Springboard For The Arts

🫂 Applications are now open for the Rural Regenerator Fellowship! Artists, culture bearers, and makers are essential to the future of rural places—and to the ways those places help our society develop and build new systems or policies that are human-centered, equitable, and resilient. For this Fellowship cycle, we will support 6 artists who are organizing their rural places for care, safety, and solidarity. Fellowship benefits include: - An unrestricted award of $15,000 - 1 in-person retreat with fellows - $3,000 to support travel for Fellow Exchanges, and the opportunity to attend and present at Springboard’s Rural Futures Summit - The 2026-28 Fellowship will take place over 18 months (September 2026 - March 2028). Apply by midnight CST on June 18, 2026 at the link in our bio. New this year – you can also nominate an artist! We invite peers, collaborators, and supporters to nominate a rural artist they’d love to see apply to the Rural Regenerator Fellowship. Nomination is NOT required to apply, but aimed at helping our community encourage applicants they think are a good fit, and reach people who may not know about the program. #ruralregenerator #fellowships #rural #springboardarts

We’re seeking Springboard’s next Executive Director! After 21 years of leadership, Laura Zabel is beginning a new chapter and passing the baton to a new Executive Director. Springboard’s Board of Directors and staff have been working closely throughout this transition, collaborating with the Minnesota-based team at 8 Bridges Workshop to guide the executive search. Now, we are pleased to open applications for Springboard’s next leader. The Executive Director provides overall leadership and strategy for Springboard, and serves as a visible advocate for artists. They report to a 9-12 member Board of Directors, lead a 21-member hybrid staff based in offices in Saint Paul and Fergus Falls, MN, and manage the operating budget of over $5 million and more than $14 million in net assets. Springboard’s mission is to support artists with the tools to make a living and a life, and to build just and equitable communities full of meaning, joy, and connection.Equity is foundational to Springboard’s work, whose priority communities include Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQIA+ artists, artists with disabilities, and artists living in rural places and underinvested urban neighborhoods. Applications will be accepted through June 2, 2026. Learn more and apply at the link in our bio and Stories. #springboardarts #minnesota #byartists #forartists

A moment of transition at Springboard for the Arts, with a personal announcement from Executive Director Laura Zabel (comic illustrated by Sophie Wang, @shufshenwang ):
 After 21 years at Springboard for the Arts, it’s time for me to pass the baton to a new Executive Director. 
For me, this transition is an investment in the long-term durability of Springboard and an opportunity to pursue new (but still related!) goals and dreams. After nearly a year of planning, in July I’ll be moving to a new position leading some national projects that we’ve started at Springboard (more on that later!)
 I never imagined this transition would take place in the wake of a federal occupation and the community crisis we have experienced. Alongside my fear, rage, and heartbreak, I am so proud to be a part of Minnesota’s creative community. Artists have been on the frontlines of this crisis and are vital to the safety, repair, and healing of our communities. This is what we mean when we say artists are essential. Springboard’s commitment to artists and our communities is unwavering. Our work, including our work to respond and support the emergency needs of our community, will continue undeterred and uninterrupted. 
I am more certain than ever that the bedrock local organizations—the hubs and homes for artists that exist across the country—will help us build a better future for our communities. This is why we launched the Creative Change Coalition, and this is the work and the future I will be building. 
Our incredible board has established a search committee and will be sharing updates as the process takes shape. Springboard’s values of collaboration, equity, and abundance will be embedded in the search every step of the way. 
It has been an honor, and my joy, to lead Springboard for 21 years. I truly don’t have the words to express how grateful I am for the opportunity to tend and grow this ecosystem of support for creativity and culture. 
Thank you to every artist, partner, and community member who has been a part of this journey. Here’s to what’s next. 
 - Laura Zabel

Hire artists for neighborhood placemaking, not advertising firms! @laurazabel from @springboardarts shared how funding pop up art projects outpaced the Twin City’s advertising firms in positive media impressions during the contentious Green Line construction in the Rondo neighborhood @nwmichiganarts Summit! #nwmiarts #arts #northernmichigan

🌻 This Wednesday, May 13 from 5:30-7pm at Springboard in Fergus Falls - come meet the three generations of women behind The Flower Mill & Stained – A Glass Art Studio (@fergusflowermill & @stainedff ) at our next Made Here gathering! And if you need a spot of fresh springtime in your home, Brittanni, Courtney, Leanne, and Lennon will also be offering these gorgeous batches of flowers! Stop by to meet this family of makers and support locally made art! #springboardarts #minnesota #fergusfalls

