The Speakers
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Carving Out An Authentic Creative Business
November 5, 2025
Presented by Amanda Beard Garcia 12 IL
Muralist, Painter, Illustrator, & Brand Designer
Amanda 陳 Beard Garcia 12 IL is co-founder and principal of Likemind Design in Lowell, MA, a custom mural and design studio with a mission to elevate the brands of independently-owned businesses “just like us.” She has been a participant of many local public art initiatives and has designed custom artwork and brand identities for businesses all over Greater Boston and beyond.
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Amanda has been a visiting artist and educator at Essex Art Center, Punto Urban Art Museum, Pao Arts Center, Montserrat College of Art, and Endicott College. In 2024, she was a National Civic Impact Fellowship & Incubator fellow and grant recipient of Asian American Women’s Political Initiative (AAWPI). Her fellowship project, Lucky Knot Arts, centers AANHPIs through creative arts programming on the North Shore of Massachusetts and has since become an ongoing nonprofit.
The Art of Story as a Creative Business Tool
Jessica Mastors is a Rhode Island native and the Founder & CEO of Story Magic, a boutique narrative consultancy that partners with universities, organizations, startups, executives and thought leaders to excavate the true stories – and build the narrative skills – that move decision-makers to say YES.
Jessica’s unique story-driven approach has evolved over more than a decade of private practice supporting diverse clients in the US and abroad, including SoGal Ventures, Hum Capital, Airbnb, the International Rescue Committee, the Aga Khan Development Network, the Boys & Girls Club, Northwestern Kellogg School of Business, and INSEAD Business School for the World.
In the academic realm, Jessica has been a Professor of Story & Narrative Design at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco (M.A. Interaction Design). Jessica continues to partner with elite universities in the U.S. and abroad to deliver highly impactful lectures and workshops designed to show participants how to take control of their professional narratives and achieve positive leaps in their careers.
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5 Good (Legal) Habits for Working Artists
January 21, 2026
Presented by Luke Blackadar
Deputy Director of the Arts & Business Council of Greater Boston
Luke manages the Arts and Business Council's Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts and Patent Pro Bono of New England programs. An entertainment attorney, Luke counsels individual artists, creative small businesses, and arts nonprofits on legal issues relating to contracts, intellectual property, legal entities, and nonprofit governance. In addition to his work at the Arts & Business Council, Luke teaches at Roger Williams University School of Law, BU Metropolitan College, and Northeastern University School of Law. He also serves on the board of directors of the Community Music School of Boston, and he’s a member of Gov. Maura Healey’s Cultural Policy Development Advisory Council. Luke is a graduate of Clark University and Northeastern University School of Law.
Taxes for Artists and Creative Freelancers
Hannah Cole is a tax expert who specializes in working with self-employed people, especially creative and mission-driven ones. A long-time working artist herself, she’s helped tens of thousands of self-employed people skill up with accessible tax and money education, through her Money Bootcamp program, tax workshops from Florida to Alaska, and on the Sunlight Tax podcast. Her forthcoming book, Taxes for Humans: Simplify Your Taxes and Change the World When You’re Self-Employed, is the most funny and empowering tax guide you’ll ever read. Hannah is the founder of Sunlight Tax.
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Strategies for Managing Uneven Income
Tamara Bates combines a career in finance with more than two decades of leadership in philanthropy and the arts. She worked as a financial advisor with UBS and Raymond James. Additionally, she has held senior roles across the nonprofit sector, including Executive Director of Searchlight New Mexico, Vice President of Strategy and Programs for Innovate+Educate, and Program Officer at the Schott Foundation for Public Education. She has been a featured speaker for Sundance Collab, Kansas City Art Institute, Creative Study, SITE Santa Fe and Institute for American Indian Arts.
In 2020, Tamara launched the dots between, a national financial coaching program that supports artists in building stability and long-term sustainability. She currently coaches participants in the SOZO Fellowship, and grantees of the Native Arts and Culture Foundation and the Mid American Arts Alliance. Tamara recently completed a financial literacy curriculum for Creative Capital that can be accessed through their Artist Lab.
