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Basebuilding

The Artist Power Building School was a home to support artists, arts collectives, and organizations in New York State and across the country to spread knowledge about economic justice and foster base-building within the guaranteed income movement.

2024 Artist Power Building School Fellows

Azure' Kauikeolani Iversen-Keahi

Azure' Kauikeolani Iversen-Keahi
(Capital Region, Social Practice)

"My experience allowed me the realization that freedom and the financial support of my creative expression was a key capacity builder for me to be a stronger and more fulfilled community member, organizer, artist and parent. The positive impacts of guaranteed income on the individual will feeds into collective well-being and functionality."

Chemareea Biggs

Chemareea Biggs
(New York City, Interdisciplinary Arts)

"Guaranteed Income are the words I had been looking for to describe the financial beliefs I had been talking about in undergrad Studio Art with my peers. The future of the movement includes myself and others that don’t even know about it, and I think it is attainable if enough work is done and maintained."

Clarissa Spiller

Clarissa Spiller
(Western New York, Music)

"As a musician, artist and caregiver, I understand income inequality and know that not all social programs are able to fully meet the needs of disadvantaged people. Guaranteed income acts as a safety net that provides all people equity to succeed."

Columbine Macher

Columbine Macher
(New York City, Dance)

"The large number of CRNY applicants highlights the urgent need for Guaranteed Income (GI). While grants and arts-related work like education are valuable, GI offers a crucial safety net without the subjective lens of merit, providing much-needed financial stability for artists."

Gabrielle Wedderburn

Gabrielle Wedderburn
(Central New York, Literary Arts)

"The future of Guaranteed Income is incredibly important! Not only does it raise a standard of living, once the burden and trauma of money scarcity is lifted, people are able to show up in the world in more conscious and helpful ways!"

Iya Brenda-Espinosa

Iya Brenda-Espinosa
(Finger Lakes, Oral Traditions)

"The CRNY artist grant program helped me change my life circumstances, which in turn, assisted me in returning full-on as an artist, and opened up a world of opportunity for me. I want to help other artists and serve as a powerful testimony and empowerment for others to know the impact GI has on artists and those who are underrepresented."

Jacinta Bunnell

Jacinta Bunnell
(Mid-Hudson, Visual Arts)

"The multi-pronged support which I have received from CRNY in the past 2 years leaves me with an enthusiasm to stay connected to this type of work."

Jacqueline Moncada

Jacqueline Moncada
(Long Island, Visual Arts)

"The value of collaboration and working together to bring art to the community I feel is incredibly necessary at this time in our world today and I want stand and be apart of that in any ways I can offer and am needed."

Kara Fan

Kara Fan
(New York City, Craft)

"I believe that artists’ work is important to bring us to the future. Creative thinking is necessary to create a future that we are all dying to see."

Mars Abrahamsen

Mars Abrahamsen
(Capital Region, Visual Arts)

"So many people in my community, including myself, struggle financially. We have so many beautiful things we want to make and do artistically, but can't afford to because we have to spend all of our time working for other people to barely get the bills paid. Guaranteed income can change that by helping people like us make basic means so we can pursue something more beautiful and larger than ourselves."

Peggy Robles-Alvarado

Peggy Robles-Alvarado
(New York City, Literary Arts)

"My work is deeply rooted in the Bronx, a borough that has been systemically disadvantaged and ignored for far too long, and my non-profit arts organization serves Bronx artists who deserve support and meaningful change."

SassaCyprigo

SassaCyprigo
(New York City, Craft)

"In a Capitalist Society we need money to live. It should not be so hard and definitely not a privilege. Everyone should have the basics to thrive."

Yaching Cheung

Yaching Cheung
(New York City, Interdisciplinary Arts)

"As an artist, most of the work we do is about speaking in our own voices, but also about creating a better environment for everyone to make works."

sol (sol/they/elle)

sol (sol/they/elle)
(Southern Tier, Literary Arts)

"Before we get to the future, what connects us to each other? What do we need to remember about how we survive together? How can guaranteed income & reparations weave webs of safety & possibility that support our collective liberation?"