🌻 This month at Springboard in Fergus Falls! We’re delighted to share that the three generations of women behind The Flower Mill & Stained – A Glass Art Studio (@fergusflowermill & @stainedff ) in downtown Fergus Falls are our featured makers for this month’s Made Here! That’s Brittanni and Courtney Smith, Leanne Meis (Courtney’s mom), and Lennon Smith (Courtney and Brittanni’s daughter). Stop by to meet this family of artists! ☕ And then on Friday, May 15, come craft and cowork with us at our next Creative Community Coffee Club. These monthly gatherings have been a real highlight for us, we love hanging out with our creative neighbors! Events are free and open to the public. Explore our full calendar at the link in our bio. #springboardarts #Fergusfalls #minnesota

📢 Interested in learning about how you can use your art to fuel and inspire social change? We’re talking about just that later this month! Join us on Thursday, May 21 from 6:00 - 7:30pm for our next virtual Ask Me Anything conversation with local artists Sarah Johnson and Sophie Wang! Sarah and Sophie will share how they balance their own creative vision with the needs and ideas of their neighbors, what they’ve learned through their projects, and how art can be a powerful tool for organizing, engagement, and addressing local challenges. Sarah Johnson (she/they) is a community-engaged multimedia artist and trained mental health professional (Licensed Professional Counselor) with many years experience in prevention, mental health, art, and community building. Sarah is leading change locally & in the national Y Movement, taking mental health out of the clinic and into the community to build health equity for all. Sarah founded The Joy Labs, LLC in 2021 and is working to build connected, healthy, resilient communities. Sophie Wang is an artist, researcher, and educator based in the Twin Cities. She makes prints, zines, and comics that bring a critical power lens to science, technology, epistemology, and knowledge-making, as well as other themes like labor history, queerness, and immigration. Some topics include exclusion in science museums and how worker communities at the Port of LA have resisted displacement by AI and automation. Her artistic goal is to incite people to ask questions about processes or knowledge that they may have not known that they could (and should!) ask questions about. (P.S., Sophie created the "What's in a Watershed" zine pictured on the first slide. You can pick up a copy at Springboard!). This event is free to public and open to all, and will moderated by Michele Anderson, Rural Director of Springboard for the Arts. Sign up to attend at the link in our bio. #springboardarts #creativepeoplepower #minnesota #byartists #forartists

🫂 We were so glad to spend the day in community at our first What’s Brewing gathering last month to talk about mutual aid. Thanks to Springboarder and @birchwoodpalace ’s Andy Sturdevant for supporting the conversation, @heycardo , @juliagay72 , and Erika Hernandez for organizing, our neighbors @flavacafemn for hosting us, and everyone who came out to connect and share. Let’s do it again, soon! #creativecommunity #byartists #forartists

💻 Coming up on Tuesday, May 19 — artist/instructor Anniessa Antar will be leading a virtual workshop all about artist websites. Anniessa will share a big picture view of the components of an artist website, how to find clarity on whether you need a website, and the basics of creating one if you decide that yes, you do! No prior website or website design experience required, come with your questions and wonderings! Anniessa Antar (she/they) is a software engineer, educator, and cultural organizer. She has worked at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Saint Catherine University, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, and with organizations such as Mizna, Confluence: An East Lake Studio for Community Design, the Minnesota Marine Art Museum and the School for Poetic Computation. Her practices center on the power of creative, playful, and collective work to confront and heal systemic oppression. This workshop is free and open to artists of all mediums. Sign up at the link in our bio. #springboardarts #artistresources #byartists #forartists

☀️ Happy May Day! What’s next at Springboard: resource workshops for artists, local artist spotlight in Fergus Falls, and artist-led conversations on writing/publishing and using art as a tool for community change. View our full calendar at the link in our bio. See you soon. #springboardarts #minnesota #artistled #artistsareessential

🎤 Tonight Springboard staff is kicking off our staff retreat by cheering on Fergus Falls’ @christungseth on @americanidol ! Help him make it to the top 5 by voting for him: you can vote on any of American Idols social platforms or text “17” to 21523

🦦 Today in Fergus Falls - Minnesota artist @zoemae.art is taking over our office for an afternoon of live painting and creative connection at this month’s Creative Community Coffee Club from 10am-noon. Stop by to shop Zoe’s artwork and spend the day with us at Springboard! Coffee and light refreshments provided. ☕️ #mnartist #fergusfalls #springboardarts