We are looking forward to learning from ArtSpark at our Nonprofit Software Development Summit in Oakland next week, an organization working at the intersection of art and technology. In Aspiration land, we're huge fans of helping folks practice their passions in sustainable ways. So before we dive into #npdev, we want to introduce you to a group we've been collaborating with from California to New Mexico since 2010.
Kristine Maltrud, the founder of ArtSpark, crossed paths with us nearly five years ago in San Francisco with a desire to help folks in arts and culture use technology more strategically, as a way of building their online communications, brand, audience, and financial support. After years of working together, we've been honored to be in Kristine's corner as she grows her organization.
ArtSpark strives to help artists boost their creative output by nurturing longevity and sustainability in their artistic practice. In a phone conversation we had last week, Kristine explained:
- "Being a life-long artist, I wanted to find ways to facilitate bringing more tools or resources so that artists can be artists, so that they can have their work be sustainable over time. It means make a living, but also connecting more with their audience. I really saw a few bright lights out there in technology as a way of doing this. I wanted to bridge the gap between art and tech."
The underlying hope is to co-create unique ecosystems where artists (e.g., poets, playwrights, painters, digital media designers) can connect to diverse resources. This includes a website for sharing resources and strategies, as well as live workshops and meet-ups to bring stakeholders into dialogue and collaboration on new models for artistic sustainability. In harmony with our own tech-minimalism, she often puts technology last, and instead emphasizes tool-use to serve goals rather than letting technology sit in the driver's seat of one's mission and work. Get in touch with her to learn more, or find her at #npdev in Oakland next week!