Antoinette Scott “Toni”

Antoinette Scott “Toni”
(Western New York, Traditional Arts)

"Experience - Creativity - Ideas - Shared Experiences - These are only a few things any artist could bring to the Guaranteed Income Movement."

Marcos de Jesús

Marcos de Jesús
(New York City, Music)

"My CRNY experience has shown me how a universal job guarantee and guaranteed basic income are complementary, rather than conflicting policy options. For many independent artists, the best option could be a hybrid of both."

Kenneth McQueen

Kenneth McQueen
(New York City, Design)

"The future of the movement is important to me because guaranteed income helps to solve the economic injustices of the world."

Brigitte Williams

Brigitte Williams
(Long Island, Music)

"As a youngster, the arts, music to be exact, was a significant tool that was used to save my life. It was my way of staying alive and not allowing the negative environment I was living in to hinder my growth, finding success or causing anything adverse to happen. It was my safe haven and I hope to empower others to express themselves through the creative arts."

Devika Chandnani

Devika Chandnani
(New York City, Dance)

"If it means making more artists feel secure in a way that I felt, I want to invest my time and effort in making that happen."

Cultural Organizing Projects

As a part of the fellowship, artists had the opportunity to develop their own cultural organizing projects. Individual and collaborative projects wove together learning from the workshops, the importance of the guaranteed income movement, and personal artistry.

Click on each image to view full size, and to see caption and credit details.
A selection of cultural organizing projects that artists created as part of their fellowship.

Power Building School Workshops

A central feature of the Artist Power Building School was a four-part workshop series, open to all guaranteed income artists and geared toward the artist fellows, that ran from June through December 2024. The Power Building School Workshops were an opportunity for artist fellows to gather together, think through the theory and history behind the program they had been a part of, and learn about the movement at large.

The Economy, Our Labor, and the Case for Guaranteed Income

featuring Dr. Francisco Perez at Economics 4 Emancipation and Chelsea Wilkinson at Income Movement

This workshop introduced artists to the idea of the commodity and different ways of understanding economic systems, and to understand the fellowship in the tradition of NWRO, CETA, WPA, and the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

Policy Change Through Grassroots Organizing + Movement Building

featuring Rebecca Bailin at New Yorkers United for Child Care

This workshop located guaranteed income and artistry in conversations about movement building; how to be a leader and a part of a community at once, and to work with others to achieve policy goals.

How To Shift the Narrative with Key GI Messages

featuring the Economic Security Project

This workshop explored how artists can be strong leaders and storytellers in the guaranteed income movement by using effective messaging.

Art, Social Justice, and Cultural Organizing

featuring the Laundromat Project

This workshop gathered to learn the principles of cultural organizing—and to deepen an understanding of policy and praxis in artist community projects.

Political Education Partners

Creatives Rebuild New York supported the following organizations with political education grants to support existing solidarity-economy leaning arts collectives and organizations in deepening their understanding of and becoming champions for guaranteed income, to increase the spread and use of the Everyone Is Essential! curriculum, and to learn more about each others’ political approaches to this collective base-building effort.

Indie Space, Inc.

Springboard for the Arts

The Waymakers Collective

Income Movement Foundation

Anticapitalism for Artists

Related Content

Related Pages

Overview

Guaranteed Income for Artists
An overview of CRNY's Guaranteed Income Program including the program timeline, guidelines, and key resources.

Working Group

Guaranteed Income Research
CRNY convened peers and colleagues leading other guaranteed income for artists programs around the world. Together we identified five areas where strategically aligned action between the guaranteed income and arts sectors can help advance the guaranteed income movement’s goals.

NYS Cash Alliance

Advocacy Infrastructure
Creatives Rebuild New York founded the New York State Cash Alliance alongside over 20 member organizations collaboratively leading the way for unrestricted cash policies across the state.
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