Each year, The CHF Annual Report provides insights into the lasting impact of our programs. It tracks our success through statistics and features feedback from artists and industry stakeholders. The Report documents how CHF delivered programming and consulting to ensure profitability for organizations and individuals, allowing them to sustain their creative businesses with cutting-edge insights and skills.
Globally, Covid19 made 2020 a challenging year for everyone: health, economy, education, family, lifestyle, and the creative sector all felt the impact. We were all forced to reinvent, and CHF was in a unique position to offer our expertise. Our artists, staff, donors, and our stakeholders have had their own personal journeys, but we have risen to the occasion and CHF has had an amazing year! Fortunately, CHF has always been virtual; as such, we have been uniquely positioned to help artists and arts organizations pivot and thrive during the pandemic.
We have broadened our collaborations and now actively work with Artspan, Cornerstones, The Heard Museum Guild, Naples Art Association, Southwest Association of Indian Arts (SWAIA). With the latter, we co-created NDN World; you can learn more about the initiative here.
Our annual Art-Business Conference became virtual: Virtualize Your Art CareerTM—Thriving in “The New Normal” not only provided timely training on how to navigate a new world but offered diverse representation. Participants from 20 states and 3 countries attended 14 sessions featuring 18 speakers and supported by 10 sponsors.
The Full Annual Report presents other important information, but below is a brief summary of CHF wins:
- Art-Business Accelerator: 58 Fellows and counting. 4 Executive Fellows working on pivotal projects: Manuelita Brown, Steven Lester, Robin Holder, and Tim Saternow.
- Digital Campus: Major upgrade to our online learning platform to make it faster, easier to navigate, and more fun: 93 art business courses, 1,000 members.
- Brown Bag Lunch & Thriving TuesdaysTM: monthly virtual event programming featuring peer networking and content-specific education at no charge to the artists.
- The Thriving ArtistTM Podcast: Listeners in 50 states, 137 countries, 148,000 downloads. Featured on all podcast platforms: Apple, Stitcher, iHeart, Spotify, Google.
- Hulings’ Legacy: James D. Balestrieri is writing a major monograph: Clark Hulings: Quantum Realist to be published in 2022 as part of the centennial celebration of Hulings’ birth.
To read the full report, click here.
As the Annual Report demonstrates, our efforts and your contributions toward a demonstrated economic and cultural need have impacted multiple sectors of our society. CHF’s Annual Report goes beyond providing updates on continuing programs that have been successful in previous years—although you will see some notable additions, expansions, and important growth.
As a cutting-edge nonprofit that produces socially transformative change, CHF is continuing to move forward in 2021. Keeping artists up to date with the latest trends, CHF is taking the lead in representing and educating the #ArtTech world. Investing in CHF is needed more than ever.
We’re expanding rapidly to meet the demand. CHF is fully aware that the explosive growth in technology has fractured an already outdated artistic structure and that the role of individuals has grown. The artistic ecosystem has been destabilized as a result of Covid19, and the whole system has been forced into new technological spheres. There are some incredible opportunities for artists in this new world, and it’s our job to make sure they have access to the knowledge and skills to continue to run sustainable businesses.
In response to the technological acceleration, The Clark Hulings will be hosting the State of the Art Industry Conference (Oct 17-21, 2021). The conference will power creative professionals with an understanding of the latest technologies revolutionizing the art industry and expanding artists’ lexicon.
We are currently seeking sponsors, speakers, and donations to continue to make artists’ dreams of becoming self-sufficient, technologically savvy entrepreneurs a reality.
