4ARTSAKE : A Community Art Center For The Times
Our Organization
4ARTSAKE is a community-focused nonprofit that provides education, resources, guidance, exposure, and opportunities to artists of all ages.
We believe that artistic expression is a vital part of the human experience, and that every single person should have a community space to engage with art, and access to the tools and support needed to explore their own artistic voice.
What We Offer the Community
Free and Affordable arts education.
A rotating curriculum of classes across mediums.
Public events and performances centered around art.
Free-to-access community space for artists.
Exhibition and distribution opportunities.
Rentable studio time for music and visual projects.
Music and film equipment rentals.
Affordable art supplies.
We intend for the Pop-up to operate as a fully-realized temporary Arts Center for 3 months of 2025. If the Pop-Up is successful, and we are able to capture even a small portion of the target market that we are after, with the current investment into infrastructure combined with the low rent of The Lloyd Center, it is our goal to stay in the space beyond the Pop-Up window, allowing the temporary center to become the first official home of the 4ARTSAKE organization.
This Presentation
Hello! My name is Ryan Tobias, and I am the founding member of 4ARTSAKE.
Today my business partner Riley Parker and I will walk you through our plans for the first official project of 4ARTSAKE, which will be a 3-Month Pop-Up Arts Center to be opened in this year in the historic Lloyd Center Mall near Downtown Portland. In this presentation we will share our Education Programming, our Regular Events, our Existing Resources, and our Projected Growth Plan, as well as several other exciting initiatives already in motion. Our hope is that you will be inspired by the work that we’re doing, and join us in bringing much-needed resources to the artists of the greater Portland metro area.
The Needs of Artists
In the modern era, Portland artists face a wide variety of challenges. In this section we will address some of the major Pain Points, and in the following section we will discuss how our organization helps to relieve these burdens.
Lack of General Arts Education — Since the 1980’s, public school’s arts education has been in decline, with decreased access, fewer resources, and program eliminations.
Higher Education Inaccessible — Even so-called “affordable” art colleges still cost an average of $48,000 a year, which is far outside most families’ reach.
Lack of Community Spaces — In recent years, with the decline of church attendance and the closing of public spaces post-pandemic, people don’t have places to congregate without spending money.
How 4ARTSAKE Meets The Need
Free and Affordable General Arts Education — We offer low-cost entry-level classes, as well as affordable workbooks, supplies, and self-guided courses for new and returning artists.
Sliding-Scale Specialized Art Courses — We are developing a rotating curriculum across a wide variety of mediums, all taight by working artists, providing higher arts education at a fraction of the cost.
Free, Open, Community Space —
We are developing a rotating curriculum across a wide variety of mediums, all taught by working artists, providing higher arts education at a fraction of the cost.
The Healing Power of Art
There is substantial and growing research supporting the use of art as part of a holistic treatment plan for substance dependency, PTSD, and a host of other mental health challenges that can impact veterans, at-risk youth, and other underserved communities.
Art is Medicine. Art is a useful tool in the pursuit of a healthy heart and mind, seeing as communication is a basic human need.
Art is Understanding. It is often through creating art, or relating to the art of others, that we discover how we feel about our own life and our place in the world.
Art is Expression. It is often through making art and sharing art that speaks to us that we are able to communicate complicated emotions and concepts that would otherwise go unshared or unexpressed.
In the above images we see an expression of Grief over the loss of a loved one, the value of connection through Friendship, and an expression of Anxiety as expressed by the abundance of culture and information available through the internet. These images are simple on their face, but express complex ideas and emotions in a way that mere words might fall short.
At 4ARTSAKE, we are working with Veterans Affairs, recovery specialists, and mental health professionals to build resources that can be utilized in a holistic therapeutic approach, and we will be pursuing certification to that effect.
How 4ARTSAKE Works
Front of House
We call the sections of our center that the general public has access to the Front of House. It is in this space that we offer most of our services.
Store - We will have a storefront that sells local art, include music, books, comics, and visual art prints, as well as a small selection of tools and art supplies available for purchase.
Gallery - The walls of our space will serve as a rotating art gallery, showing and selling works by local artists.
Performance / Event Space - Most of our floor space is open and easily adaptable, allowing us to host concerts, dances, plays, spoken word, and other types of performance, plus social events. Combined with the previous two services, this is how 4ARTSAKE fulfills our goal of providing exhibition and distribution services to Portland artists.
Classes - We also utilize the open space to set up our Pop-Up classrooms, complete with tables, chairs, a whiteboard, and projection capabilities, adapting to the specific needs of the every class. This allows us to teach a wide variety of disciplines in a single space.
Open Space - During all non-class, non-event hours, we have open tables that local artists can use as production areas, meet with their peers, and assemble final works.
