Business for Artists Conference
About this Event
Join us for the Business for Artists Conference, a dynamic gathering for artists, creatives, and nonprofit professionals centered on this year’s theme: Adaptability and Resilience in an Evolving Art World. This conference explores how individuals in the arts can sustain and grow their work while navigating shifting industries, audiences and opportunities through real-world insights and shared experiences.
The day features engaging speaker sessions, a keynote presentation during lunch, and opportunities to connect with fellow creatives and community members. From practical strategies to meaningful conversations, attendees will leave with fresh perspectives, valuable connections and renewed inspiration to thrive in today’s evolving arts landscape.
Registration is free, but space is limited and advance registration is required.
Complimentary breakfast refreshments will be available for all attendees.
Lunch will be available for purchase through Arts for Santa Clarita.
Schedule at a Glance
9:30 – 9:50 AM
Check-In, Breakfast, and Welcome with Catherine Grooms
10:00 – 10:50 AM
Session 1
Featuring: Nagham Wehbe and Lauren Sweeney, Syante G and Erica Bristol
11:00 – 11:50 AM
Session 2
Featuring: Lauren Cooper, Christine Harris and Brianna Mims
12:30 – 1:30 PM
Keynote speaker and lunch
1:40 – 2:30 PM
Session 3
Featuring: John DeMena, Ray Beldner and Sarah Melnick
2:30 – 3:30 PM
Social Hour
Featuring Performance Artists and Arts for Santa Clarita
Please review the agenda below for session details. After selecting "Reserve a Spot," you will have the opportunity to indicate which sessions you plan to attend. Your conference registration reserves your admission to the conference; however, session selections are used for planning purposes only and do not guarantee a seat in a particular session. Seating for each session is available on a first-come, first-served basis due to room capacity. We will use registration interest to assign sessions to the most appropriate rooms and accommodate as many attendees as possible.
Session 1
🕑: 10:00 AM - 10:50 AM
Building Resilient Leadership in a Changing Arts World
Host: Nagham Wehbe - President - Arts Consulting Group Inc
Info: Today's arts leaders face constant change, evolving audiences, shifting funding landscapes, and growing demands on their organizations. This session explores practical strategies for leading with resilience, adapting to uncertainty, and making thoughtful decisions that strengthen both organizations and communities. Participants will leave with actionable tools to navigate change while building sustainable, mission-driven leadership.
🕑: 10:00 AM - 10:50 AM
Building a Sustainable Creative Career Without Waiting for Permission
Host: Syante G - Singer/Song Writer
Info: Your creativity is your product, but how do you turn your passion into a thriving business? Join multi-award-winning pop/rock singer-songwriter and former tech-professional Syante for an empowering masterclass on engineering a sustainable creative career. Drawing from her unique journey of transitioning from computer science in India to navigating the realities of the American music industry, Syante pulls back the curtain on building success entirely on your own terms. In this session, you will discover practical strategies to manage your creative pivot, take full ownership of your intellectual property, and build a distinct personal brand without relying on traditional gatekeepers. Whether you are an independent musician, visual artist, or creative entrepreneur of any kind, you will walk away with an actionable blueprint to treat your art like a business and scale your career without waiting for someone else to do it for you.
🕑: 10:00 AM - 10:50 AM
SBDC - Intellectual Property Basics
Host: Erica Bristol - Small Business Development Center
Info: Intellectual Property (IP) is increasingly becoming one of the most important sources of revenue for businesses. It is also becoming one of the greatest sources of liability and revenue loss. Startups, entrepreneurs, and companies of all sizes must be aware of how to create, protect and enforce their IP and related rights, as well as how to help prevent or help reduce the risk of IP infringement claims and litigation. This presentation will educate you on the basics of intellectual property-copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets and patents.
