Design Lab workshops slated for rural areas
JANS – The Mississippi Center for Cultural Production (Sipp Culture) opened registration for its inaugural Rural Routes Design Lab workshop, which will be held on Saturday, June 21, at the Main Street Cultural Center in Utica, Miss (114 E. Main St., Utica, MS 39175). This workshop is designed to help artists, organizers, and community leaders find creative ways to address issues in their communities.
“These workshops are designed for people to learn from and with their peers about how arts and culture can be critical elements of sustainable social change,” said Saint Allen Austin, Rural Routes Design Lab and Studio project director. “Rural communities tend to be strapped for resources but have a wealth of artistic and creative talent that allows them to use arts and culture to create opportunities and improve quality of life.”
The Rural Routes Design Lab workshop is part of a six-year effort funded by the Surdna Foundation that will provide free arts and culture-based training and learning opportunities for the general public and intensive support and resources for up to 18 rural artists, creators, and cultural organizers working in rural communities.
Sipp Culture established the Rural Routes Design Lab and Studio to help artists, creators, and cultural organizers working in rural contexts access the resources, training, and support to deepen their expertise and explore new horizons in their creative and community engagement work. Throughout the year, Sipp Culture will host in-person and virtual workshops for the general public covering subjects such as public art and placemaking, community-based project planning, asset mapping for community engagement, and creative economies.
Later this month, Sipp Culture is accepting applications for the Rural Routes Design Studio. Artists, creators, and cultural organizers living or working in rural Central Mississippi communities can apply at sippculture.org/ruralroutes. For more information, contact Saint Allen Austin at allen@sippculture.org.
