FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Julie Wake, 508-362-0066 ext. 111, jwake@artsfoundation.org
AFCC’s Creative Exchange to Connect Cape Cod’s Creative Community
September 4, 2018 (Hyannis, MA) – The Arts Foundation of Cape Cod (AFCC) is bringing the Creative Exchange to the region’s artistic and cultural community for the third straight year.
The one-day conference will take place on Friday, October 19 at the Tilden Arts Center at Cape Cod Community College. Started in 2016, the Creative Exchange provides local artist, arts organizations, business owners, and community leaders with professional and personal development opportunities.
“Every year, we focus the Creative Exchange on the needs of AFCC members so they can grow as artists and individuals,” said AFCC Executive Director Julie Wake. “At the same time, we’re connecting our creative types with experts in similar fields along with those in the community who share a collective passion for the arts in an effort to enhance the cultural vibrancy of the Cape.”
Attendees will have the opportunity to take part in sessions that center on industry trends which will include discussions on art as social commentary; using arts for therapy and healing; overcoming creative blocks; how to build an audience; eliminating the starving artist syndrome; and community engagement through iconic events.
Back by popular demand is a storytelling session that follows a Moth mainstage-style format and will showcase three locally-known storytellers: James Barnes, director of social enterprise at Cape Abilities; performer Christine Ernst; and Cape Air CEO Dan Wolf.
This year’s keynote speaker is Elisa Hamilton, a multimedia artist whose practice focuses on the creation of inclusive artworks that emphasize shared spaces and the hopeful examination of our everyday places, objects, and experiences. Hamilton is a graduate of the Massachusetts College of Art and Design where she earned her BFA in Painting in 2007. In 2017, Hamilton was honored by the Improper Bostonian as Boston’s Best Creative Catalyst. Her work has been shown locally, regionally and nationally in solo and group exhibitions. Her ongoing project “Dance Spot” has engaged with communities around Boston, as well as at DeCordova Sculpture Park and Museum in Lincoln, MA; the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston; and the Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia.
“Artists have a unique ability to bring people together. Whether it’s with music, theater, sculpture, painting, or drawing, artists have the power to offer us not only a new way of seeing the world, but a new way of seeing one another. I’m excited to engage in conversation about the artist’s role in creating positive social change in our communities next month at Creative Exchange,” said Hamilton about her keynote address that will open the conference. .
Panelists for this year’s exchange include writer Susan Blood of Orleans; music producer and musician Jon Evans of Orleans; visual artists Laura Shabott of Provincetown and Joe Diggs of Osterville; singer/songwriter Anne Stott of Provincetown; photographer and painter Marian Roth of Provincetown; film producer Tim McCarthy of Provincetown; writer Alison Weller of Orleans; Eve Montague, chair of South Shore Conservatory’s Creative Arts Therapies Department; expressive art therapist Kerry Lang of Boston; artist Andrew Weatherly; Malissa Kenney, director of operations at Cape Cod Can; Cape Cloth founder and CEO Sean Fitzpatrick, jazz musician and Executive Producer of the Provincetown Jazz Festival Bart Weisman of Orleans; photographer Bobby Baker of Cataumet; Time, Life, and National Geographic photographer Rowland Scherman of Orleans; film producer and CEO of the Provincetown Film Society Christine Kunewa Walker; Provincetown Business Guild Executive Director Robin Lapidus; WaterFire Providence Managing Director Peter Mello; and Jane Walsh, owner of Red Fish, Blue Fish and founder of Hyannis Open Streets.
The morning will kick off with a performance by Dance The Yard, a dance collective from Martha’s Vineyard.
The Creative Exchange, which begins with registration at 8 am and will conclude with an after-hours networking event, will include a Test Tube Lounge, allowing attendees to meet one-on-one with social media and technology experts to ensure they are maximizing their marketing efforts.
To learn more about the Creative Exchange or to register for the event, visit www.artsfoundation.org.
About the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod (AFCC)
Founded in 1988, the AFCC is a Hyannis-based nonprofit that serves as the regional arts agency for Barnstable County. Its mission is to support, promote, and celebrate the arts and culture of Cape Cod in order to sustain a vibrant, diverse, and strong arts community.
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