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The Speakers

FEATURED EXPERTS

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Weaving Our Own Path - Art, Craft, & Community   

October 18, 2023

Presented by Alison Croney Moses 06 FD

Artist, Craftsperson, Educator, Art Administrator, Mother, & Black Woman

Alison Croney Moses 

Alison Croney Moses is a Boston based artist, art administrator, and mother. She has held different administrative positions, primarily in the arts, focused on encouraging young people to learn about the world through their hands. She is currently the Associate Director at the Eliot School of Fine & Applied Arts. Alison has maintained her wood-based studio art practice and is transitioning to devoting herself to this business full time. She is represented by Abigail Ogilvy Gallery. Her work is in collections including the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, and the Renwick Gallery at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. She is a recent recipient of the 2022 USA Fellowship in Craft.

Photo credit: Jesika Theos
 

The Essentials of Digital Marketing

November 1, 2023

Presented by Francesca Olsen

Writer & Consultant

Francesca Olsen

Francesca Olsen is a writer and consultant with more than a decade of experience in marketing and communications, from branding to digital strategy. It’s her job to find the golden threads in people’s stories: the values, experiences and touchpoints that fuel their work and connect it to others. She works with small business owners, artists, creative professionals, nonprofits, and startups on branding, narrative, and digital strategy. She also regularly gives workshops on digital marketing and social media.

 

In addition to her professional work, she is a textile artist and is currently working on a series of quilts about surviving cancer.

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Freelancing 101    

January 11, 2024

Presented by Jackie Ferrentino 15 IL

Freelance Illustrator & Cartoonist

Jackie Ferrentino

Jackie Ferrentino is a freelance illustrator and cartoonist living in Brooklyn, New York. She's worked with clients such as The New York Times, Google, Cartoon Network, The Washington Post, Nike, Mountain Dew, and others since graduating from RISD Illustration in 2015. Her lifelong interest in creating bold, character-driven work has been the common thread across various projects and industries––from creating comic cover art to television commercials. In addition to her illustration work, she also has experience with design and art direction and has commissioned artists to create bespoke editorial illustrations. Complementing her professional work, she creates illustrations and comics as part of her personal art practice. 

Speakers

Taxes for Artists and Creative Freelancers

January 18, 2024

Presented by Hannah Cole

Enrolled Agent, Tax Expert, and Fine Artist

Sunlight Tax

Hannah Cole is a tax expert who specializes in working with creative businesses and mission-driven solopreneurs. A long-time working artist with a high-level exhibition history, the financial challenges of freelancers and small creative businesses are both relevant and personal to Hannah. Her specialty is communicating complex tax issues in a clear, creative-centered, empowering way. 

 

She founded her company, Sunlight Tax, with a mission to serve visionary people, just like you, who are self-employed, with relevant tax and financial education, so you can bring your unique vision to the world. She’s helped tens of thousands of creative and mission-driven self-employed people skill up with accessible tax and money education through professional speaking engagements from Florida to Alaska, and on the Sunlight podcast. 

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How To Write Awesome Contracts

February 1, 2024

Presented by Greg Kanaan 02 FAV

Attorney

The Legal Artist

Greg Kanaan 02 FAV is a Connecticut-based attorney who focuses on intellectual property, business law, and contract issues for artists, filmmakers, and creative entrepreneurs. Before earning his J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law in Boston, Greg received his BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design and was a television producer for seven years, producing documentary programming for such networks as Discovery Channel, TLC, Court TV and A&E.

Pricing Strategies for Creative Entrepreneurs

April 16, 2024

Presented by Erin Cantwell 08 GD

Business Coach

Erin Cantwell

Erin is a RISD-trained graphic designer (GD '08) who went to work at a branding firm in NYC and discovered she had a knack and passion for the business side of the creative industry.

Since then she’s specialized in business operations and client experience, helping to grow and run successful creative agencies. She has served in COO and Director level positions in branding and marketing agencies in NYC and Philadelphia. Today, Erin is Chief Operating Officer and Vice President of Client Services at Clearbridge Branding Agency, an award-winning branding agency with locations in PA, NJ & IL.

Through her company, Erin Cantwell Co., and her volunteer work, including co-founding and now co-chairing the RISD Women In Business Alumni Group, Erin continues to work with designers, makers, and other creative entrepreneurs as business coach, helping them to start and scale successful and profitable businesses while doing the work they love.

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The Sessions

FEATURED TOPICS

Weaving Our Own Path - Art, Craft, & Community

October 18, 2023 @ 7pm

RISD students and alumni often have threads of different professions woven together to create fulfilling and financially sustaining professions. But how is this accomplished? Join Alison Croney Moses as she shares her path that includes threads of a studio practice, art administration, motherhood, and community activation. You will hear about critical resources and lessons learned from being a waged employee, establishing an outside of the home studio, kicking off the art of business, hiring employees, museum acquisitions, gallery representation, and more. This webinar will be particularly helpful for those who do not have the benefit of generational knowledge in these areas and should not suffer in their career because they do not know what they do not know.

The Essentials of Digital Marketing

November 1, 2023 @ 7pm

Digital marketing can be incredibly effective—and cheap—when it comes to building and connecting with your audience as an artist. But what’s important to focus on in a world where our time and capacity is limited? In this workshop, Francesca will cover the basics of digital marketing for artists, including the importance of branding, audience building, effective social media, SEO optimization and website best practices. By the end of this workshop, participants will have the tools to build an online audience, evaluate what digital platforms are best for their work, use analytics to determine future decision making, and put together a marketing plan that covers multiple platforms. 

Freelancing 101

January 11, 2024 @ 7pm

Starting a career as a freelance artist can be a daunting task. By its nature, freelancing is an inherently open-ended and self-directed professional path, so if you’ve never freelanced before, it’s difficult to know exactly where and how to begin. In a short presentation, freelance illustrator and cartoonist Jackie Ferrentino (15 IL) will explain and demystify the initial practical and personal hurdles of creative entrepreneurship. Using her own career as an initial reference point, she will provide broad, practical guidance on the fundamentals of beginning a freelance career––such as finding your target audience and markets, promoting to clients, the role of social media, creating a professional network, negotiating contracts, pricing your services, the basics of setting up your business, and more.

Taxes for Artists and Creative Freelancers

January 18, 2024 @ 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.

How To Write Awesome Contracts

February 1, 2024 @ 7pm

Contracts are probably the least fun part of running a business but they’re also the most important. In this presentation, you’ll get a crash course in everything you need to know about contract law, including why having written agreements is critical for every transaction, what makes a contract legally valid versus what makes it unenforceable, when it’s okay to stop performing on a contract, and what information needs to be contained in every contract you use.

Pricing Strategies for Creative Entrepreneurs

April 16, 2024 @ 7pm

Ever found yourself Googling "How do I price my creative products or services?" You're not alone! In this workshop Erin will demystify pricing structures and how they can evolve to support your business over time, covering strategies for both products and services, market evaluation, essential equations, and ensuring your prices support you, your business, and your creative journey. By the end of the workshop, you’ll know how to confidently and strategically price your creative work.

Agenda

Presented by The RISD Career Center

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