Specialized Work Stations - We will offer two Specialized Work Stations to artists who subscribe to a 4ARTSAKE Membership, and those are a Tshirt Printer Station and a Zine & Comics Print Station.
Back of House
Throughout the Pop-Up, our focus will be in the Front of House, but as we continue we will build out the Back of House, as this are will be important to our growth and sustainability.
Storage - We will store all of our backstock, and specialized equipment and resources needed to teach classes.
Back Office - From our Pop-Up launch, we will be utilizing a Back Office to run behind-the-scenes labor, as well as develop programming and marketing campaigns.
Recording Studio - As we move beyond the Pop-Up, we will build out a small recording studio where we can record local musicians, and help our members bring their art to the public. This space will act as a classroom, and also a rentable space, opening the door to multiple streams of additional revenue.
Video Studio - We will build a small video studio next to the recording studio, and in this space we will adapt our in-center classes to video classes to distribute via the internet. This allows us to reach a much wider audience, and assist a much greater number of people with limited additional man hours.
In the above image we see a layout of the Front of House at our current scoped-out location at The Lloyd Center Mall. In the text below we go through the space in relation to the services mentioned in the previous section.
Store Area - As the part of the center that best serves artists and art-consumers alike, the Store Area is the first thing that guests into 4ARTSAKE encounter. Here we sell local art, original works produced in-house, and art supplies.
Point-of-Sale / Information Desk - This is where guests can learn about the center, sign up for classes and events, and purchase any goods or original art on display.
Front Window Displays - This will serve as a marketing space for our most current gallery exhibition, upcoming events, and classes, while also communicating to passersby that we have art-based goods and services for sale inside.
Adaptable Space - Where we teach our classes, host events, and provide work stations during Open House Hours.
Printer & Tshirt Machine - Our Specialized Work Stations where members can print their art for a per-unit cost.
Art Gallery Wall Space - All along either side of the space, we hang original art pieces on commission.
Projection Wall - Utilized for screening locally-produced films, curated media, and also as a resource for classes.
A Week in the Space
The 4ARTSAKE Pop-Up will be open five days a week, Thursday through Monday. Every week we will offer a variety of services, with a schedule available both on-sight and on our website. Below is a Sample Week.
Thursday
Open House Hours - From 11am (Mall Opening) until 4pm, our store is open, and artists can utilize Open Space, access Specialized Work Stations, and bring in finished works for consignment.
Transition - From 4pm until 5pm, the store remains open, but the Adaptable Space is shut down to set up for the evening class.
Weekday Class - Our Thursday night class (usually visual art) begins at 5pm, and will go until 6:30 or 7pm.
Friday
Open House Hours - 11am to 4pm
Event - At 5pm we host an art opening, performance (musical or spoken word), or community event.
Saturday
Welcoming Events - From 11am to 4pm we offer demonstrations of our Specialized Work Stations, and free, 30-minute workshops on a specific topic or artistic technique.
Weekend Class - Our Saturday night class (usually music) begins at 5pm, and goes until 7pm.
Sunday
Welcoming Events - 11am to 4pm.
Group Event - 5pm to 7pm. A free community event centered around a specific medium, such as drawing or music.
Monday
Open House Hours - 11am to 4pm
Flex Spot - Starting at 5pm, we will either host a Weekday Class, or a Group Event until close.
Adaptability is Our Strength
There is a lot of things that will happen in our space over the course of a given week, but the trick is that only one or two things are ever happening at once. Our space is modular and adaptable by design, allowing us to easily transition from one service to the next based on the needs of our members and the public at large.
User Profiles
Everyone is capable of artistic expression, and how that manifests in people is different for every person. As such, what an individual needs is different for everyone as well. At 4ARTSAKE, we provide multiple entry points for people to engage, a wide variety of resources, and rotating curriculum to make sure that artists get what they need.
Charlie, age 16
Charlie knows that she likes art, and that she wants to express herself, but she hasn’t figured out her medium yet. She doodles in her notebooks, and writes the occasional poem now and then, but she needs to build her skills to build her confidence. After finding 4ARTSAKE’s YouTube channel, Charlie starts visiting the space and utilizing resources.
Attends monthly exhibitions to be inspired
Takes several introductory classes and workshops
Contributes to group art shows
Yearly Membership
Quentin, age 24
Quentin is a recent transplant, looking for community. He was in band in high school, and is interested in making music again, but he feels discouraged because most garage bands don’t need a tuba player. After seeing a flier for a free Synth Jam, Quentin visits 4ARTSAKE to see if he has a knack for digital tools. Not only does he find a new passion, but a new group of friends, and future collaborators.
Takes multiple music courses
Attends monthly Synth Jam and New Song Party events
Utilizes 4ARTSAKE recording studio
Occasional Monthly Member for equipment rentals
Olivia, age 31
Olivia loved making art when she was a kid, but she left it behind to pursue a degree and a career. Now that she has all of her basic needs met and feels secure, she realizes she’s often bored and unfulfilled. After hearing about 4ARTSAKE on Instagram, Olivia decides to take a zine class, and rediscovers her passion for art. She starts exploring various mediums, and bringing her friends in for events.
