Byline: Amara Phelps
Wednesday, May 22, 2024
MANCHESTER, NH – In a toast to the thriving art culture being cultivated in New Hampshire, hundreds gathered at the Armory at Manchester’s DoubleTree hotel last Monday evening in a celebration draped in royal purple.
A nod to the longevity of the New Hampshire Business Committee for the Arts’ tenure serving our community as they celebrate 40 continuous years of work since 1984, the “Purple Reign” themed gala spared no delight in dazzling guests in a wonderful coalition of contributed work from local businesses, nonprofits, and artists alike.
With a team of creative event partners spearheaded by Nashua based nonprofit Positive Street Art, a truly unique and authentic energy was spun which made the night stand out amongst the sea of similar business dinners, award ceremonies, fundraisers, and galas one in the business and nonprofit sector might find their calendar cluttered with during this time of year.
Attendees were immediately wowed from the moment they entered the room, greeted by a larger-than-life 30-foot balloon sculpture of a nostalgic boombox, built by local balloon artist Dan Staples of Dan’s Balloons. The details of the sculpture, which guests were both welcome and encouraged to approach and take photos with, were mind-blowingly intricate, with layers of balloons inflated to different proportions interwoven expertly into tight and structurally stable rows adorned with knobs, dials, and speaker faces.
“I understand there has to be a balance of business and art, but I like to subscribe more to the chaos of art; I understand that {the balance is} important. I actually have a bigger connection working with PSA, and they’ve kind of been helping me reshape my business and being able to blend my art and passion projects with things that {are fruitful for} me.“
In his passive reflection on the importance of relationships between community artists and businesses, Dan shed light on a struggle many artists face: capitalizing on and marketing their art in a way that has lasting and sustainable value both to themselves and the greater world they are a part of. Enter NHBCA, who earnestly has hoped for the last two generations to bridge this gap. The New Hampshire Business Committee for Artist’s mission is simple when written on paper: facilitate and foster connection and collaboration between the plethora of artists hidden in the nooks and cranny of our Granite state with the bountiful harvest of businesses both large and small that are looking to funnel their resources into building art and platforming artists within their community. Yearly members attend events and are provided opportunities to network and work with other creatives and form meaningful relationships and partnerships with businesses in order to support and stimulate the growth of our creative economy.
As Executive Director of the committee since 2018, Tricia Soule has an acute understanding of the delicate symbiosis between businesses and the world of art from her days as the former owner of an art gallery and a past employee of the Currier, as well as dabbling in clay art herself. She shared with me the continued impetus of the group’s core foundational values, working for the business industries’ renewable support of arts and culture in the state of New Hampshire. “The more we can bridge the gap which a lot of people believe exists between arts and business, the better. Businesses benefit when they have partnerships with artists and cultural organizations because it not only is good for employee morale, but it can also help to attract and retain talent; which is such a huge piece of the business landscape right now. The arts can play a fundamental role in that.” NHBCA events are often the networking trade floor for many of the state’s key players in creative, equity, and traditional business sectors; leading the way to crucial and critical lasting partnerships that bring growth to community programming, public art and enrichment, donations and volunteer work.
Businesses who may turn a skeptical eye to the idea of co-mingling and collaborating in work with those cut from a very different cloth need simply consider the growing demand for out of the box thinking, solutions, products and programs in a modern capitalistic competition for consumers money, time, recognition and loyalty. Tricia hopes that incredible and unique programming like what lies ahead for the evening’s guests, including presentations and awards highlighting local organizations’ work, would give a space to showcase and platform their skills, talents and work to broader audiences for more opportunities. “It’s important for businesses to keep in mind that while an artist may not necessarily seem to fit a particular position in an organization, their ability to think on their feet, to be creative thinkers and adapt; they in a lot of ways bring much stronger skills to positions than others that were ‘educated’ for it.” Artists’ minds are mapped and pre-programmed to explore new horizons, problem solve in abstract ways, and to conceptualize and execute unique ideas, patterns, processes and programs. A swiss-army multi tool of a team member, the artist mind proves to be an invaluable resource for a team looking to stay ahead in sweeping tides.
True to Tricia’s word, the gala was upheld and accessorized by a bountiful group of area makers of demiurgic magic. AV services for the event provided in-kind by Weare small business MFI Productions, who are in their own way upholders of much of the state’s artistic and sociocultural ventures by consistently delivering top quality audio-visual work at the majority of NH’s largest movers and shakers events, bathed the room in soft purple ambient lighting and gave every seat in the house a great view. Music was provided by DJ PHAROAH on the decks, who spun great mixes throughout the night that blended vintage hits from the era of the Committee’s inception with modern dance and house music. Recognizable to some involved in the Nashua art community from his appearances at Positive Street Art events, their director Cecilia Ulibarri brought together a team of some of her trusted local creative collaborators to bring the sparkle to NHBCA’s festivities. Balloon magician Dan’s work has previously been seen in PSA’s Obscure Fashion Show event from earlier this year; a showcase of many local designers and multimedia artists in a runway show of wearable fashions, including two breathtaking, one-of-a-kind full balloon dresses handcrafted by Dan. Innovators and philanthropists sat elbow to elbow in the completely sold out event!
In the midst of the festivities, the polite lull of dinner forks was interrupted in a manner quite unseen for many of our more business-focused attendants. Headstands, contortions, and floor spins burst to life on the dancefloor of the Armory as a trio of dancers from local dance company Expressive Movement entered with a bang, immediately engaging the crowd and bursting smiles and applause from the audience with their natural enigmatic presence, swagger and charm. Pumping up a crowd full of stuff shirt business brains and kooky, two left-footed art types is a Golitian challenge; and yet by the end of their far-too-short performance all had risen to dance and provide a well earned standing ovation. Festivities concluded with awards for community organizations who had gone above and beyond in their work and partnerships to exemplify the mission statement of NHBCA, including winners like America’s first credit union St. Mary’s Bank and the AVA Gallery in Lebanon. (go into detail here listing the winners and the raffle winners) can you help me fill this out?
While many may innately feel that the ever growing business sector and the counterculture root of artist communities are set to be diametrically opposed, NHBCA’s diligent work in connecting and fostering the bond between these two powerful structural pillars of our society shows that their collaboration can birth amazing programs, ideas, experiences and outputs. Building a team of diverse talent with unique and complementary strengths, artists backed by the tact and resource of corporations and businesses within our communities can paint waves of empathetic change and impact. With a unified effort toward enriching public spaces and lives, this panel of minds filling out the eaves of the Armory will continue shaping the cultural landscape of New Hampshire for voyage into new and bold futures ahead.
Amara Phelps has been the lead artist with Yasamin Safarzadeh LLC programming. She has written numerous articles with Manchester and Nashua InkLink about arts enrichment on the ground and has also been a lead artist teacher with Unchartered Tutoring LLC. She is the lead singer of one of NH’s best rock bands, Cozy Throne, and yes they are available for bookings.
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