For more information please visit our webpage at www.townofsaguache.org/saguache-artists.htm
ScSEED Receives Saguache County Sales Tax Grant
To Conduct a Feasibility Study on an Artist Co-op in Saguache
Through the creation of the Saguache Downtown Revitalization Project (SDRP) Action Plan, citizens identified local arts and crafts as being one of our primary assets that needs organization and promotion. To address this need, local artists have planned to start an Artist Co-op in the Town of Saguache. ScSEED and the project’s volunteer coordinator will assess the viability of creating an Artist Co-op and determine if this type of support mechanism can be sustainable in our community. This Co-op would be a visible and accessible retail space for artists to promote their work. Its success would further promote the Town of Saguache as a vital county-seat with unique quality goods and services to offer travelers. The business would provide visitors with an easily accessible location that has consistent hours of operations and personal assistance where they can view arts and crafts, inquire about artists, make purchases and receive contact information and directions to other galleries and studios.
The creation of the Artist Co-op would address the need to create employment opportunities in the Town of Saguache. The business would require a full-time staff person to operate the gallery and possibly other part-time employees or partners that would help with its management. The Co-op would also increase support, exposure and retail opportunity for artists who currently operate their own small businesses.
The goal of this request is to determine the feasibility of operating a structured Artist Co-op in the Town of Saguache.
Upon funding, ScSEED will hire Marty Mitchell, a local artist who will coordinate the project, to research the viability of this artists support mechanism. She will start by conducting outreach activities to determine the level of need and support from artists, craftspeople and the community.
Once she has determined there is sufficient support for the co-op, she will conduct research and evaluate different models of artist cooperatives and determine a structure that will be appropriate and sustainable in the Town of Saguache. She will continue outreach through advertisement and face-to-face meetings to best determine the structure and operations of the co-op. She will obtain buy-in from local artists and crafts people that want to be part of the business throughout the planning process.
After the completion of the research and public process and once sufficient support from participating artists has been established, Marty will complete a report and analysis to guide the next steps of planning. The report will inform the ScSEED Board of Directors to determine what kind of support will be necessary to ensure the progress and success of this new business.
Attention: Artists of Saguache!
As you are probably aware, for many years Saguache has been a mecca for artists seeking affordable work situations, and the peace and open space needed to create. And, as you’re also probably aware, there has been a renewed energy in Saguache to see its main street become a vital site for small businesses and live/work situations to prosper. Within the many areas for attention that the Sagauche Downtown Revitalization Project has targeted, are the acknowledgment of art diversity within our community, and the potential need for a place/situation to pull it all together. With that in mind, we’re asking for a bit of your time to answer some questions regarding the feasibility of an artists cooperative, (or collective or consortium,) and about its structure, for the town of Saguache.
The survey below is only seeking your input, suggestions, and questions regarding an artists cooperative. Click here to download a copy of the survey to complete! It is not looking for any form of commitment on your part to being a member of a coop. Please feel free to let your ideas flow and be as generous with your thoughts as you feel compelled to be. We want and value your ideas, in order to get a true sense of the needs of the artist community in our town. No idea is too “wacky” and no question is dumb. We need it all. Your responses may be forwarded to: artistcoop@scseed.org or mailed to: Artist Coop, PO Box 332, Saguache, CO 81149.
Please feel free to share this survey with friends in Saguache. And thank you in advance for sharing your ideas with us.
Sincerely,
Marty Mitchell
Saguache Artist Coop Survey
Your answers to these questions will remain with us and confidential.
Part 1:
1. Do you perceive a need for an artists cooperative in Saguache? Yes No
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
2. What geographic area should the scope of the coop cover?
O Saguache town proper
O Town and specified surrounding area
O An area defined as under-represented (where exhibition space does not already exist).
O Open to those having mailing address in Saguache, 81149.
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
3. What inclusions would you suggest that would best represent ideal coop structure?
O Exhibition space
O Gallery sales space
O Information space (featuring examples of artists work & directions to individual studios/galleries).
