Arts, Culture, & Entrepreneurship

The Office of Arts, Culture, and Entrepreneurship has announced the establishment of the ACE Medals of Honors. The medals, modeled after the Kennedy Center Honors, will salute lifetime achievement, celebrating artists and arts patrons who have given 25 years or more of exceptional service to Detroit arts and culture. The awards will be bestowed each December.

Detroit Arts, Culture, and Entrepreneurship (ACE) OFFICE and ArtOps Announce Start of 2021-22 Artist Professional Development Workshops

The Detroit ACE office, in partnership with ArtOps, is thrilled to announce the start of a FREE year-long professional development workshop series for the city’s creative workforce. Training is possible thanks to the support of the Kresge Foundation.  

The seminars will be held on the third Tuesday of the month from 6PM to 7PM. Attendees will learn how to:

• Run their art practices as successful small businesses
• Join the ever-expanding network of creative entrepreneurs in Detroit
• Improve their presence on the internet

The workshops will be led by primarily Attorney Michael Hall with guest appearances from Consultant Jennifer Montgomery and others.

The first workshop is 6PM Tuesday, August 17, and will focus on Optimizing your Digital Presence.

The schedule of workshops is below with links to recorded sessions:

Additional topics may be added to the schedule as the season progresses and artist need arises.

Michael Hall is an intellectual property and entertainment attorney at Michael Everett Hall Law, PLLC. He advises entertainers, musicians, athletes, songwriters, radio and television talent, record labels, artists, music and book publishers, event promoters, and authors on issues related to contracts, licensing, publishing trademarks, and copyrights. He will provide his expertise on various subjects ranging from intellectual property to the benefits of having a manager.

Jennifer Montgomery is a multi-passionate multi-hyphenate. She is an emerging serial entrepreneur, marketer, strategist, and financial coach. She is the founder of I AM Fin Savvy, a financial education, and wellness brand, where she leverages her marketing background and develops business strategies and website designs for non-profit organizations, service-based businesses, and entrepreneurs. Her presentations will cover establishing a domain name, creating a landing page on a budget; learning the essentials of building a website, and understanding search engine optimization.

The workshops will also bring on additional speakers to join Mr. Hall throughout the season to expand on topics such as partnerships and finance. These speakers will be announced at the beginning of each quarter.

Visit detroitartsandculture.com for details.

HEY ARTISTS! CLAIM YOUR CREATIVITY. DO THE CENSUS!

DETROIT, MICH. – Detroit is at the top of the global auto industry with three of the ten largest car companies in the world in our front and back yards. But in 2017, the nation’s creative sector contributed more than the auto industry to the gross national product. Marygrove Conservancy and the Detroit Office of Arts, Culture, and Entrepreneurship want to see if that is true of our local economy. ACE and the Conservancy are partnering on a creative economy census to determine the breadth and depth of Detroit’s creative workforce, making it easier to improve arts and culture programming and secure more funding. “This agreement moves the Conservancy forward in our commitment to serving as an anchor and hub for quality arts and culture programs for the Northwest Detroit community”, said Racheal Allen, Chief Operating Officer, Marygrove Conservancy. “Collaborations like these will help us reach the widest possible audience and realize our goal of preserving the legacy of Marygrove College.”  Rochelle Riley, Director of Arts and Culture for the City, concurred. "If we can't find you, we can't help you. Stand up and claim your creativity. Fill out the survey so we can prove how big our creative community is."

The survey deadline has been extended to September 30. Take the survey here! Be counted!

City partners on regional Healing Memorial as southeast Michigan moves out of pandemic

The City of Detroit's Office of Arts, Culture and Entrepreneurship (Detroit ACE) is so proud to partner with the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy and Cranbrook Art Museum on The Healing Memorial to help all of southeast Michigan heal from loss in the pandemic - loss of loved ones, loss of jobs, loss of home, loss of hope. We want to bring hope back. Our thanks to stellar artist Sonya Clark, who joined us Saturday to launch the memorial project that will provide opportunities for residents across the region to visit making stations and create packets of love based on The Beaded Prayer Project that Clark has curated for two decades.

The packets will be collected and eventually comprise one of the largest art installations ever at the TCF Center, covering an entire wall. The project will be unveiled on Detroit Memorial Day, August 31. The project is made possible by The Ford Motor Fund and TCF Bank, and we are grateful to our partners Pamela Alexander at Ford, Gary Torgow at TCF, and Mark Wallace at the Conservancy. Project managers are Rachel Frierson from the Conservancy, Laura Mott from the museum, and ACE Director Rochelle Riley.

To host a making station at your headquarters, home, neighborhood or church, visit https://detroitriverfront.org/thehealingmemorial for details. Questions? Email [email protected].