By Outreach Coordinator Cilladean Hopkins
November 15, 2023 (Sutter Creek, Ca)— The Amador County Arts Council was featured in Comstock’s Magazine on October 27th https://www.comstocksmag.com/article/small-town-roots-and-big-dreams-amador-arts. Comstock’s Magazine is a premier business publication for Sacramento and the surrounding nine counties. Describing themselves as “intriguing, insightful and inquisitive,” Comstock’s publishes both online and in print. They aim to “take an analytical look at the movers, shakers and forces shaping our economic landscape of today and tomorrow.” Featuring a variety of topics from Arts and Culture to Technology and Innovation, there is something for all readers to enjoy, similar to the Amador County Arts Council and their cutting edge approach to arts council work.
A 1700 word article written by local Calaveras artist and journalist Marie-Elena Schembri, is a dream come true for our small-town artist council. Schembri focuses throughout the article on Amador Arts engagement with the local youth and young adult population. Speaking to past Amador Arts student directors Sidney Cohen and Cilladean Hopkins, Schembri explored what Amador Arts means to these local artists who are now working as professionals in the art sector. She shared the extreme growth in funding that the council has brought to local artists in the past few years. Schembri also discussed with Amador Arts Executive Director Meghan Joy O’Keefe the importance of supporting all artists in the community instead of just supporting art for art’s sake.
Marie-Elena Schembri says “As an artist who moved to this area from a fairly large city in 2019, I know first-hand how hard it can be to find creative community and opportunities in our rural towns. What Amador Arts offers to artists and all members of the community is not only wonderful, but essential in so many ways. I had the opportunity to serve as a teaching artist with Amador Arts in 2021, and that experience not only gave me much-needed extra income, but also helped me to realize a dream I had to teach art that was sustainable, eco-friendly and most of all, accessible to everyone.” To learn more about the Amador County Arts Council visit amadorarts.org and reach out at info@amadorarts.org, or text/call (209)256-8166.
Established in 1982, the Amador County Arts Council is a 501c3 non-profit organization devoted to advancing rural creative expression throughout Amador County, in Central Sierra Miwok Lands. The Amador County Arts Council is the designated Local Arts Agency and State-Local Partner to the state of California and the California Arts Council, a state agency. Amador County Arts Council acts as a catalyst to sustain a culture of lifelong arts learning by providing hundreds of free art classes and professional support to rural creatives aged 0 to 26 and to the local creative economy at-large. Our services include intercultural advocacy, free online arts directory & calendar, and free grant-writing assistance for local artists and arts organizations. Find out more at amadorarts.org, email info@amadorarts.org, or text/call (209)256-8166.
Caption: Amador County Arts Council is the State Local Partner designated to activate the California Arts Council Strategic Framework in our local communities. Amador County Arts Council does this work by promoting, supporting, and encouraging rural creatives at all stages of their creative and cultural practices.