Evanston Made
Evanston Made started as a community arts initiative supported by a volunteer corps advocating for visibility and awareness of Evanston artists.
The 1st Annual Open Studios Tour launched June 2014, and every subsequent year, more events, programs and professional development have been designed and hosted in service of Evanston Artists. See our organization's timeline for 2014 on here.
Nov. 2020, Evanston Made became a 501(c)3 nonprofit membership-based arts organization. Click here to meet the team that helps Evanston Made support more than 400+ artists and creative business owners.
Evanston Made designs and builds programming, exhibitions and professional development to support Evanston artists. Evanston artists feel the impact of our work in four ways;
- income
- exposure
- professional development
- community building
Photo: Evanston Made won the Mayor's Award for the Arts, 2019. This annual award is chosen by community members who recommend leaders in the Arts and the mayor chooses from that list of recommendations. Photo from left to right; Kathy Halper, Evan Finamore, Lisa Degliantoni, Angela Lyonsmith, Melissa Raman Molitor, Mayor Steve Hagerty, Liz Cramer.
What we do: Membership?
Evanston Made welcomes anyone to become a member of our growing arts organization. Click here to learn more about the programs and events we’ve created to support our mission - to connect artists to a growing audience of friends and patrons of the arts.
Click here to browse Portfolio Pages showcasing works by some of our 400+ members.
Why Should You Join?
- Participation in the Evanston Made Group Shows
- Participation in Evanston Made Studio Tour 2x's a year
- New exhibition opportunities throughout the year
- Monthly opportunities to network/socialize with members
- Dedicated artist page on website
- Artist listings on calendar and events pages
- Marketing to the public any member activities
- Sell art and handmade goods on EM online store
- Participate in professional development workshops and one-on one sessions with staff and guest experts and members
- Discounts at participating retail partners
- Access to Evanston’s thriving arts community
- Support our work to advocate for artists
- Contribute to strengthening the creative culture of Evanston
What we do: Signature Programs
Our Signature Programs further our mission to support our member's connecting with the public by bringing their work to market with exhibits, pop-ups, markets and curated shows with business partners.
- First Saturday Evanston Art Events
- Artist Studio Tours
- BIPOC Group Show
- Makers Markets
- All Members Group Show
- Plein Air Festival
- Holiday Market
What we do: Business Partnerships
We partner with Evanston small business owners to support artists and to bring new connections to collaborate bringing economic opportunities to both artists and businesses.
Partner Business:
- Alley Gallery, 1712 Rear 2, Sherman Ave.
- Ayla’s Originals, 1511 Sherman Ave.
- Artem Pop Up Gallery, 1627 Sherman Ave.
- Kombucha Brava, 717 Custer Ave.
- Nice Lena & Friends, 1235 Chicago Ave.
- Secret Treasures, 605 Dempster St.
- Stumble & Relish, 1312 Chicago Ave.
- Luna Delgado Botanicals, 800 Dempster St.
- Masterpiece Framing, 712 Main St.
- Tremain Art, 838 Custer Ave.
- Evanston Pour, 528 Dempster St.
- Ten Thousand Villages, 915 Chicago Ave.
- Backlot Coffee, 2006 Central St.
What we do: Anti-Racism Work
A Statement of Solidarity Against Racism from Evanston Made
We are still defining how Evanston Made will be a social and racial justice advocate in our community, but we want to make it clear: We stand against racism. We stand with our nonprofit partners and grassroots community activators who work directly in causes that are at the epicenter of the fight against racial injustice, and we are committed to working within our sphere of influence toward equity-centered solutions. Together, we can alter the actions and attitudes that have allowed injustice to continue, and work to create the systemic and cultural change we need to move into a safer, healthier, more equitable world.
We believe that artists are social-change communicators. They have the tools to promote conversations about race and racism in ways that help people understand, act, and support solutions that advance equity. Artists help us to imagine a world that is more just and inclusive while learning from our past — and present — mistakes and failures. Evanston Made is committed to elevating the voices in our community that speak out against racism and to promoting the work that advances social and racial justice.
Commitment
We believe that Evanston Made should meet and exceed The 15 Percent Pledge to have 15% of our members be Black, Brown, Indigenous People of Color. Currently we have 310 members, 5% are BIPOC. We have work to do.
As we aim to address racial equity in all aspects of our organization we also pledge not to burden our current BIPOC members to do the heavy lifting of outreach and recruitment. Our board will actively connect with individuals and partner with community organizations to raise equity awareness and grow our BIPOC artist membership.
In addition, we will not employ “bandaid" solutions to equity and inclusion, but instead will look into how we can break down social and economic barriers and not perpetuate systemic racism in our organization.
What we do: Professional Development
We provide professional development to our members in the form of online tutorials , video and classroom sessions. The programming is designed to enhance skills, address career needs, help new artists bring their work to market, connect artists with mentors and peer groups.
Members are also afforded opportunity to meet one-on-one with our team for addressing specific requests and career advice. We share access to our expert partners for everything from writing artist statements to business planning to printing and framing services.