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Inside Arts Council: Open Studios Bree Karpavage
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In this episode, I sit down with Bree Karpavage, the Open Studios and Tannery Arts Center Manager from Arts Council Santa Cruz County, to break down Santa Cruz Open Studios and why it’s become a core event for artists and the wider community. We talk through how the tour works, what it takes for artists to join, and why art visibility, education, and funding all connect.
• What Santa Cruz Open Studios is and how the October art tour works
• The scale of participation across the county and how to plan a route
• The financial impact for artists and what $1.4M in art sales signals
• Who Open Studios is best for and what artists need to prepare
• Professional development workshops that teach business skills for artists
• How the application and jury process works and what gets submitted
• Studio accessibility plus host locations for artists without public-ready spaces
• Barriers to entry, including fees and the emerging artist fund
• Why art matters to community health, culture, and voice
Find Bree:
Open Studios Santa Cruz County
Welcome And Guest Introduction
What Open Studios Really Is
SPEAKER_00Welcome back to Speak for Change Podcast. I'm your host, Thomas Sage Peterson. Today's episode is part of the Inside the Arts Council of Santa Cruz County series, where we explore the role and impact of the Arts Council and the work it does to support our local and cultural ecosystem. In this episode, I'm joined with Bri Karpovich, the Open Studios and Tannery Arts Manager at the Arts Council of Santa Cruz County. We talk about what Open Studios is, why it's such an important part of our local artistic landscape, and some of the obstacles and strategies artists face when getting involved. I hope you enjoy today's conversation. Okay, so like what is Open Studios? Like what is it?
SPEAKER_01Well, Open Studios is an annual art tour here in Santa Cruz County that supports over 300 artists. Um it's all visual artists in this program. Um and it's basically just where artists around the county open up their studios. It happens the first three weekends of October. Um, and the community has an opportunity to come in and get to see their process, their amazing inspirational studios, and buy work directly from them.
SPEAKER_00Man, um, I mean, I I think just driving around during this time, I I remember when I didn't know what was going on, and just suddenly out from some random part of the year, I would just see a bunch of green signs everywhere.
SPEAKER_01The iconic green sign.
SPEAKER_00You know, um what like what how many people are part of Open Studios?
SPEAKER_01Well artists. Last year we had 339 artists that actually participated in the tour, and that goes from Watsonville Coralitos all the way to Davenport. So it encompasses the Santa Cruz Mountains and yeah, the Soquel Mountains.
SPEAKER_00Is there even like how do people get to like is Boulder Creek included and all the like larger, like do people actually drive all the way out there to see some art or is or do they come into town or yeah, I mean it varies, right?
SPEAKER_01People go all over, like Bonnie Dune has a little section of artists, the San Lorenzo Valley has a great little section of artists. So we always say, you know, map out your tour, make a day of it, and hit all the stops in a certain location.
SPEAKER_00Wow.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
Money And Career Impact For Artists
SPEAKER_00And that's like, yeah, I mean, I've seen personally uh how many artists who participate in open studios. I think they seem to be very excited about it. And you're like, do you do people make money with this? Is this something that actually helps artists financially?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, definitely. I mean, I think Open Studios has the ability to really launch careers in the arts here. We've heard that from artists before. We always put out a survey after every tour just to kind of try to judge the impact that Open Studios has um on the artists and their careers.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01So yeah, there's a lot of money that goes through Open Studios. Last year we had um, we have we kind of estimated that$1.4 million was spent during Open Studios.
SPEAKER_00Oh my gosh. So what do you what is what do you think that says about the artist scene here in Santa Cruz in general? That like over a million dollars was spent in art during how how much of a time frame is is Open Studios?
SPEAKER_01It's three weekends.
SPEAKER_00It's only three weekends, three weekends like more than a million dollars on it.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Is that a lot? I mean, that sounds like a lot.
SPEAKER_01It does sound like a lot.
SPEAKER_00You know?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I mean, I think so.
SPEAKER_00Is is is it like uh would you say we have a like a fruitful art scene here in Santa Cruz County?
SPEAKER_01I would say we have a prolific art scene. Okay, yeah, for sure. I mean, I think I saw like a study that was done that like claims that Santa Cruz is like fifth per capita artists in the country.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01So that's how many creatives we have here in our county.
SPEAKER_00Oh my goodness.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Would you think, would you say it's worth being part of open studios as an artist? And if like, and it does it depend on like where you are as an artist in your career. Like, you know what I'm saying?
SPEAKER_01Yeah. I mean, I think open studios is a lot of work for artists, right? Like you have to have a pretty good body of work. Um, we usually ask for at least 15 originals. So depending on your medium, that that could be a lot or that could be a little, depending. Um, I think it is a great program for artists who have had a few years of creating and selling on other platforms, and then they come into Open Studios to open their home or their studio space up to the public. Um, yeah, but I mean, through Open Studios 2, we do like a ton of professional development that is actually just comes with it. We've recently opened that up to more than just Open Studios artists. So any artist in the county can come and be a part of these free workshops. Yeah. Where we're actually teaching artists like business skills, you know, like we're about to do um a professional development workshop in March that basically helps artists apply to art events like Open Studios, um, you know, how to write an artist statement, how to create, put together a cohesive body of work, how to format photos. These are all kind of sticking points. And then during the tour, we host workshops that help um artists learn how to be better on social media, how to tell their story, how to talk about their work, um, how to display, how to price, like all of these little um that are kind of big business things that um can be really tough for artists because they kind of have to hold all of those business pieces in their hands.
