Today we’d like to introduce you to Jill Carstens.
Hi Jill, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Spring 2020 during the stay at home order spring was warming up but we were deep into the unknowns and isolation of Covid. I was no longer working at my job so was able to work on a lot of art as well as developing a website I had already planned on creating for local art in our area. That April I contacted other artists I knew in my North Denver neighborhood to suggest putting art in our yards on the first Friday in May to cheer folks up and to sort of have a socially distant art walk. 5 artists participated, we posted on the neighborhood websites and social media to let people know. Folks showed up and loved it and even purchased some of the art! This became Art Walk North Denver. The next month we grew to 12 participants and by the end of the summer of 2020 we garnered over 30 artists plus food trucks and local music being played on neighbors’ porches. The event has become an anticipated monthly occurrence that cultivates much needed community in addition to the awareness of the vibrant arts culture our area boasts. “Non-artists” participate by helping create signs to advertise the event. Many neighbors donate yard space for artists and musicians who live further away and children have become involved selling their own creations or putting up lemonade stands, etc. Many artists donate percentages of their proceeds to charities.
CurateLocally.com has become the online hub for the artists to publish their recent works and also be able to sell them online. As an organization, through Curate Locally, I have been “getting the art out” to small business owners who are interested in hosting monthly, rotating local art on their walls. We are developing a clientele ranging from breweries to real estate offices who find that exhibiting the local art is a win-win partnership.
As we progress through our second year of events, opportunities are growing as more businesses as well as individuals are looking to local art to decorate their spaces. Most recently a North Denver real estate office, finding extra office space available with more agents working from home, is working with me to create a “winter market” where artists will have a First Friday venue during the colder months.
One of my overall goals is to begin partnering with larger developments to contract local art for permanent collections rather than have those spaces go to mass produced or out-of-state art. The most gratifying part of this experience has been making folks aware of the great talent that we have in Denver and fostering connectedness and community through these partnerships.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I will say that this has been 99% fun and rewarding. It has been somewhat of a full time job communicating, marketing and organizing these events, but many neighbors offer to help. Sometimes a musician might cancel, but we often are able to replace them. We have not had an ability to pay musicians yet but I am hoping to find a way to raise funds for this. It has been a very organic endeavor that has flowed nicely with some team work and partnerships. Now that we have been at it for almost 2 years, more local businesses have been offering to help promote, hang art or partner with events such as our plan for an open mic night for poets and writers, adding them to our repertoire of featured arts.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I initially moved into the North Denver area in the late 1990’s because it gave off a creative vibe to me. It seems that as time has gone by in my tenure of living in North Denver, since 1997, that vibe fed me and inspired me and I have evolved to be known somewhat as a “community organizer.” The bulk of my professional life was spent as a teacher and a single mom. But I grew up with the idea that “service” be a priority as a productive citizen, modeled by my mother who was and still is very active in her community. Whenever possible, I have collected folks together for common good and the lens through which I have always endeavored this has been through art. As a teacher I would organize family events. This grew to my local preschool, housed in Berkeley, participating in or initiating community events such as alley clean ups, fund raisers and public art/mural beautification projects. Starting Art Walk North Denver and Curate Locally grew out of those experiences and connections with my neighborhood. I also feel grateful to be able to write a column for our local paper, the Denver North Star. I am a steadfast, loyal-lover of North Denver. I often get sad when I see some of our older buildings get demolished. Participating in the spreading of local art around our area helps me to reconcile that a bit. I am hoping that through these endeavors the new residents get to know us older and established residents and we can all keep this area’s character, it’s “creative vibe” alive. I am definitely proud of those efforts and have reaped great friendships and connections through them.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
The BEST advice I have for finding a mentor and networking is to develop intentional, authentic relationships. Not just virtual Facebook friends. When I meet people I ask them questions, learn about what they do and if we find a connection, we exchange contact information and most likely will meet for coffee and sometimes develop an idea together. I make my rounds in the neighborhood, whether walking my dog or riding my bike around. I say hi to people, I take the time to chat face to face. This does not always happen in our world as organically with the ability to communicate so easily on our phones, but I make the effort. It is part of who I am now after being a teacher for so long and having a desire to know my neighbors. Develop relationships, volunteer, cultivate community.
Contact Info:
- Email: curatelocallywithjill@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.curatelocally.com/
- Instagram: @curatelocally, @graphittirainbow
Image Credits
Jill Carstens photographer – images of local art, Art Walk North Denver and participants, Highland Ramblers band
