In the lead-up to the busy fall season, including art openings and fundraising events culminating in Miami Art Week, Bakehouse Art Complex presents Let’s Get Down to Business: Pricing, Collectors, and Studio Engagement. This series delves into key topics for artists at all stages of their careers, including how to appropriately price your work, build meaningful connections with collectors, and engage potential clients during studio visits.
Featuring a dynamic lineup of esteemed art professionals, including Dejha Carrington, arts worker and co-founder of Commissioner, and Ibett Yanez del Castillo, Director of Emerson Dorsch, the series will offer invaluable insights into potential strategies, challenges, and opportunities that could help you navigate the season and beyond.
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Session 1: Building Value and Cultivating Relationships (in-person)
Wednesday, October 23, 2024 // 12:30 - 2:00 pm
Bakehouse Art Complex
Join Dejha Carrington, arts worker and co-founder of Commissioner, for an in-person, brown bag lunch session on “Building Value and Cultivating Relationships,” This conversation will explore strategies for artists to create long-term value in their work by fostering meaningful relationships with collectors, curators, and patrons. Learn how to navigate the complexities of pricing, building intrinsic and financial value, communicating your process and practice with collectors, and engaging audiences authentically, both in and out of the studio.
Limited capacity. To RSVP, access this link.
Session 2: Engaging Collectors and Building a Client Base (virtual)
Thursday, October 31, 2024 // 12:30 - 2:00 pm
ZOOM
Join Ibett Yanez del Castillo, Director of Emerson Dorsch, for “Engaging Collectors and Building a Client Base,” a conversation focused on cultivating lasting relationships with collectors and clients. Learn some helpful techniques and strategies on how to make the most of studio visits, communicate your artistic vision effectively, and engage with potential clients both in person and online. This session will provide artists with actionable strategies to grow and expand their collector base and engage clients in ways that support both their artistic practice and career growth.
Limited capacity. To RSVP, access this link.
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About the speakers
Photo by Gesi Schilling, 2024.
Dejha Carrington is a practitioner and consultant in the arts.
In 2017, Dejha co-founded Commissioner, an art membership that helps people collect the work of contemporary artists in their cities. She serves as Executive Director and has introduced the program in Miami, Detroit, New York, Montreal, Mexico City, and New Orleans. From 2015 to 2022, Dejha was Vice President of Strategic Communications for YoungArts, the national foundation for the advancement of artists. Previously, she led public relations initiatives with Kimball Art Museum, the Medellin Biennial in Colombia, and the National Film Board of Canada.
Dejha is a board member of the national performance arts funder MAP Fund in New York, and The Black School, an experimental schoolhouse in New Orleans. She is also a professional advisory member of Miami-Dade Art In Public Places, New York University’s Center for Black Visual Culture, and University of Miami’s Center for Global Black Studies. Dejha teaches the Business of Art at New World School of the Arts at Miami-Dade College and calls Miami her home base.
Photo courtesy of Ibett Yanez del Castillo.
Ibett Yanez del Castillo is the Director of Emerson Dorsch Gallery, a position she has held since 2019, and the Founder of Ground Control Miami, where she offers tailored collection management and art consultation services to institutions and collectors. With over two decades of experience in the art world, Yanez del Castillo has worked extensively with galleries, collectors, non-profits, and both private and public educational institutions within the greater Miami community.
Yanez del Castillo earned a BFA from the University of Florida (New World School of the Arts) and began her career at The Moore Space, where she served as Assistant Director from 2004 to 2007. In 2008, she became the founding Director of the de la Cruz Collection, overseeing the construction of the collectors' thirty-thousand-square-foot museum in Miami's Design District. During her tenure, she established the collection's mission, which included educational programming and annual exhibitions, garnering worldwide recognition.
In 2009, Yanez del Castillo, with the visionary and philanthropic support of Rosa and Carlos de la Cruz, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and many dedicated educators and community members, launched the New World School of the Arts Travel Abroad Program in collaboration with gallerist and NWSA faculty member Fredric Snitzer. This program has provided hundreds of students with unique artistic and cultural experiences, enhancing their understanding of world history and the arts through direct exposure. Additionally, she partnered with the professors and PTSA Board at Design and Architecture Senior High School to establish the Young Designers Scholarship Fund, which has enabled Miami students to attend pre-college summer programs and provided financial support for those beginning their higher education journeys.
Throughout her career, Yanez del Castillo has cultivated extensive relationships within the contemporary art network, establishing numerous educational programs, visiting artist seminars, performances, and exhibitions. She has developed connections with leading auction houses, galleries, foundations, and academic institutions, including The Fabric Workshop and Museum (Philadelphia), White Columns (New York), The Sculpture Center (New York), School of Visual Arts (New York), Parsons The New School (New York), The Pritzker Family Foundation, The Hyatt Foundation, The Key Biscayne Foundation, and The Miami Foundation. In 2014, she participated in programs at The Fabric Workshop and Museum in Philadelphia and the Acadia Summer Arts Program (ASAP) in Maine, founded by Marion 'Kippy' Boulton Stroud.