Periscope: Rural Artist Development (RAD) is an annual, online training and mentorship opportunity uniquely designed to be a transformative experience empowering rural Tennessee artists with the entrepreneurial skills to help them thrive. Training sessions are led by expert business professionals and small group work is facilitated by top arts professionals from across Tennessee.
Periscope RAD artists receive:
- Training: Eight weeks of professional development training customized for working artists living in rural communities;
- Exchange: Artists share best practices with interdisciplinary peers through small group work;
- Mentorship: Each artist is paired one-on-one with a high-caliber mentor for six months;
- Exposure: Year-round opportunities to celebrate the work of alumni artists through the Arts & Business Council and Tennessee Arts Commission.
- Free Tuition: The program fee is waived thanks to the generous support of the Tennessee Arts Commission.
Meet the Periscope RAD Class of 2024!
WHO: This training opportunity is limited to 25 artists, artisans, makers and creative entrepreneurs of all artistic disciplines who live and work in rural Tennessee counties.
WHAT: An intensive curriculum that will explore tools to organize, plan, and sustain a creative career, with the goal of developing an individualized business plan to prepare each artist to take their creative endeavors to the next level.
WHEN: Eight consecutive weeks from January-March 2024 followed by six months of one-on-one mentorship.
WHERE: Training sessions are held online via Zoom and course materials are provided through the Google Classroom online learning platform.
2024 TRAINING CALENDAR
Thursday, January 25 | 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. CST
Get oriented to Periscope: Rural Artist Development, meet your fellow cohort members, and begin setting some goals.
Thursday, February 1 | 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. CST
Analyze your current career position and identify what you need to build the brightest future for your art.
Thursday, February 8 | 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. CST
Focus on building a compelling unique selling proposition (USP) by learning from audience evaluations.
Thursday, February 15 | 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. CST
Understanding your work, audience, and business structure to optimize the potential of your creative business.
Thursday, February 22 | 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. CST
The essentials of building a marketing plan and promoting your work.
Thursday, February 29 | 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. CST
Walk through the basics of what generates revenue for you, pricing strategies, and long-term business planning.
Thursday, March 7 | 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. CST
Discover the process of talking about your work in a way that will gain believers and make use of other people’s talents.
Thursday, March 14 | 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. CDT
Use what you’ve learned to refine your business plan and get comfortable pitching your creative endeavors to your audience.
APPLY: Due to our application form being down briefly on Friday, we will be accepting applications until Saturday, November 11 at 11:59 a.m. CST. We will not refuse an application that was delayed because of this error. If you attempted to apply and were unable to do so, please contact us.
NOMINATIONS: We encourage alumni, partners, and community members to nominate rural Tennessee artists for Periscope RAD. If you know an artist who you think would benefit from our intensive entrepreneurial training curriculum, nominate them and we’ll invite them to apply. The nomination deadline is November 3 at Noon CST (1 p.m. EST)
INFORMATION SESSION: For rural artists interested in learning more about the program, application process and important dates, we hosted a Periscope: Rural Artist Development Information Session on October 20. A link to a recording of the session can be viewed on our YouTube Channel at the link below.
ATTENTION GREATER NASHVILLE ARTISTS: Are you an artist living in the Greater Nashville area with a desire to improve your entrepreneurial skills and make your creative business thrive? Click here for information about Periscope: Artist Entrepreneur Training. Applications open January 3.
Periscope RAD offers a statewide network of alumni:
Periscope: Rural Artist Development is supported by funding from the Tennessee Arts Commission.
The Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville and Tennessee Arts Commission offer special thanks to:
