Carl Atiya Swanson
Community Heroes
Through Creative Exchange, we are always excited to share toolkits from creative community projects – especially ones created by artists, and using resources from Springboard for the Arts like the…
From the Field: Imagining the Future of Creativity, Healing and Wellness
From the Field is Springboard’s virtual conversation series that brings together artists who are reimagining the future of rural America. These artist-to-artist talks will explore rural-specific…
Books from Springboard for the Arts
At Springboard for the Arts, we believe that more is more. We make and share tools designed to benefit as many artists as possible. By freely sharing our work and creating connections among artists…
Getting Closer
In 2014, Springboard for the Arts was faced with a question – How do we grow our work and support more artists across the country while staying grounded in our work as an artist-led organization…
Announcing From the Field!
Update! Join us for From the Field: Imagining the Future of Creativity, Healing and Wellness with Holly Doll and Jamie Horter on April 9!…
Handbook for Artists Working in Community
In this day and age of continued disparities, injustices, pandemics and systemic racism, artists are critical agents of change in our communities. More than ever, we need artists to be catalysts and…
Creative Exchange Survey
At Springboard for the Arts, we’ve learned a lot as we've published Creative Exchange. As we've published the site, we've centered artists and their work, stories about communities coming together to…
Find Creative People Power on Creative Exchange
"I honestly feel so inspired by the work that these artists have created that represents a life, challenges the status quo, or brings in communities. I feel so incredibly lucky to have the…
Creative Community Development Trainings
Do you believe that artists generate creative people power, and that communities thrive when they are connected to their artists? Have you downloaded the Irrigate: Artist-led Creative Placemaking…
Five Years of Creative Exchange!
Give your feedback and take our survey here! February 20, 2014 was the day that we launched Creative Exchange. I had just become a father, and here was another baby about to go out into the world. We…
Creative People Power
Springboard for the Arts and Helicon Collaborative are excited to launch Creative People Power, a new report and framework for combining creativity-centered and people-centered development to build…
Announcing IdeaLab:Westwood in Denver on April 17!
IdeaLab is rooted in the notion that everyone is capable of being part of a movement, based around events that cross-pollinate local and national experts, create new opportunities for community…
Train-the-Trainer Intensive recap
In July, Springboard for the Arts held the first Train-the-Trainer Intensive, a “summer camp for artist organizers, creative community development folks and creative economy nerds,” according to the…
Rural Arts & Culture Summit Videos
The Rural Arts & Culture Summit was held from June 6-8 in Morris, MN, and it was magical. 400 artists, community development professionals, leaders, and advocates from 22 states came to the town of…
Springboard for the Arts announces new national Train-the-Trainer Intensive
Springboard for the Arts is excited to announce the first Train-the-Trainer Intensive for their Work of Art: Business Skills for Artists curriculum and award-winning artist-led community development…
Join us in Denver for IdeaLab 2017!
Are you an artist, social entrepreneur or organizer? Do you want to connect to others to organize around racial equity and social justice? Do you believe in the power of creative storytelling? Join…
Announcing the 2017 Rural Arts and Culture Summit
The 2017 Rural Arts and Culture Summit will take place Tuesday, June 6, through Thursday, June 8, at the University of Minnesota, Morris. Organized by Springboard for the Arts and the Center for…
Where to get your rural news
In the current media climate, there is a lot of conversation about urban-rural divide, and plenty of thinkpieces published and pundits willing to go on air and talk about what it means. We're…
Guide for Business Districts to Work with Local Artists
The Guide for Business Districts to Work with Local Artists is a free guide for place managers to work with artists on creative placemaking projects. The Guide was created for International Downtown…
Let's Get To Work
Creative Exchange is the national program of Springboard for the Arts, based in Fergus Falls & Saint Paul, MN. This piece is adapted from the main Springboard website here. Springboard for the…
Mural Arts' Porch Light Toolkit
Mural Arts in Philadelphia believes that hands-on art-making provides a strong pathway for individual and community healing. Their Porch Light program, a joint collaboration with the City of…
Special Sauce & Agency: Evaluating Work of Art
"I feel like I just got a million dollars worth of guidance!" That's what one artist commented after downloading the Work of Art toolkit. Since the Work of Art toolkit launched as a free resource in…
2 Years of Creative Exchange!
It’s hard to believe, but Creative Exchange just turned 2! The platform was launched in 2014 in response to the question, “How do we support a movement around the power of local art and artists on a…
Overheard in the StoryBooth: Chicago's Lake FX Summit + Expo
It’s Thanksgiving this week, and StoryCorps has launched a new project and app, with The Great Thanksgiving Listen Project. Earlier this year, Creative Exchange partnered with StoryCorps at the Lake…
New & Next: Arts and Community Converge at IdeaLab
The people who make a place matter. The artists, creative collaborators and community organizers who create local arts and culture can have a national impact by sharing their work, programs and…
'Creating Community' Recap: Being open, being flexible, being principled
On a warm September evening that brought rainshowers, 45 people gathered in the open gallery space at Public Functionary in Northeast Minneapolis for ‘Creating Community,’ a conversation and…
Sharing, Building, Leading
What does the passion for local art look like on a national scale? What if the sharing economy valued sharing? What can we do to connect people to resources that support their creative…
January Creative Exchange Hangout Recap & Video
On January 28th, Springboard for the Arts Director of Movement Building Carl Atiya Swanson sat down to chat with Director of Artist Services Andy Sturdevant about the Community Supported Art…
Resolutions: Building up and looking forward
A new year is upon us, and that means it’s time for looking forward and making resolutions. There are always the old standbys of eating better and getting more exercise, but if you need some more…
Being together is a wonderful thing
--------------------------------------------------------- My grandparents recently celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary, which was special and incredibly sweet to see. For their party, I found…