Biscuit – Jan. 9
HOT ART. COLD BEER. COOL PEOPLE.
Artists Dammit Wesley, Carla Aaron-Lopez and Sir Will pose in front of their collective
mural for The Drop in September 2023 at Divine Barrel Brewing
Happy New Year, Queen City creatives! (We’re still within the statute of limitations to usher in 2024, right?)
A week into 2024, how are you doing with your resolutions? Still going strong? At Charlotte Is Creatives, we’re passionately committed to the same resolution we had in 2023 – connecting Charlotte-based creatives to the resources they need to succeed as entrepreneurs and small business owners.
Our favorite part of our work is developing and managing exciting events, seminars and meet-ups designed to connect you to skills, knowledge, jobs and the most important resource of all – each other. Last year, we convened an average of six (FREE) events each month for creatives. And, we’re not slowing down now.
For the year ahead, we resolve to introduce you to the people, organizations, information, funds and opportunities you need to succeed as a creative entrepreneur. Along the way, we want to help you fall deeper in love with the creative community around you.
Ultimately, our goal is as simple as it is aggressive: We want the Charlotte region to be recognized as the best place in the country to start, sustain and grow a creative business. Period.
We’re not there, yet. But, working together, we’ll get there. If you’re game, join us at Divine Barrel this Thursday (see below) and let’s take another step.
All good things,
Your Pals at Charlotte Is Creative
Drop Into The Drop, Vol. 5
Thurs., Jan. 11 from 6 to 9 p.m.
Divine Barrel Brewing
Community Partner: Cine Casual
Artists: Madelyn Hernandez & Irisol Gonzalez-Vega (Mentor)
This Thursday, we’re dropping the curtain on a brand new, 12-foot mural we commissioned from Madelyn Hernandez under the mentorship from local creative legend, Irisol Gonzalez-Vega. Hernandez designed the mural to honor Cine Casual, a Charlotte-based film series presenting recent, internationally acclaimed and award-winning Latin American films.
Around 6:45 p.m., we’re dropping the curtain (literally) on this new work of art. It will hang in Divine Barrel Brewing for the next three months before becoming the label of a new beer distributed across North and South Carolina. To that end, Thursday’s event will ALSO be the debut of the latest Drop Series beer featuring last quarter’s mural from four artists from BLKMRKTCLT – Dammit Wesley, Carla Aaron-Lopez, Sir Will and Garrison Gist. See the new label above. You can look forward to live music, a DJ and food trucks, too.
This Drop commission is made possible through our partnership with Divine Barrel Brewing and a Spark the Arts grant from the North Carolina Arts Council.
Meet the Creatives Behind the Next Drop Mural
ARTIST: Madelyn Hernandez
IG | WEB
MENTOR: Irisol Gonzalez-Vega
Photo by Claudia Monteagudo
IG | WEB
NON-PROFIT: Giovanna Torres of Cine Casual
IG | WEB
Don’t ease in the new year … jump in with both feet. Here are some creative events and opportunities we’re excited about in the weeks ahead:
GRANTS & OPPORTUNITIES
- New Grants from NC Arts Council
Speaking of the NC Arts Council, the organization announced 2024 grants for organizations and individuals on Jan. 5. LEARN MORE.
- Spring 2024 Culture Bearer Residency from QC Family Free
Applications for a 10-week residency for one to four local artists are due Jan. 15. “Housing Justice” is the theme of this residency period. REGISTER MORE.
- BOOM Intersection 2024
Applications for BOOM Intersection 2024 are due Jan. 31. Acts selected will get a 10-50 minute performance slot on the Intersection Stage during the annual BOOM Festival April 26-28. LEARN MORE.
MEET-UPS AND TRAININGS
- Creative Convo: From Hobby to Market
Jan. 17 at 6 p.m. | Online
Join in on a delicious ZOOM conversation with Rachael Green, founder of Rach Green Cocktails, about the importance of cultivating a circle of influence for your business. This event is free. REGISTER FOR FREE HERE.
- Club Blume
Jan. 19 at 6 p.m. | Register for Location
Hue House and Blumenthal Performing Arts are teaming up to host a night of good vibes, custom drinks and live music for young professionals interested in theatre, live music, and visual arts. REGISTER HERE.
