MEMPHIS, Tenn., Aug. 8, 2018 — Artivism is a new podcast brought to you by ArtUp, a Memphis based organization with a mission to invest in creative entrepreneurs. Launching today, Artivism highlights the projects, careers, and contributions of artists and change makers both locally and nationally.
Hosted by Linda Steele, Founder and CEO of ArtUp, and powered by Kudzukian Network, the podcast presents a series of engaging interviews. Artivism explores how creativity has been used to challenge and transform long-standing ideas about equity, diversity, and inclusion.
“Artivism elevates the work and amplifies the voices of artists who are leading the charge to change society through art and activism,” said Linda Steele. “You’ll hear from painters, musicians, hip-hop artists, chefs and others who are all weaving social activism into their creative practice.”
Upcoming Artivism episodes include:
- Episode 5: In this episode, Artivism host Linda Steele gets to catch up with Lecolion Washington, the Executive Director at the Community Music School of Boston. Washington succeeded David Lapin, the Music Center’s Executive Director for a record-breaking 34 years. Washington’s advocacy for music as a means for social change moved him to co-found the PRIZM Ensemble, a Memphis-based organization that builds a diverse community through chamber music.
- Episode 8: Based in New York City, Donna Walker-Kuhne of Walker International Communications Group, INC. has devoted her professional career to increasing the accessibility and connection to the arts by our Nation’s rapidly growing multicultural population. Walker-Kuhne is a veteran provider of multicultural marketing and group sales for over 18 Broadway productions, including the 2018 Tony Award winner, Once on This Island.
- Episode 13: 2017 TEDx Resident Tobacco Brown talks to Artivism about her practice, which lies at the intersection of environmental and restorative justice. Tobacco walks Linda through her creative mission to use “art as a tool for blight remediation and therapeutic healing” across the globe.
Stay tuned to Artivism for season two where our guests will include the Newark Business Hub team from Rutgers Newark; Fresh, Founder of the RichFresh brand out of Los Angeles; and the Sharktank funded teens from Angels and Tomboys and Mo’s Bows.
“The podcast offers a window into the minds and motivations of some of society’s most creative agents of change,” said Larry Robinson, President and CEO of Kudzukian Networks. “At KUDZUKIAN, our driving mission is to provide a platform for gifted talent and unique content, like we have with Linda and Artivism. It goes without saying, Artivism’s best days are ahead!”
Media, journalists, and bloggers are invited to schedule individual interviews by emailing Katyana Dandridge, [email protected]
To listen to the podcast, visit http://artivism.libsyn.com/
For more information about ArtUp, visit http://weartup.org
About ArtUp
ArtUp is an arts-based start-up and creative enterprise. ArtUp adds creative value to people, places, and communities. The mission is to invest in creative entrepreneurs to empower disinvested communities. The vision is to artup communities for the advancement of economic, social, and racial equity.
ArtUp and its signature initiative, the Fellowship, was incubated at the United Arts Fund, ArtsMemphis. ArtUp was founded in 2017 and is fiscally sponsored by Community LIFT. While at ArtsMemphis, The Fellowship received the 2016 Inaugural Robert E. Gard Award from Americans for the Arts and a 2016 and 2017 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. ArtUp is a 2017-18 member of NEW INC, the New Museum’s cultural incubator in New York, NY. ArtUp founded and operates the Orange Mound Gallery (OMG) in the first African-American neighborhood for home ownership. ArtUp hosts the podcast Artivism on the Kudzukian Network.
About Linda Steele
Amherst College and Harvard University graduate Linda Steele is the Founder and CEO of ArtUp, a project that began as a community engagement initiative at ArtsMemphis to use the Arts as a tool for social change in disinvested communities. In 2014, Steele launched the Fellows program to build the capacity of Memphis arts groups, artists, and neighborhood leaders in the emerging field of arts-based community development and has presented the work to audiences all across the country. Her work has received numerous awards such as the inaugural Robert E. Gard Award from Americans for the Arts and an Artworks grant from The National Endowment for the Arts. A graduate of the Hathaway Brown School in Shaker Heights Ohio, Linda has used her arts management expertise to help open the first arts-based private pre-school in Park Slope, Brooklyn. She has served in leadership positions at Urban Gateways: Center for Arts Education, The Art Institute of Chicago, and Cool Culture, Inc. and has an extensive background in youth development and education.
Contact: Katyana Dandridge
ArtUp
901-246-1856
[email protected]
