANOIA II. The series, which explores the evolution of an idea, is both personal and captivating.

Artist Tonietta Walters explores the nature of spirituality in a commanding installation entitled AXIS MUNDI, which consists of various elements including a two-sided painted canvas that is stretched between two structural forms rising from a bed of contoured sand.

Textiles are the focus of artist Khrys Kelly’s work, which is located in the center of the exhibit space.  Her colorful tie-dyes are inspired by traditional African dyed cloth.  Her creations are hung over display walls in acknowledgement of how such cloths typically appear in an African village.

Kelly raised her art to another level during the opening of the exhibit by inviting the performance artist known as @Peace (pronounced At-Peace) to wear one of her garments. At the close of the opening, @Peace delivered a moving oration that challenged the audience to remember how each of us is able to shine brighter than the stars.

“Collabo is about the spirit of collaboration,” said Street who believes the exhibit demonstrates how emerging artists can work together to create settings that maximize their individual potentials for success. 

“There were people who came to the opening of this exhibit to show support for a particular artist and ended up discovering the work of other talented artists – people they might have never discovered were it not for this show,” Street explained.

Although several of the Collabo artists enjoyed sales of their work during the December 2^nd opening, the exhibit itself reflects a much broader level of collaborative success.

To realize her vision, Street had to garner support from many sources.  She first needed the artists, then a place to host their works. 

Street found a powerful and passionate ally in Tanya Simons-Oparah, the director of outreach services for the Broward County Libraries.  Simons-Oparah and her staff provided Street with access to Gallery 6, a gallery space located in the architecturally stunning edifice that houses Broward County’s Main Library.  The library is located in the heart of Ft. Lauderdale’s art and entertainment district and across the street from the Ft. Lauderdale Museum of Art.

The location alone provides a level of visibility coveted by most exhibiting artists.

Once the gallery was selected, Street needed to garner support for the promotion of the exhibit and its opening.  She turned to Ed King, who not only succeeded in convincing diversityinbusiness.com to become a media sponsor, but also assisted Street in finding other sponsors.

A total of eight minority and women entrepreneurs eventually agreed to sponsor the opening of Collabo, which drew a large and diverse crowd that included several eager buyers.

Street was delighted not only by the audience’s response to the artists and their work, but by the significance of the exhibit. “The success of Collabo is evidence of how artists everywhere can come together with the support of local businesses and sell art. This is a way to ensure that there will be no more starving artists,” said Street.

The End