Opportunities are brewing in the local arts community, and the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge is working to ensure creative entrepreneurs have the business acumen to succeed.
Last week the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge and Arts Council New Orleans partnered to launch the first-ever creative entrepreneurship sessions at Baton Rouge Entrepreneurship Week. The four artist-targeted sessions covered self-promotion, writing and communicating a personal narrative, and identifying financial opportunities in the community.
Liz Goad, grants and community development coordinator for the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge, said arts and culture are cornerstones of economic development and are a major contributor to quality of place.
“It’s part of a cohesive whole that makes a city more attractive and more vibrant for visitors and the residents that live there,” Goad said. “It’s not just about attracting talent, but keeping people here.”
The idea for the Creative Development Lab sessions stemmed from similar financial literacy and business training seminars at the organization’s June Regional Arts Summit. After the summit’s success, Goad said the Arts Council saw an opportunity to establish continuing business education programs for artists within the group’s 11-parish region.
The BREW sessions are the first in an ongoing series that will focus on everything from fundraising and grant writing to marketing. There will be at least two more workshops in the spring and early summer, though dates are still to be determined, Goad said.
Arts Council New Orleans president Nick Stillman, who led the BREW sessions, said there’s a fictitious idea that artists are bad with money, communication and working in group settings, but that’s not the case. Many artists are capable problem solvers, Stillman and Goad said, and bring open-mindedness, social awareness and a fresh perspective to business and civic issues.
The stereotype stems from a perception among artists that self-promotion and financial literacy are antithetical to their mission, Goad said. The goal of the business education sessions is to overcome these biases while maintaining artistic integrity.  
“When you have a truly excellent creative output you want to be unfettered by any kind of financial or legal restrictions, but those things exist in the real world for everyone in every sector,” Goad said. “It’s important for artists to be just as aware of the tax consequences of selling their art as, say, a tech startup.”
Programs like BREW and the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge’s training programs help establish stronger relationships between artists and the community, and open the door for cross-sector collaboration, Stillman said. Working across different regions in the state also raises awareness of opportunities in new areas, he said.
There’s been a noted resurgence of arts entrepreneurship in Baton Rouge in the last several years, especially in the Mid-City area along Government Street. The talent has always been present, Goad  said, but now visual artists, craftspeople, dancers and musicians are benefiting from increased visibility through social media.
Young entrepreneurs can use these new communication outlets to gain a business advantage early in their careers, she said. Aside from self-promotion, social media is a great platform to identify potential mentors and gather information on how fruitful artists successfully manage their businesses.
Young creatives should also maintain an open mind about their career path. Opportunities arise in diverse fields and it’s possible to learn and find mentorship even if you find yourself on a career path that diverges from your initial plans, Goad said.