Barbara Floch's studio in the Delavan building on Syracuse's Westside is filled. From wall to wall, materials like sea glass, aluminum cans, and napkins occupy the space. She uses them to create upcycled jewelry, decorative glassware, and greeting cards among other things.
"I've been making stuff since probably, well, since I was a kid. My mom was just really into making stuff, arts and crafts, sewing, cooking and baking, that kind of stuff. So it just has always been a part of my life," said Floch.
The retired occupational therapist is one of many creators in the Delavan Studios. She's been in the Syracuse creative scene for decades, and it's changed over the years.
There are more pop-up markets, like Shop Small Sunday at Salt City Market. Storefronts like Wildflowers Armory and McCarthy Mercantileoffer additional local space for artists to sell their works. And there are more organizations to support artists, like the Black Artist Collective.
"I think there's a lot more openness for people to be creating and getting it out there. It's not as cut and dry, you know, what people are making. I mean, even during the assault market show, I've seen people really gravitate towards those shows because they want to really support people that are locally making things," said Floch.
According to an analysisdone by the American Independent Business Alliance, 48% of each purchase at a local business is recirculated back into the local economy. That's compared to less than 14% of a purchase at a chain store.
The direct benefits of purchasing and supporting local art businesses are clear. But, Black Artist Collective co-founder Cjala Surratt says that there are indirect benefits, too: A thriving creative community can help bigger businesses.
"I had the opportunity to sit down with some of the larger industries here, and they were saying 'We can compete. We can compete in salary. We can compete in health. We can do all that, but it's the 'quality of life components' that we're competing against for New York City, Boston, Chicago, etc. So, what are you doing, arts sector, to help attract people?'" said Surratt.
"I think getting those people who are in the urban development, economic development sectors to make sure that we're at the table, particularly here where there is a symbiotic relationship."
Policymakers have known how the arts help attract businesses for years.A 2009 report by the National Governor’s Association identified a strong creative sector as a key component for state’s economic development and competitiveness. According to the NGA’s Arts and Economy report, when businesses are choosing locations, they often look for a place with a strong quality of life. Which they say arts and cultural assets are key in providing.
But in order to have a strong arts sector, art and creative fields need to be accessible, viable careers.
"There's still if this propensity not to pay artists, and it's an ongoing conversation and frustration that has nothing to do with race or background. It's rather frustrating. I've run into it in the past month or so where there's this desire to give artists visibility or build their resume. And I'm like, 'Yeah, but they have to eat,'" said Surrat.
Surratt said being a creator is very much a gig economy in the Syracuse area. Many artists are doing their creative work in addition to another job.
On top of that, the pandemic wasparticularly tough on artists. There are initiatives at the state and local level aim to help the creative community recover. Creatives Rebuild New York recently began distributing $1,000 monthly payments to 2,400 artists across the state. CNY Artsis regranting $1 million to creative endeavors across six counties.
However, Surratt said more needs to be done to create a truly thriving creative sector.
"I understand the conundrum. In Syracuse, New York where we have levels of child poverty that exceed other areas in the United States. We have levels of lead poisoning that exceed Flint, Michigan. When you're sitting in a room asking for arts funding, there are those who would say, 'Well, why don't you give into this endeavor?' and my answer is, 'We have two hands, right?' We can do both. We can find those dollars to support these things that are social challenges. We can also make sure that there are creative outlets for individuals as well," said Surratt.
Local artists may get a spotlight during the the holiday season, but they're creating year round. And as they do, advocates will continue their efforts to get local leaders to recognize the arts key role in future economic development.