- Creative Convo: The 3 Pitfalls of “Professional Branding”
Jan. 25 at 6 p.m. | Online
Lisa Speer, founder of Speerhead Solutions, will share the three pitfalls of “professional” branding and how you can build a brand for your creative business that reflects your mission and personality. This event is free. REGISTER FOR FREE HERE.
- CreativeMornings/Charlotte
Feb. 2 at 8 a.m. | Stage Door Theater
Speakers Paul Oakley Stovall and Mario Yniguez, who are performing “Love Rules,” an evening of songs exploring the nature of love at the Stage Door Theater from Feb. 1 to 3, will address the global theme of “Native.” REGISTER FOR FREE HERE.
- Charlotte Reciprocity Circles
Feb. 3 at 10 a.m. | Innovation Barn
On Feb. 3, Charlotte Is Creative invites working creatives and anyone ready to advance a creative project or business, re-engage in their creative life, or simply share their network, resources and experience with local artists. Come make new friends and share your social capital at the Innovation Barn. LEARN MORE.
Meet 19 Cool (and Highly Caffeinated) Creatives
To close out 2023, Charlotte Is Creative organized a last-minute gathering of Coffee With Creatives, our monthly meet-up with a small group of randomly selected creatives. And, it was a blast.
The talent in the room ran the gammut — from visual art to photography, journaling, art curation, cartooning and filmmaking. We caught up with old friends and made tons of new ones. And, we recommend you follow them all.
We assemble a new group of creatives and buy them a cup of coffee every month. If you want a chance to be at our Jan. 20 meet-up at 11 a.m., here’s how it works.
- We will post on Instagram about the event on Jan. 15
- If you can make the event, you put your name in the comments
- On Jan. 18, we’ll put all the names in a random list generator
- If you are one of the 20 artists selected by the generator, we’ll DM about where to meet us
Now, get to know the amazing folks from the last event. And, think about hiring them. They’re each amazing.
Jordan Alexander – @dsquared25
Film Actor/Writer/Producer
Maureen Binter – @maureenbinter
Accounting and Creative Business Management
“Hookshot Charlie” Currence – @hookshotcharlie
Social Media and Basketball
Celine DeMaesschalck – @_modernhobbyist
Watercolor and Digital Art
Sarah Hosseini – @profsarahhosseini
Writng/Creative Non-Fiction
Alvin C Jacobs Jr. – @acjphoto
Photography and Mixed Media
Adam Jochim – @pitchandburl
Woodworking and Sculpture
Byron Juane – @byronjuane
Music and Content Creation
Bryan Li – @bryaniscreating
Improv Comedy Performer/Teacher
Devin McDaniel – @west_remount
Textiles and Embroidery
(Dani)elle Neufville – @danidreamdesign
Painting and Illustration
Jacqueline Parker – @onmytangent
Creative Writer and Editor
Molly Partyka – @mollypartyka
Painter and Arts Education
Bryan Patterson Jr. – @staycozystudios
Visual and Sound Design
Eraklis “Herc” Petmezas – @epetmezas
Illustration/Sequential Art, Writing and Arts Education
Erin Petmezas – @erinpetmezasdesigns
Graphic Design, Ceramics and Painting
Jamil Dyair Steele – @dyairart
Muraling, Illustration and Portraiture
Collyn Strother – @wisemindcollyn
Digital Art, Art Curation and Photography
Ashley R. Wright – @strokesoffreedom
Journaling, Writing and Creative Coaching
To kick off a creative new year, the Mint Museum Randolph played host to CreativeMornings/Charlotte on Friday, Jan. 5. The Mint’s Chief Curator and Curator of Contemporary Art, Jennifer Sudul Edwards, spoke on the global topic of “Rise.” And, as part of the fun, blindfolded audience members drew a face on a modified print-out of the Mint’s portrait of Queen Charlotte painted by Scottish artist Allan Ramsay (1713–84) – a gift of Mr. Frank Ryan in 1970.
After the event, Matt Olin and Tim Miner compared one of the sketches to the real thing and they agreed – we should stick with the original.