SPEAKER_00Right. All right, so I'm an artist, visual artist. How do I want to get involved? How can I how can I become a part of OpenSpeed? What is everything I need to do from the just beginning to the end? And I'm I'm in.
SPEAKER_01Oh my gosh.
SPEAKER_00Bring it on. Well this is a test of your knowledge now. Let's see.
Application Steps And Jury Process
SPEAKER_01Well, first of all, applications open March 1st. Um we have a two-month window of applications. It runs on zapplication.org is our application platform. You can find all of this information on Santa Cruz Open Studios.com. Okay. Um so yeah, have a body of work, have at least 15 pieces. This is a juried um event. So um we have, I believe, five jurors this year who um look at work without names, and all the jurors are located outside of the county. Um, and so they score the work. Um, and then we send um notification of invitation um in the beginning of June. Um, and then you just work throughout the year to, you know, get your get your studio ready, get more work done. Um, you can have 25% of your work um that you show be reproduction work. So it can be prints if you're a painter, things like that. Um yeah, and there's lots of um, let's see, we do artist meetups throughout that time too, to just kind of connect artists together. It's always good to come to those and and kind of talk to folks who have done it for a while, get like some tips and tricks, just make connections in the community. I know our ceramics community is very intertwined and collaborative, so it's really fun to see um, you know, artists that work in similar mediums come together and and do cool things. Um, yeah, and then story tell a little bit on social media about yourself. Tell all your friends and your people and open up your studio.
SPEAKER_00Oh man. Okay. So how hard is or easy is the application process? Like what do you gotta what what do you need and do you need to know anything special, or is it just simply as like I'm an artist, here's my name, here's 15 pieces done, or is it like, does it have is there any specifics that go involved in that?
SPEAKER_01Well, you only have to show seven pieces of work in the applications. So you don't have to show all of your work, you don't have to have all of your work completed by the time that you apply for open studios. So, you know, we just want to see what you're doing. Yeah, we do ask that artists are active, so creating work within the past three years, um, you know, not super old work, although you can show older work during the tour.
SPEAKER_00Um so that makes sense.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
Nontraditional Studios And Host Locations
SPEAKER_00Yeah. And then is it is this only specific for people who have studios, or can a studio be like your room and you're like, here's art in my room? Or is it does it have to be a specific?
SPEAKER_01I mean, it could be your kitchen table. Where do you create your art? Yeah. Um, but you know, over the years we've also expanded the program because a lot of people don't have accessible homes or don't feel comfortable welcoming people into homes because they don't really have an official studio because they do do things like create on their kitchen table. So we have a couple of host locations um through some of our partners, the Watsonville Center for the Arts, Paharo Valley Um Arts Gallery on at the Porter Building. Um so we have these host locations, and then we also ask other artists if they have room to host artists. So sometimes they can come together, it's more connection right there. Um, so yeah.
Fees And The Emerging Artist Fund
SPEAKER_00That's awesome. So uh what do you think are some like barriers of entry? Like, have you seen any barriers of entry in this process, or is there any challenges that you're that you're actively working on and trying to like hammer out, or is everything seemed to be clockwork and good?
SPEAKER_01You know? I mean, I think with anything, there's always barriers for folks. Um, we come from all different walks of life, different financial situations. So I think that can be a barrier. Um, there is a fee um to participate in open studios, it's like 285 for new artists and 325 for returning artists. Yeah. Um, so that can be a barrier. Um, and last year was my first year managing the tour. Yeah um and I created an emerging artist fund.
SPEAKER_00Nice.
SPEAKER_01So it was kind of my attempt at trying to like raise some funds to help artists who might not have the financial means to be a part of Open Studios actually pay for that fee and be a part of Open Studios.
SPEAKER_00Wow.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00That's awesome.
SPEAKER_01So we had a first, you know, we had a pretty good year. We were able to support like 17 artists and pay for two-thirds of their fees. Yeah. Um, so that felt really good. So we're trying to make a little bit more money in that fund this year to support more artists.
Why Open Studios Matters To Community
SPEAKER_00Awesome. Okay, we're gonna like zoom out. Whoa, whoa, whoa, I'm gonna have a weird sound effect. Go. I don't have a weird sound effect, but I do, but I don't think it's the right one. But for open studios, specifically in that program, like what impact do you think that has on like our community? You know, like if it got taken away, like what would what would unravel? Like what what do you think? If you can just like think critically or big picture, vision, whatever, like what is the impact do you think that Open Studio has on the community?
