FREELANCERS UNION BLOG

  • Advocacy

Take a break: Support local artists in your community

In many ways, local artists are at the heart of every community.

Not only do they contribute billions of dollars in tangible economic activity, but artists are the builders of a healthy, vibrant local culture. And largely these artists are free agents -- independent workers and freelancers who support and are supported by local communities.

Artists are Quiet Revolutionaries

Whatever the reason artists choose to create art, whether they choose to be “revolutionary” or not, artists change the communities they’re in. When they make something personal, unique, creative, and time-consuming, they are valuing quality over quantity.

Their handcrafted work creates value in economies and value in societies -- and this is revolutionary at a time when economies and societies are tending towards mechanisation, high-quantity and low-cost manufacturing, overconsumption, and an ever-increasing distance between creator/designer and consumer.

Artists of all kinds, both fine artists and all creative workers, are leading the Quiet Revolution, a movement towards economic and social quality and connectivity over quantity and isolation.

But how do you find local independent artists in your community?

And what about the coffee shops, art galleries, and concert halls that host these artists and support the connection between artists and the community?

That’s why we created the Quiet Revolutionary Map, which we launched last week and has nearly 200 submissions from across the country. We need your help to fill it in with great art spaces in your local community in the “Take a Break” category.

Any local coffee shop, art gallery, concert hall, or event space that either supports local artists, is collectively owned, or is contributing to its community in a positive way belongs on the map.? Take a moment to add it to our Quiet Revolutionary Map, so that other freelancers and forward-thinkers in your area can find it!

Here are some recent submissions to the map in the “Take a Break” category:

SILENT BARN

603 Bushwick Avenue

Brooklyn, NY 11206

http://www.silentbarn.org/

Started by a group of Bushwick artists in need of affordable studio and performance space, Silent Barn has grown into an all-encompassing residency, performance, and incubation space for Brooklyn creatives of all kinds.

ARGONNE COMMUNITY GARDEN

San Francisco, CA 94118

http://argonnecommunitygarden.org/

Through gardening and education, we foster cooperative community efforts with peoples of all ages and backgrounds. The garden makes us aware of our relationship with Mother Earth and our need to be good stewards of the land. We develop supportive systems to enhance the health, spirit, and growth of families and friends. We work with schools in offering children a chance to interact with their natural environment.