Making Art Happen, Together
The slow, slow pace of August in the city has arrived. Now is the time to read up on new opportunities, get inspired, and start strategizing for new goals. We've got a few resources to help with that - an introduction to the opportunities database, NYFA Source, a workshop for beginning entrepreneurs at the NYPL, and plenty of jobs to sort through!
Read MoreThe biggest arts-related news in the city last week was the announcement of the first New York City Cultural Plan. We've been discussing what's in it, how it will impact our work going forward, and what it means for the organizations we work at. The summer is usually a good time to plan ahead and think big. At YPA we are looking towards an exciting fall with professional development events in the making - so keep an eye out and subscribe to our our newsletter (if you haven't already). What are your big plans for the fall? Switching jobs? Learning new skills? Expanding your network? We've got you covered on all of those. Read on for this week's Round-Up!
Read MoreWhether your on vacation or savoring the quieter months of our industry, we implore you to read, listen, tweet, and text, (yes, text - thank you SFMOMA!), to stay engaged with the arts this week. Take advantage of a free outdoors creative writers workshop, tweet at experts all your professional development questions during NYFA's #ArtlineHotline, and be the first in line to see the inaugural Jim Henson exhibition at Museum of the Moving Image! More reads, sights, and job listings below!
Read MoreThe secret to amazing summers in NYC are beach days and weekends away, while weekdays should be spent exploring the many (mostly free!) outdoor activities. Trust us, we're writing this from The Glimmerglass Festival in upstate New York while overlooking Otsego Lake and reminiscing about the incredible Porgy and Bess production that premiered on Friday. While nights in the country are silent bliss, we can't wait to be back in the city and enjoy everything she has to offer. Here's to another action-packed week filled with arts, drinks, and friends!
Read MoreDid you know 200 students a year spend time working at the Royal Opera House (ROH) in London? They get to experience the backstage of one of the busiest opera houses in Europe for a couple of weeks. At the center of it all was Sarah Foxlee, the Work Experience and Training Coordinator at the ROH.
Read MoreWe made it! A nice long holiday weekend has arrived to celebrate our great (albeit a bit stressful right now) country and with it time to sneak off to enjoy the cool air conditioning in cultural spots around town. This week we are heading to the Park Avenue Armory's unnerving surveillance exploring-installation, Hansel & Gretel created by the brilliant minds of Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron, in collaboration with Ai Weiwei. And in the reads section, If you missed our Women in the Arts: Negotiation Workshop, we highlighted some of the best advice from the evening in The Art of the Ask. It's a quick read on the YPA Blog.
Read MoreOn Tuesday, June 27, a room at LMHQ slowly filled with women working in the arts and started buzzing with the usual sounds of first introductions and the greetings of familiar faces. We all gathered to hear from two remarkable women leaders: Mara Manus, Executive Director of the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), and Pauline Willis, Director of the American Federation of Arts (AFA).
Read MoreIf you are struggling advocating for art funding, this is the report for you! We are inspired and motivated by the newly released Americans for the Arts study that provides quantitative data for the arts industries' economic impact. The conversation about how digital media can be your biggest tool continues in our Reads and Feed section while on Monday, the Y92 will dig deeper on what all that screen time means for our brains (and sanity). In The Hunt, our job resource list is continually growing.. be sure to explore each of these recommended resources in your pursuit for that next career step.
Read MoreFor those looking for a change, our jobs section this week highlights listings and sources in the curatorial, development, and editorial sectors. The summer is usually a slower period for most arts organization so generally, a smoother time to make that job transition. Also be sure to check out the Reads and Feedssection where you can dive into NYFA's article on differentiating worthwhile job posts from the fraudulent listings. For those of you with the opposite problem and nervously debating how to take that next step within your current organization, mark your calendar for June 27th. YPA NYC is partnering with ELNYA for Women in the Arts Mentorship Workshop: Negotiation, an intimate panel discussion and Q&A with Mara Manus (New York State Council on the Arts) and Pauline Willis (The American Federation of Arts) on negotiation strategies. (Register here). It should be a productive and informative night but space is limited so register now! Enjoy our round-up below and have an active week!
Read MoreWe are heading into the new month taking in outdoor music and film screenings, checking out all the new blockbuster exhibitions on view, and enjoying that so many organizations adapt a summerly schedule enticing new ways to engage with art.
Read MoreHappy Memorial Day Weekend everyone! We hope you are enjoying the long weekend with some well-deserved time off to relax. Personally, we hit Museum Mile and managed three museums in a day (record?) by hitting up the Rei Kawakubo exhibition at the Met, the current exhibition at the Guggenheim and the Jawlensky exhibition at the Neue Galerie. All highly recommended. We've also been finding some good and bad news this week for arts professionals, so read on to find out more in our Words that Lingered section. And in case you're worried that the summer lull of art events and performances might affect you, we've got you covered: Find out where to go for opera during the warmer months or make sure to have your summer reading list ready!