Start Before You’re Ready: A Creative Freelancer’s Roadmap
Grace Rivera is a Brooklyn-based Photographer and Director, from the class of 2015, who began her career in Art Production at Wieden+Kennedy in Portland. After 2.5 years working inside one of the world’s top agencies, she took the leap into freelancing in 2018. Over the past decade, she’s built a thriving career in photography and commercial directing by learning on the job, embracing uncertainty, and carving her own path in an industry that does not hand out instructions. ​
Grace’s work is an ongoing study of beauty in its many shapes, shades, and expressions. Her images are colorful and expressive, yet grounded in sincerity, honoring individuality and the diverse ways people choose to present themselves. Whether creating intimate portraits or directing larger commercial campaigns, she fosters a space where subjects feel seen and celebrated, offering moments of recognition and grace in a world that too often feels unkind.
Her portfolio spans a wide range of clients and collaborators, from cultural icons like Kim Kardashian, Sydney Sweeney, and Jenna Ortega to major brands including Verizon, Nike, Neutrogena, Sephora, and Google. Through it all, Grace has stayed committed to showing that building a creative career is possible without waiting for perfect timing — you start before you’re ready, and you figure it out along the way.
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The Sessions
Carving Out An Authentic Creative Business
November 5, 2025 @ 7pm
Muralist, illustrator, brand designer, and organizer Amanda 陳 Beard Garcia will share her journey of unexpected avenues towards running a creative business. From graduation, to day jobs, to freelancing, finding community, successes, challenges, and everything in between, Amanda will speak on the joy of venturing into a unique, rewarding, and ever-shifting career.
The Art of Story as a Creative Business Tool
November 19, 2025 @ 7pm
This workshop will unpack story as a mission-critical business skill for creatives in 2025; discuss the practical applications of story and narrative for building a successful creative business; and equip participants with a starter pack of perspectives and exercises you can apply immediately to get your story working for you. The human brain is designed for story – narrative is the process that determines how humans across cultures remember, communicate, decide, and make sense of our lives. As the original “operating system” our brains use to turn information into meaning & action, story can easily remain an unconscious process that quietly drives repetitive outcomes and keeps your true power contained; or, with conscious attention, it can become a powerful form of creative expression that drives deeper human connection, ethical influence, creative business opportunities, and authentic career growth.
5 Good (Legal) Habits for Working Artists
January 21, 2026 @ 7pm
In this workshop, arts and entertainment lawyers will discuss five good (legal) habits for working artists: specifically, best practices in (1) treating your creative practice as a business, (2) protecting the creative works you plan to publicize; (3) key elements in a professional contract; (4) how to distinguish employees from independent contractors; and (5) starting to planning your creative legacy.
Taxes for Artists and Creative Freelancers
January 28, 2026 @ 7pm
What can I deduct? Do I bring receipts to my accountant? How do I deduct my home studio? Why do freelancers have to pay taxes quarterly, and how do I do that? Hannah will discuss the basic tax equation, self employment tax and the estimated quarterly tax system, audit concerns for the creative person, and other tax issues relevant to artists, designers and makers.
Strategies for Managing Uneven Income
March 4th , 2026 @ 7pm
Managing money in a way that truly supports your work can feel overwhelming, especially when you are just launching your career. This workshop will give you the tools to maintain agency over your earnings and bolster your financial confidence. Join Tamara Bates, financial coach to learn essential financial strategies made specifically with artists in mind. In Strategies for Managing Uneven Income, Tamara will offer practical tools for how to pay off debt, save for the future, and other protective factors when your income fluctuates month to month. This workshop will explore:
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What goes into your credit score and how to pay off debt
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Short-and long-term financial plans that flex with the rhythms of your career
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How to manage uneven income without constant stress or confusion
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Picking the right investment structure as a self-employed artist
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Build a savings plan that supports both your practice and your personal future
Start Before You’re Ready: A Creative Freelancer’s Roadmap
April 8th, 2026 @ 7pm
Freelancing in the creative industry is overwhelming. There is no clear roadmap, no steady paycheck, and a hundred questions about where to even begin. But here’s the truth: you don’t need to have it all figured out before you start.
In this talk, photographer and director Grace Rivera shares a candid look at the essentials of building a freelance career in today’s creative economy. From setting yourself up as a business to finding clients, managing projects, and sustaining both your finances and your inspiration, she breaks down the practical steps every freelancer needs to know, framed through lived experiences in photography, commercial directing, and advertising.
Students and alumni alike will walk away with a clearer understanding of what freelancing actually looks like, the confidence to take their first steps, and the tools to treat their creativity not just as a passion, but as a sustainable career. Because freelancing isn’t about waiting until you feel ready — it’s about starting now, learning as you go, and forging your own pat.