Downtown Jacksonville has a problem. It has many problems, but this is big and one that many urban cores across the United States are facing. Vacant commercial property. When tenants leave, it creates a void. When many tenants leave, it creates the impression that a building is vacant or worse, abandoned. Abandoned buildings lead to abandoned districts and so it goes.

So Downtown Vision, an organization dedicated to the revitalization of Downtown Jacksonville has partnered with the Cultural Council of Jacksonville to fill the void. You see, there are many artists in Jacksonville who are long on talent but short on money. Together they created a program to match needy artist with needy space and voila, the emptiness is gone.

Naming the baby.

What do we call this thing? Well the original name was Creative Communities. Not very creative or inviting. A few months ago I get a call from Amy Crane, the Executive Director of the Cultural Council. She says, “I have a project ArtShare.” And the rest is history.

One night over beers, Harrington Design Company, (Stephanie Soden and Jeffrey Harrington) met up with some folks from Burdette Ketchum, DVI and CC at the Burrito Gallery. After tossing a dozen or so beers names around, we settled on “Off the Grid.” Wonderful. Now we need a logo and signage and invitations and ads and I’m like, ArtShare is about bringing the community in, so let’s do that.

I call on Kelly Young of Young Designs and I’m all like, “Kelly can you bang out this logo.” And she’s all like “I’d love too.”

Logo complete. Now what.

Kelly does an exceptional job as always but we have an event on March 18th and we need an invite. Enter David Lee. David totally hooks up with invite and sandwich boards. Rockin’.

So that’s what ArtShare is about.

Yep. It’s about bringing the design community and non-profit art world to make our little world a better place.

Next stop. Art with a Heart.

ArtShare is a Northeast Florida based program that connects non-profit arts organizations with the design and creative community. We are currently developing a site that will facilitate this program. Here’s a quick overview.

The Problem

Designers and Creative professionals have been offering their services to the non-profit community for many years. We give for many reasons:

• a desire to impact our community
• the need to promote ourselves and our firms
• opportunities to do really creative work

With budget shortfalls both public and private, now more than ever, we need to help one another.

The Solution

If we could make it easier for Creatives and Arts Organizations to connect, more people would do pro-bono work. If we could create a simple and professional framework for people to work together, our efforts would be more enjoyable and productive. If we could learn how each party can get most out of a pro-bono relationship, then everyone wins.

The Plan

For the past two years, we’ve outlined a program that will foster pro-bono business relationships between Designers, Creatives and non-profit Arts Organizations. Here’s how:

• Step 1: Create a contract and terms of use for participation in the program
• Step 2: Create the branding and marketing materials to promote the program
• Step 3: Create a Bill of Rights, outlining the responsibilities and rights of each party
• Step 4: Create an RFP (Request for proposal) tool to help Executive Directors define their needs and expectations
• Step 5: Create a showcase to allow Designers to present their portfolio and credentials
• Step 6: Create a means for promotion and program improvement. (Repeat as necessary)

We’re 90% complete with steps 1 and 2 and are excited to begin spreading the word.

Look for updates soon!

If you have questions, please contact me at jeff@eharrington.com.