O Workshop space
O Studio facilities
O Gathering/meeting space
O Event rental space
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
4. What type of operating management structure would you prefer?
O An artist run organization, where artists who are exhibiting members work the gallery (time commitment based on the numbers of members).
O An on-site director, who’s salary is covered by percentage of retail sales of art work.
O A combination of both
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
5. What should hours of operation be?
O 5 days/week, 9-5
O Weekends only
O 5 days/week, noon-7
O 7 days/week
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
6. How should membership be determined?
O Open membership
O Through a jurying process
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
7. What type of physical structure would best function for coop?
O A storefront on 285
O A storefront on 4th Street
O A shared structure with a Saguache visitor’s center
O Space within the museum, if available
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
8. Would you use a group studio if that were an option? Yes No
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
9. Would you participate in workshops, if offered? Yes No
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
10. I would be willing to volunteer to work in the coop space if it was:
O 1 to 2 times per week
O 1 to 2 times per month
O 1 to 2 times per year
O No interest in working in the coop
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
11. Would you consider teaching a workshop in your area of expertise? Yes No
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
12. Would you assist in coordinating classes or workshops? Yes No
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
13. Would you help with organizing openings of shows in gallery? Yes No
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
14. Would you consider serving as a professional consultant for frequently asked questions about technique, studio operations, materials, methods, etc.? Yes No
Other, please describe:_____________________________________________
15. Lastly, and most importantly: What ideas, needs or wants would you like to see addressed by an artists coop? Please include any questions and suggestions you feel will be helpful in our getting a sense of need for, and feasibility of, an operating artists cooperative in Saguache. Please use other side of this form to reply.
Part 2:
Please take a minute to tell us about yourself. Your answers to these questions will be kept confidential and are merely asked for our data in determining our artist base and needs. Thank you.
Name:
Contact information: Mailing address
Telephone #
Email address
What media of art do you work in, please list all?
Do you currently have studio space? Yes No
Do you currently show your work in galleries or cooperatives? Local, regional, national? Yes No
May I contact you for a brief, one-on-one follow-up interview to our survey? Yes No
Please return to: artistcoop@scseed.org
or: Artist Coop, PO Box 332, Saguache, CO 81149
Thank you!
Marty Mitchell has agreed to conduct the above activities and start an Artist Co-op in the Town of Saguache. She has been motivated by the SDRP to carryout this vision and as a longtime artist and resident of Saguache County, she is committed to seeing it through.
Marty has been a full-time studio artist and gallery co-owner at Meerfeld Stoneware in Saguache since 1996. Her professional experience in the arts began after she obtained her Bachelors of Fine Arts from Iowa University in 1986 and then her Master of Fine Arts from West Virginia University in 1989. Since moving to Saguache, Marty has found inspiration in the imagery of Saguache County. She works “en plein aire,” on site, primarily in watercolor, oil pastel, and soft pastel and has also found inspiration in other mediums such as fiber, drawing and costume. She often expands smaller works into large oil on canvas recreations. Marty says of her art, “I tend to focus on ordinary, easily overlooked situations for my subject rather than attempting to capture the ‘sublime,’ which is a tradition in American landscape painting. There is so much wealth of color and atmosphere here that a grand subject would be overkill.”
Marty has contributed to over 60 exhibits where she has won numerous awards. She has been a presenter and visiting artist at conferences and workshops throughout Colorado, in Iowa, Wyoming and Pennsylvania. She began teaching art and art history as a graduate teaching assistant in 1987 at West Virginia University and has since been an instructor and an assistant professor at 4 colleges including Adams State College and currently at Colorado Mountain College at the Timberline Campus in Salida.
Marty is one of many citizen volunteers working towards a revitalization of the Town of Saguache and she offers professional skills that will increase the possibility of successfully initiating an Artist Co-op. She will have the support of ScSEED and the other partners in the SDRP for technical assistance and further fundraising.
The ScSEED Board of Directors will be responsible for the oversight of this project. After a reasonable amount of time, they will determine if the funding in this request allowed Marty to determine the viability of this business, craft a business plan and obtain buy-in from local artists and crafts people. At that time, the ScSEED Board will determine what resources are necessary to promote the Co-op and ensure its success.