C4 Atlanta

A Brief History of C4 Atlanta

C4 Atlanta incorporated as a nonprofit in July, 2010. Before forming what was to become C4 Atlanta, the team spent hundreds of hours conducting an environmental scan of local and national arts services. Through this market analysis, the C4 Atlanta team determined that there existed a need within the community for business development services specifically designed with the artist in mind.

The C4 Atlanta Action Team began this endeavor under some of the worst possible economic conditions we faced in our lifetimes. Businesses in nearly every sector were hemorrhaging jobs, and the Atlanta region was among the unfortunate leaders in this race to the bottom.

In 2011, we streamlined our programs to focus primarily on arts professionals. We developed a series of “core” professional development offerings by 2012, and we began operating a shared work space for artists and small, creative businesses. Between 2013 and 2015, we experience exponential growth in terms of both services and capacity. Our capacity continues to grow each year with the addition of staff members and paid, working artists to facilitate classes. In 2015, the C4 Atlanta Board of Directors added advocacy for arts workers as a resource we provide the field. Over the next several years, we will continue to reach out to artists and creative professionals for feedback, integrate feedback, and strive to maintain the highest of professional offerings. 

Our mission reflects the core areas of challenges C4 Atlanta will address within the arts and culture community. The mission also leverages our core competencies as a team, board and business partners within Atlanta, and nationally.

Our mission will continue to evolve over time — and we hope the evolution will be expansive. Today, our service area is the metro Atlanta region. In addition to strengthening our existing core competencies, we hope to develop new competencies so that we continue to serve the needs of Atlanta’s arts community.

Core Values

As an organization focused on arts entrepreneurship, C4 Atlanta, above all else, respects the working artist. Artists should always be compensated for the work they perform, whether the compensation is monetary or in bartered form.         

C4 Atlanta values learning and reflection from all of its stakeholders. We share knowledge openly and constructively. In all the professional development opportunities we offer, we facilitate the learning process more than we teach.

For many artists the perfect combination of circumstances, connections, knowledge, financial stability or other support and resources comes too late for action or production to occur.  Individuals have the power to transform communities.  Each of our stakeholders – the staff, members, directors, volunteers, donors and others – can be a change agent in the arts community in Metro Atlanta.

Sustainability is not enough.  Many artists face great challenges to their livelihoods throughout their careers.  We strive to help artists surpass sustainability so that they can focus on what’s important – making art – through building resiliency within our organization and offerings.

True arts advocacy does not always come in the form of a knight in shining armor, and true arts leadership does not come with the power to move money. Every artist has the power within to become a transformative leader. The best arts advocacy lies in the power of the artist to transform people, businesses and whole communities.