SPEAKER_01I mean, I think it's a major platform for artists. And I mean, I think art is like at the core of our community and society in general. And what would we be without creativity? What would we be without art? Yeah. I mean, I think like during, I always think about during COVID, how art kind of saved us and how so many people who weren't working got creative in their homes. And so I think we all have that creative spark. And even if we're not actively creating to witness someone else creating or take a piece home and hang it on our wall that like speaks to us, it just it's enriching for our souls and our community, and it's our culture is in art. I mean, I think also it's voices are in art, you know, like voices that may not otherwise speak speak through the visual art. And I think that that is just a super gift to the community. And Open Studios has been going on for four decades now. So I feel like it's one of those events in Santa Cruz that's just kind of at the core, yeah, you know, and is super impactful and meaningful to everyone.
How Open Studios Fits Arts Council
SPEAKER_00Man so now I'm gonna even go even a little bit bigger. I'm just making my own sound effects now. Um how do you say, how do you how do you see the relationship between like open studios and grants and education within the general framework of the arts council?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I mean, I think the arts council mission is all about visibility and support for artists, right? And I think that through grants and arts education and open studios, we're all working towards that same mission of, you know, creating pathways, you know, grants, the grant making program supports projects and careers and elevat and has the ability to elevate artists, you know, um, by supporting those endeavors. And similarly, open studios gives a platform for folks to sell their work and show their work and and be seen. Yeah. And then arts education is the next generation, right? We're like instilling art in the next generation to come up and become these artists, like that we all like need and are.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01So um, yeah, I think we all work together for the same goal.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01And it's beautiful.
Reaching Artists Through Word Of Mouth
SPEAKER_00Do you do you is there ever any kind of cross-collaboration, or is it kind of like y'all are like just like feeding this cool little ecosystem thing? Or is there some kind of like team, like any kind of like you teaming up with a like a certain other program to create something else?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, we actually have a program team, right? Like so we all come together every few weeks. Yeah. We talk about what we're doing, we talk about how we can work together. Yeah. I've recently started working with Tamara, who's our grants um manager a little bit. And we're actually sharing like what we call an ambassador for grants and open studios just to help reach communities that might not know about open studios and grants so that we can further support them. So we're actually, you know, intersecting more, I think, than what we have in the past. Yeah. And um, I like that because we all are kind of running our own little ships here, but it's all for the greater purpose and the same goal. Yeah. So yeah, it's it's good to come together and and and do these things.
SPEAKER_00Like, how do you how how do you reach people who are just kind of like, let's say I'm like just doing their art, you know, they're not really connected to like the community of artists, you know, as ambassador seems to be the first step. But do you have any ideas of how like we can reach those people? Just like I'm not saying do you have the answers, like you know, but like just like brainstorm ideas of, you know, the Yeah.
SPEAKER_01I mean, I think that's a a question that is like always on the table, right? How do we reach more people? Yeah, how do we inform the community about what we do?
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Um, a lot of people are like, I don't know what the arts council does. What do they do? Yeah, you know, well, yeah, we're this is what we're doing. We're kind of like behind the scenes, like doing good things and creating good platforms for artists. Um yeah.
SPEAKER_00So you have any ideas, like any kind of like things that come to your mind of like potential ways of connecting with people who may not know what's happening.
SPEAKER_01I mean, networking is always great, right? Just talking about it in community. I always say I'm an ambassador for the arts council because I work there and I'm always talking about what I'm doing there. Oh, yeah. So it's like just you know, talking about it. I mean, that's my favorite way of connecting, anyways, in in person, in community. So, you know, you can do all the social media that you want. But yeah, if you are on social media, share Arts Council's page with a friend that you think might be interested in in some of our offerings, or you know, they know an artist who could use the support or might be interested in open studios. Yeah. So I mean, I think word of mouth and and just in-person networking is like super powerful in small communities, especially.
SPEAKER_00In 15 years from now, what impact would you like to see the Arts Council have on the community?
SPEAKER_01I, you know, through Open Studios, you know, which is like my biggest lens with the Arts Council, I just want to see it be able to support as many artists as possible. I know like we have so many here. Like, how can we reach out and support more? And we're a nonprofit, so it takes a lot of different funding, you know, yeah, to um support our programming. But in 15 years, I hope Arts Council is still going strong. I hope Open Studios is in its 56th year, you know, and that we're just, you know, and the arts, you know, culture in Santa Cruz is huge and thriving. I mean, there's a lot of initiatives going around in in our county right now just to kind of elevate the arts in general. Yeah. Um, so it feels really good. I feel like we are an arts hub in California. And so, how how do we spread the word and and get people here to see all of this creative goodness that we've got to offer?
SPEAKER_00Man, Brie, thank you so much for coming on. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Thanks for having me, Thomas.
SPEAKER_00Uh you know, where can people find you? Where can people like reach out to you if they have any questions or if they want to just chat your ear off?
SPEAKER_01Well, I mean, my email is Bree at artscouncilsc.org. Um, so you can definitely reach out to me individually. You can find more about our programming at artscouncil sc.org and Santa CruzOpenstudios.com.
SPEAKER_00Brie, it's been an honor chatting with you.
SPEAKER_01Thank you so much.
SPEAKER_00This has been Speak for Change Podcast and our first episode with our arts council series. Um, thank you so much for listening and have a wonderful day.