Thank you! ... View more

Thank you for these suggestions. I have a donor button on my Website, which needs a redesign, but never thought of one in my email campaign. I will try that. ... View more

Constant Contact is a big help. Makes mailings a lot easier. My biggest challenge now is building my list.. should be thousand, not just hundreds... Thanks for the comment! ... View more

Thank you for the volunteer suggestion. We certainly need the help! ... View more

My name is Rick Colson and I recently started a visual-arts nonprofit with an educational mission. When I was in graduate school at Harvard, I interviewed Aaron Siskind, a famous photographic artist,for a class. He was a professor at Rhode Island School of Design and I asked him why he took photographs. “Why?” he replied, as if it was a meaningless question, “photography is like air. I couldn’t live without it.”   Why did I create Human Scale Art Space, a nonprofit that’s built around the arts and art education? Because I couldn’t not create it. It was something I had to do.   Why visual arts?   Because visual arts are vital to self expression and to finding meaning in life. Relationships are what make life worth living and art is a way of “connecting,” an entry into knowing and sharing with others. Art helps us feel a part of something and gives us meaning. It opens doors to shared experiences which helps us feel not-so-alone.   Visual arts are a path to better mental health. They help us to reduce stress and to understand our emotions. They offer different paths to insight and awareness. For many, painting or photography or sculpting or graffiti are ways of coping with anxiety, depression, isolation and our difficulty understanding an increasingly complex world. For others the arts are a way of standing up and shouting, “I am here. I exist.” They are a celebration of being alive!   One could write a lengthy book about meaning in creative work and the importance of art. But what I’d like to find out is why the visual arts are important to YOU. Why do you create, buy or simply appreciate art. I'm grateful for anything you share. ... View more

Thank you for the helpful suggestions. One of the biggest challenges is being a one-arm paper hanger. I need a doppleganger. Will have to settle (hopefully) for a very part-time intern! ... View more

Being in exactly that position, we partner with as many organizations as we can. We produce workshops in their locations open to their community and ours. We share spaces. We help whenever we can using the skills we have and they don't. We couldn't survive without these partnerships that benefit both of us. ... View more