Artist Leadership Fellows Showcase Impact on October 28

Join us on October 28 for WorkShare, an exciting virtual showcase by the fifth cohort of Artist Leadership Fellows. The participating fellows come from a wide range of artistic backgrounds and are working on impactful projects that enrich communities and expand the boundaries of their practice across the region.

Artist Leadership Fellows (ALF), a program of Mid-America Arts Alliance (M-AAA), is driven by a deep belief in the transformative power of artists supporting one another, shaping established artists into future leaders in the arts. ALF’s primary goal is to nurture artists within communities and thereby foster a positive impact on both the local arts scenes and the broader economy.

The public is invited to join the virtual event to learn about the artists’ work on Monday, October 28, 2024, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Central.

To attend, guests are required to register in advance, and a virtual Zoom meeting link will be emailed upon registration.

Meet the fall 2024 Artist Leadership Fellows cohort: 

• Brian Barreto (he/they) – Sculptor; Dixon, NM
• Yashi Davalos (she/her) – Curator, Lens-Based Artist, Art Writer; Kansas City, MO
• Hannah Demma (she/her) – Papermaker and Mixed Media Artist; Lincoln, NE
• Toni Federico (she/her) – Visual Artist; Wichita, KS
• Amaris Feland Ketcham (she/her) – Writer and cartoonist; Albuquerque, NM
• MacKenzie Fulmer (she/her) – Painter; Kansas City, MO
• Lindsey Rae Gjording (she/her) – Writer; Taos, NM
• Xavier Jackson (he/him) – Coordinator, Facilitator, and Producer; Omaha, NE
• Karen Jones Meadows (she/her) – Literary, Performing, and Visual Artist; Placitas, NM
• Alex Kimball Williams (she/they) – Musician and Protest Artist; Lawrence, KS
• Mika Maloney (she/her) – Writer and Artist; Albuquerque, NM
• Dalamar McTizic (he/him) – Musician and DJ; Omaha, NE
• Azalia Molina (she/her) – Visual Artist; Tontitown, AR
• Daral Moore-Washington (she/her) – Art Administrator and Visual Artist; Houston, TX
• Nathan Murray (he/him) – Sculptor; Lincoln, NE
• Jennifer Perren (she/they) – Mixed Media Artist; Little Rock, AR
• Taiomah Rutledge (he/him) – Multidisciplinary Artist; Wichita, KS
• Zandra Sneed-Dawkins (she/her) – Visual Artist; Topeka, KS
• Hugo Zamorano (any pronouns) – Visual Artist; Omaha, NE

The senior artist peer facilitators leading the cohort are Nick Carswell (Lawrence, KS, Chris Dahlquist (Kansas City, MO), José Faus (Kansas City, MO), Cory Imig (Kansas City, MO), and Kholoud Sawaf (Fayetteville, AR).

About Artist Leadership Fellows

M-AAA’s Artist Leadership Fellow program selects artists, nominated by community partner organizations, from a wide range of disciplines and perspectives. 

During the eight-week ALF program, artists deepen their knowledge, hone their skills, and strengthen their professional practices in a supportive small group environment under the guidance of experienced peer facilitators from M-AAA. Topics covered include goal-setting, financial strategies, marketing, contracts, legal business structures, time management, and self-care. Each participating artist receives an honorarium of $500.

The artist fellows met virtually from locations across the heartland, collaborating with senior peer facilitators to explore and develop their creative practices and learn how to guide other artists through their creative and professional journeys. 

Graduates of the program depart with a cross-discipline, geographically diverse network of peer artists, a strategic framework to navigate enduring artistic careers, and the tools to serve as facilitators and mentors in their respective home communities across M-AAA’s region and beyond. 

Learn about past cohorts here.

M-AAA plans to continue hosting additional cohorts in 2025.