Read MoreThis week we went on a Museum themed TedTalk spiral starting with Museum Hack Founder Nick Gray's lecture on how he began loving museums. Side note: If you haven't been on one of his interactive tours of the Met, we recommend this as a great thing to do when your skeptical and not-art minded friends come to visit. They're guaranteed to leave the city with a whole new perspective on what a museum is and have a lot of fun along the way. If your friends and family aren't flocking to visit, and next week is all about you - we collected a line-up of artist lectures, tech symposiums, and women networking panels for you to attend. More good news in our reads round-up, it looks like our jobs are the least likely to be taken over by mindless robots. Apparently creativity can't be hard-wired - go figure. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Read MoreIf you're anything like us and have spent days of your life fretting over job interviews, the NY Times article we picked out for you below might give you some relief. So instead we can focus all our worrying on the problem of unpaid internships and the resulting threat to diversity in our industry (not like that's news to our ears). To learn more, we're excited to attend a discussion at The Signature Theater on Saturday to explore Intersectionality in Art.
Read MoreTo say that we're fed up with this cold weather in May (!!) might be an understatement. All the more reason to immerse ourselves in artsy events this week, keep reading interesting articles and be productive at work. The lack of picnics in the park can only be a good thing as we set our timers to be productive for 25 minutes at a time (see For The Homebody section below). The remainder of the week will be spent browsing the visualized map of the art world and thinking about our portfolio career. As always, if you're on the job hunt - we've got you covered.
Read MoreWe know, it's Frieze Week - we will keep this brief. Start the week with us and Sing for Hope at the debut of their new fleet of artist designed street pianos and learn all the ways they help spread good vibes and unite communities around the city. Round out your week with Artnet News' guide to all the art fairs and happenings, a performance by Kalup Linzy at 8th Floor, and a celebration of women at the WOW Festival. We've got some reads and listens for the ride along the way!
Read MoreNow, we know that the arts can be a tough working environment and a glass of wine can often remedy some of the stress. Especially when offered at openings, galas, and other events on the regular (give us free snacks & drinks and we're there!). But maybe we should stop and think how our industry's easy access to alcohol impacts the creative workforce. Read on for more Words That Lingered this week. We're also looking forward to browsing LMCC's open studios this coming weekend and for the job hunters among you, as always, we've got you covered.
Read MoreTensions can run high this time of the year, the Spring brings an active calendar that keeps on delivering events, conversations, and all-day symposiums that can have you running all over town like a maniac. This week is no different, we've got a full list of things to read and go see. Like supporting Art F City at their goth themed benefit and engaging in discussions around gender challenges and exploring the notion of post-truth in the era of the new administration. Our weekly reads include our first feature of an NEA-funded organization, Alice James Books, tactics for finding the assertive balance in the work place, and a look at the history of gender representation in classical music. Rounding it out is a few features for those on the job hunt! - Take a deep breath and find your zen. We've got you covered.
Read MoreThe recent political beratement on the National Endowment for the Arts has just about everyone I know alerted. As the largest arts grantmaker in the country the precise impact of the organization is truly unquantifiable. It’s influence is found in community conversations, resources such as free after school programs, workshops ranging from professional development to assisting the elderly, cultural festivals and screenings, and by bringing crucial access to the arts in underserved sectors of the country. 65% of the NEA’s budget of $148 Million goes towards small and medium sized organizations, ensuring that all fifty states in the country have exposure to diverse views of culture, through music, art, literature, dance, and theater. All this for merely .004 % of the federal budget. But what do these numbers really measure? Where does the money actually go and what is its impact? What would happen and exactly who would be affected if the funding entity was cut?
In our new series, Oh, The Places The Funding Will Go, we will be exploring the true reach of the endowment by highlighting NEA funded organizations and programs in each of the 50 states as a way to further illuminate its importance and share stories of its cultural and community significance.
Read MoreIt's Passover, and Easter, and let's not forget tax season (and no, we don't count that as a holiday)! If you're among the disciplined who already filed your taxes months ago - kudos to you my friend. However, if you, (like most of us) leave it to the last minute, we're sharing a useful article about making charitable deductions. Regardless if you're planning on event-hopping or lounging on the couch this week, we've got you covered. Here are our favorite online reads of the week along with upcoming events and opportunities centered towards professional development, networking, social activism, and community engagement. Here’s what we are into this week:
Read MoreAhh, the online dating scene! There’s nothing quite like it. Each of us showing our best side, the wittiest lines and a carefully curated collection of pictures. But what if we had the chance to write what we actually mean to say? We explored what eight Tinder profiles of young arts professionals would look like.
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