NEMAA 10X10: Putting the "fun" back in fundraiser

Artist Alison Price is an idea person. “I just come up with wild ideas and then I try to talk people into it,” she says. “That’s my thing.” 

An artist who works mostly in abstraction, Price creates highly textured paintings. She was featured on Minnesota Original last year, and received the Judge’s Choice awards at a recent competition at the Hallberg Center for the Arts in Wyoming. 

She’s also got a knack for coming up with creative exhibition ideas. For instance, she has organized the SweetArt Salon des Refusés, (“that’s the Wintertide rejects,” she says, referring to NEMAA's juried biennial). She also has done a similar Refusés show for artists that didn’t get into the State Fair Fine Art exhibition, called Salon des Refusés on a Stick.

Price is also a member of NEMAA — the Northeast Minneapolis Arts Association, the nonprofit responsible for nearly 25 consecutive Art-A-Whirls, among other events — and her latest idea is a fundraiser for the organization. 

“As a full-time practicing artist, I get asked to donate work all the time to great causes, and I’m happy to do so,” Price says. “But why don’t we donate to our own cause this time?” 

Price found inspiration in Art 4 Shelter’s annual art fundraiser, where artists donate small works to raise money for Simpson Housing Services. “I thought, we could do something like that,” Price says. “With Art 4 Shelter, artists are donating to a very worthy cause. Here we are also donating to a very worthy cause, which is ourselves.” 

It’s a flip from what is normally asked of artists. “Artists tend to be really generous by nature, and this is actually helping ourselves succeed and thrive and making sure that Art-A-Whirl is well funded for 2020,” Price says. 

Price also thought of the Foot in the Door exhibition at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, where once every 10 years, artists from all around the state submit works of art that fit within one cubic foot. 

Her mind started churning, thinking about how NEMAA could take a similar approach, and she brought the idea to Anna Becker, NEMAA’s Executive Director, who was immediately on board. NEMAA 10X10 was born. 

“These ideas just happen,” says Price, “and I love how nimble and organic and fresh our board is, and our volunteers, that they just kind of jumped right in.”

NEMAA artist members building excitement for the inaugural 10x10 show.

Becker came up with the idea that the fundraiser could double as the organization’s fall arts show. “Since we’re not doing a fall fine arts show,” Becker says, “we wanted to do an event that shows the range and diversity of artists that live and work in Northeast, and also fundraise for us and do something really cool and fun.” 

In the past, NEMAA has hosted a fall event called Fall Fine Arts, later renamed Autumn Northeast. “We weren’t going to be able to do Autumn Northeast because it’s hard to find space for 150 works of art,” Becker says. “Especially because it’s supposed to be a survey of all of our artists, and we’ve got 800 artist members.” 

For 10X10, each NEMAA member is invited to donate one or more pieces of work which have to fit in a 10x10" cube. “So if a jeweler has a pair of earrings, or a sculptor has a small maquette or a mockup — things like that can be donated,” Price says. “This could be a sketch, this could be a prototype, this could be a small work — some kind of creative spark they are willing to share. Then we will show them all at the Northrup King building in Gallery 332 and each will be for sale for $35.” 

With no labels on the walls, attendees of the fundraiser won't know who made the art; they will only find out after they purchase. According to Becker, it’s a chance to use social media to amplify the name of the artists and the works, by adding an element of surprise. 

“It’s kind of a mystery show,” Becker says. “People come in, and they see all this work and they pick something they love, or they pick something that really moves them. They may come in and pick an artist they follow already, but the idea is you choose something solely on this connection you have to it.” 

NEMAA members in their studios in the Northrup King Building, Casket Arts Building, and California Building.

Becker said what’s great about 10X10 is that it’s accessible. “This is for people that love art, love following art, and who don’t have any art,” she says. “So at the end of the night, there are going to be hundreds of pieces of original artwork that are going to find homes.” 

NEMAA artists are still in the process of donating their pieces, but Becker and Price say the work will be a mix of established artists and emerging members. There are also donations from the new Studio 400, a Public Functionary project led by artist Leslie Barlow, which is a space for emerging artists of color and marginalized artists. 

10X10 won’t have an admission fee, but there is a preview hour prior to the event, where attendees get first dibs on the artwork — tickets cost $50 and come with a free beverage at the bar. Other than that, all of the works will be available on a first-come, first-served basis throughout the one-night event. KFAI will be on hand to provide some DJ tunes, and there will be a cash bar throughout the evening. 

NEMAA boasts over 800 artist members, located everywhere from the flagship studio buildings in Northeast to at-home studios in, around, and far beyond the Twin Cities.

NEMAA 10x10 takes place from 5-9 pm on Saturday, September 21, at the Northrup King Building, 1500 Jackson St., NE. Preview 4-5pm: $50, free after 5 p.m. More info at nemaa.org.