Above Board

November fundraiser among myriad collaborative projects

The Studio’s 37th season has once again started off with a strong series of exhibitions, first by our indominable tenants in September and followed by Chris Troutman’s “Sequential: Studio Art and Comics” in October.

November promises to be just as compelling with Kelli Scofield’s “Equilibrium” as her debut one-woman exhibit — congratulations to her, and to all who show their work at The Studio. 

Additionally, we have a fall fundraising event scheduled for Nov. 14, beginning at 6 p.m. at Madison’s on Dowlen. Once again, Frankie Randazzo and his crew, led by Robert Valvano, are hosting a musical showcase highlighting local talent that includes 2 Throwd Minds, Greg Jr. and others benefiting The Studio.

See the TASI website at artstudio.org and our Facebook page to buy your tickets now. Tickets are $10 with a limited number of stage front table seats at $15. The night will feature premium craft beers, courtesy of Del Papa Distributing and 2 Row Distributing, along with premium swag.

Madison’s has created a special food and drink menu to complement the event with proceeds directly benefiting The Studio’s programing for presenting live and original music by new artists.

What promises to be a titillating part of the evening will be a special thematic “reveal” performance directed by Shanna Hawa, TASI’s 2020 Beaux Arts Bal chairperson, and crew showing what to expect for our premier event taking place Jan. 18, 2020, at 720 Franklin.

Patrons will have a chance to purchase Studio swag, Bal tickets and TASI memberships at one-of-kind discounts throughout the night.  

Relationships are critical to sustaining stakeholder partnerships and a vibrant arts community. These efforts require many resources to carry out these events. No one sector is able to go it alone, and we sincerely appreciate our supporters.

With our patrons, volunteers and board members working together, activities and events are often planned out months, sometimes even years, in advance. 

Another fine example of relationships is TASI’s joining with REcreate to host a joint event that will bring together fashion, art, design and entertainment to make what always becomes a one-of-a-kind happening. This next event will happen July 2020 with details coming over the next several months.

Something closer and reoccurring is TASI’s involvement with First Thursdays and the new Downtown Beaumont Cultural Arts District. In particular, The Studio is coinciding the start of our annual Shop-O-Rama. It will begin on Thursday, Dec. 5 instead of the traditional first Saturday and continue for several consecutive days.

The Studio is always open to new partnerships and opportunities to showcase creative talent throughout Southeast Texas. There is strength in community unity.

Robust programming displays a credible legacy for artists and for TASI. Strength is not just a physical trait, but a position of leadership. Strength and leadership go hand-in-hand and can make or break any organization. 

Leadership in nonprofit organizations presents a specific set of challenges and therefore requires a unique set of skills. Executive and administrative mentoring, and leadership development training can be key to growing organizational core competencies among board members and volunteers alike. 

At the end of the day, governance and leadership training can create a team that will better serve an organization and help them meet their goals — more importantly it creates a culture of institutional excellence and professionalism.

Operational structure and competency are the areas The Studio’s board is working to improve on, with the common goal of providing the best support for all of our stakeholders.

The concept of leadership shares many common traits across private, public, business and nonprofit sectors. At TASI, we believe in these capabilities to grow and sustain our community so that we can continue this extraordinary journey we are on.

Stephan Malick is TASI board chairman