Session 2
🕑: 11:00 AM - 11:50 AM
How Artists Actually Make Money on Social Media
Host: Lauren Cooper - Founder Rosemont Lane Design Studio
Info: Description Here
🕑: 11:00 AM - 11:50 AM
Sustaining the Artist's Life: A Community Conversation
Host: Christine Harris - Jasper & Jenssen Design Studio
Info: What if the biggest challenges artists face aren't individual failures, but systems shaping how creativity is valued? Artists are often told to market better, work harder, and navigate obstacles alone. This conversation takes a different approach: examining the larger ecosystem that influences whether creators can truly thrive. Artists, designers, makers, musicians, writers, educators, and leaders are invited to explore how economics, education, expectations, and institutions impact careers. Through guided discussion, participants will identify shared challenges, question outdated assumptions, and generate ideas for change. Together we'll explore solutions involving collaboration, funding, partnerships, policy, and sustainable business practices. Rather than focusing on individual survival, we'll imagine ways to build a stronger community that benefits everyone. This is not a lecture—it's a conversation. To move from surviving to creating a sustainable culture for creativity, join us.
🕑: 11:00 AM - 11:50 AM
From Art Project to Living Ecosystem: Building Sustainable Creative Practices
Host: Mims - Founder Marooning Bodies
Info: This session explores how Marooning Bodies is being built in real time as a living creative ecosystem that spans participatory games, performance, public art, curriculum, and future relics (art objects). Rather than presenting a finished model, it offers an honest look at developing a sustainable artistic practice while actively inside the work. Participants will learn how multiple income streams can emerge from a single artistic inquiry through grants, residencies, commissions, workshops, and object-based offerings. The session also examines how creative businesses can be designed to support rest, community, mobility, and long-term sustainability rather than burnout. Grounded in participation, collective imagination, and long-term thinking, Marooning Bodies demonstrates how artists can build practices that are both financially resilient and deeply rooted in care, experimentation, and meaningful community engagement.
Session 3
🕑: 01:40 PM - 02:30 PM
Creative to Global: Connecting Art, Brands, and Audiences
Host: John DeMana - Artist
Info: Multi award-winning Los Angeles-based rock artist and entrepreneur John DeMena explores how independent musicians can bridge creativity with global reach. In this session, he breaks down how he has built an international career through touring, strategic brand partnerships, and audience development across the USA, Europe, and Latin America. Drawing from collaborations and endorsements with leading music brands, he shares practical insights into building credibility, expanding visibility, and creating sustainable income streams as a modern artist. Attendees will gain a behind-the-scenes look at how music, branding, and digital platforms intersect, and how artists can turn creative identity into a scalable global presence in today’s industry.
🕑: 01:40 PM - 02:30 PM
Stop Waiting for Permission: The New Artist Entrepreneur
Host: Ray Beldner - Artist, Educator, Arts Entrepreneur
Info: In 2026, artists cannot rely on galleries, institutions, or luck to build a career. The most successful artists today are thinking like entrepreneurs: generating opportunities, expanding visibility, and creating sustainable systems for their creative lives. This session provides a practical, inspiring roadmap for artists who want to take ownership of their careers. Drawing on my experience as an exhibiting artist, professional practices instructor, and founder/director of Startup Art Fair and Startup Studio, I’ll walk artists through strategies that actually work in today’s creative economy, without requiring a massive audience, a big budget, or gatekeeper approval.
🕑: 01:40 PM - 02:30 PM
Job+ Search Strategies for Artists
Host: Sarah Melnick
Info: Job+ Search Strategies for Artists: tips, tricks, and trends to pursue jobs, gigs, internships, grants, residencies, fellowships, open calls, scholarships, and more opportunities efficiently and effectively. Develop fluency with career exploration tools to maximize time management and results. Make the most of your contacts and content in order to find, apply for, and secure career opportunities in a streamlined, thoughtful, sustainable way. Sarah is a composer-performer musician and multimedia artist. She writes, arranges, records, and produces scores, songs, sounds, images, videos, and projection designs for concert, opera, film/TV, theatre, and studio album productions. A vocalist, pianist, harpist, ukulele player, technical director, and conductor/music director, Sarah also proudly teaches and mentors aspiring, emerging, and established artists across visual, performing, literary, and digital arts.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
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