Utah Arts Alliance hosts four community arts programs where artists of any age and experience level can network and share their work. The UAA Connect program aims to nurture artists’ creativity by offering a space to learn and build skills that can be applied in their creative academic work.
How SLCC arts and media students can benefit from UAA Connect
As Salt Lake Community College students advance into careers, community resources like UAA Connect offer experiences that build artistic skills outside of school. Because the programs accept artists at any level, participants learn and practice valuable skills like communication, collaboration and critical thinking.
Nick Lokeni, an employee at UAA and current SLCC film student, had advice for emerging artists who feel nervous about sharing personal work with others.
“If you can be able to put yourself out there and handle those critiques, not personally and not necessarily against your art, but just from another person’s perspective, it’ll help you understand your stuff [art] so much better.”
What is Utah Arts Alliance?
Utah Arts Alliance is a community resource that gives people a chance to explore their creativity. UAA oversees programs and events, such as Dreamscapes, community radio station KUAA 99.9 FM and the Urban Arts Festival. UAA also provides affordable studios and rehearsal rooms for people to use. Each year, UAA’s programs, studios and events support over 200,000 Utahns.
What is UAA Connect?
Every second Friday of each month, Salt Lake City’s Connect event takes place at the Urban Arts Gallery in The Gateway. Locations including Ogden, Orem and St. George also host monthly Connect events.
Artists can submit up to two pieces, ranging from paintings, photos and sculptures. Each gallery gives time for artists to present their work, vote on other entries and network. Fellow artists and patrons also vote for their favorite piece. The winners’ art is then displayed at the Urban Arts Gallery until the next Connect event. Additionally, winners attend the end-of-year Connect party in December, where they can earn cash prizes and showcase their best work.
How artists benefit from UAA Connect
Artists who attended April’s Salt Lake City event shared what they’ve learned and what they like about the program.
“I like the people, the other artists, being able to talk and form a community,” said grade-school teacher Kaden Ficklin. “I think it’s [Connect] appropriately named.”
Julieth Ross, a high school senior, also attended the April Connect event. “I like the people sharing their stories, and I like looking at the different art,” she said. “It’s so nice, because every month you get to see different, cool stuff. You don’t know what to expect.”
Jo McKinley, a Utah Valley University graduate who specializes in traditional painting, shared one of the skills they have developed in the program.
“Connect has taught me how to make more presentable pieces for a gallery,” McKinley said. “And when you do the December shows, those especially are good at teaching you how to motivate yourself to go outside of your own comfort zone.”
Evelyn Sabrowski, who works at Utah STEM Action Center, has attended Connect in Salt Lake City and Ogden.
“The thing I’ve learned at Connect is to be adventurous, and experiment,” she said. “I would never have made any of the art that I’ve made for Connect.”
For student artists looking to practice their craft outside the classroom, UAA Connect offers a space to create and share in Utah’s wider arts community.
