Changing the World Through Design

August 15, 2007 by Leave a Comment

This is an impressive goal, but a creative non-profit is trying. Nest, based in St. Louis, was founded to support women artisans in developing countries. It does this by selling products, including clothing, accessories and home goods by an exclusive group of designers. The profits from these sales are used to create micro-loans offered to international artisans, who in turn sell their goods on the nest website. It’s a creative approach to supporting global communities.

Filed Under: Artists, Creative Economy, Design, Volunteering

Art Inspires Volunteerism

April 2, 2007 by Leave a Comment

According to the National Endowment for the Arts, if you patronize the arts, no matter what your education level or income is, you are more likely to do volunteer work and give back to your community.

  • Look for volunteer ideas here.
Filed Under: Creative Economy, Volunteering

To Docent or Not To Docent

January 10, 2007 by Leave a Comment

I swore off working in museums 6 months ago, but I soon realized I couldn’t let go completely. So, I took stock of what I liked about art and museums and realized that my heart lay in contemporary art and giving tours. This prompted me to sign up to be a docent at Cleveland’s Museum of Contemporary Art, because it fit into both of my passions.

Well, I just completed my first day of Docent Education, which is funny, because I am so old school that I actually still call it Docent Training. It brought me back to my grad school days of studying art and theory. All I could think when I left was wow, this is what I have been craving – intellectual stimulation, which only contemporary art can give you. Theories layered and displayed in visual form; is there anything that brings you closer to creativity than art?

  • To get yourself closer to creativity and to get a behind the scenes view of the art world, volunteer at your favorite cultural organization.
Filed Under: Contemporary Art, Museums, Volunteering