Takes on average one class each month
Becomes a major part of community
Volunteers every two weeks or so
Yearly Membership
Miles, age 73
Miles had never considered himself an artist. He likes to draw, and he’s always lived alone and is too humble to share his work, so he doesn’t even know how good he is. At his weekly AA meeting, a fellow member sees a sketch Miles is working on, and tells him about 4ARTSAKE, and all the resources that they have to offer. After attending a gallery show, and learning that everyone can submit art, Miles gives it a shot, and his piece gets selected.
Takes occasional class in illustration or painting
Contributes a few times a year to group shows
Tells his friends at AA about 4ARTSAKE as a sober space
Not a member, but donates regularly
These are just a few examples of the types of folks that will benefit from an ongoing, accessible, multi-discipline art resource and community center. There’s also the middle-aged poet who sells his chapbooks in our store and attends monthly writing workshops; the aspiring young filmmaker who takes classes to sharpen her screenplay and learn how to write better dialogue; the dentist in his forties who takes up painting to liven up his waiting room; and countless more unique stories that we will discover operating the space.
Meet The Team
The 4ARTSAKE team is made up of volunteers and paid staff members, all of whom are working artists dedicated to building community and to the ongoing health of the Portland art scene. In this section you will meet our team, hear about everyone’s individual contribution to the organization, and the classes that they lead.
Ryan Tobias
Ryan is a musician, producer, and podcaster, with 25 years experience in marketing and event production. He has worked with KinderCare, Nike, Red Bull, and The Oregon Historical Society, among others, building out events and active spaces in cities all throughout the United States.
At 4ARTSAKE, Ryan leads Organization Development, assists the Education Committee, and co-chairs the Programming Committee. His classes will focus on audio home recording, podcast production, artist branding, and historical trends in art and technology.
Riley Parker
Riley is a writer, illustrator, and filmmaker, living in Portland Oregon since 2006. He has worked as an illustrator for Nike, Kith, and NWMOCA, and he was the head curator and program director at the Art Market PDX Gallery for the 2017 season.
Riley is 4ARTSAKE’s Studio Manager, supports the Education Committee with instructor acquisition and course development, and he co-chairs the Programming Committee with Ryan Tobias. His classes will include comic illustration, designing stickers & tshirts, writing flash fiction, and artist branding.
Riley Berger
Riley is a graphic designer, copywriter, and marketing specialist with 17+ years in community organizing. She has led after school and summer programs for the youth, organized dozens of community events for private and public entities, and spent two years running Tabor Space Community Center.
Riley does Accounting Services and Logistics for 4ARTSAKE, and is on the Community Outreach Committee. Her planned workshops include equitable & inclusive communication and event organization.
Daniel McEntire
Daniel is musician, educator, and a community organizer. As a musician, Daniel has played in a variety of high-profile Portland bands, and he has been band leader for country-punk band Heaven Skate since 2018. As an educator, Daniel has taught music to various ages at several schools throughout the greater Portland area.
Daniel’s classes will focus on finding the right instrument(s), writing original songs, how to form a band, and how to put on and market D.I.Y. shows.
Additional Team
Seth Pricket - Operations Consultant
Nathaniel Applefield - Fundraising Consultant
Zibby Pillote - Marketing Consultant
Hasaan Thomas - Marketing Consultant; Instructor
Jason Levian - Storefront Consultant
Aimee Niles - At-Risk Program Consultant
Brett Roberts - Video Studio Consultant; Instructor
Jamie Helmsworth - Education Consultant; Instructor
Alex Erickson - Recording Studio Consultant; Instructor
The Raise for the Pop-Up
Beyond the value of our labor so far and our team’s collective expertise, we are also bringing in assets in the form of $27K worth of equipment: $12K in music and recording gear, and the $15K Tshirt Printer Machine.
In order to run a 3-Month Pop-Up, we are looking to raise an initial $15K to $25K in Launch Capital.
A raise of $15K will cover the rent for the space, insurance, initial payroll, build-out, and launch-marketing. A raise of $25K would allow us to offer additional classes, services, and marketing.
All revenue generated will be put back into the organization, with our number-one goal being to transition the Pop-Up into a more permanent home for the 4ARTSAKE Arts Center, as we feel the location is ideal for our specific value proposition.
Our first full year of operations, including payroll, will require a $100K raise throughout the calendar year.
Thank You :)
We appreciate you taking the time to engage with our vision for the 4ARTSAKE Pop-Up, and for your interest in the organization overall. We look forward to hearing your feedback, answering your questions, and talking about the future of 4ARTSAKE.