Xácara's plan to help artists fundraise

When Montserrat Fuentes Romero graduated from university, she faced the same challenge a lot of other artists and creative people do: How do you actually build a career doing what you love?

“We don’t learn until we are outside, in the real world, while trying to share our projects, our art,” Romero explained to us. “That’s when it became clear to me—these are the skills I need to work on.”

Moving out of the structure of education is a pivotal point in an artist's journey, as they trade the closeness of studio groups and teachers for the prestigious—and often intimidating—institutions that can make and break careers in the arts. No one knows who you are, and with hundreds of others clambering for the same opportunities, it’s as important to know how to talk and write about your work as it is to do it. 

Romero is now the Director of Xácara, a non-profit that supports arts, culture and social justice projects with a focus on Latin American artists in the UK that is among the grantees of The Supporting Act Foundation. Xácara’s team also includes artists Minerva Bolaños, Developer of Arts & Gender Projects, and Rosario Bellolio, Arts Manager and Special Advisor. Together, they aim to help artists build tangible skills and real-world knowledge. With Xácara, “we started building a bridge”, Romero explains, “a bridge connecting artists, projects and communities.”

Q&A session hosted for RecaudArt programme with special guest Luke Moore from Arts Council England.

Her own experience was shaped not just by moving out of education, but relocating from Mexico City to Cuba and then the UK, hence the focus of Xácara on the Latin American diaspora. While Romero’s own journey was difficult at times, this drives her to want to help others: “it shouldn’t be so hard, and since I’ve learned along the way, I am very happy to be able to share that with other people.”

A recent demonstration of this work includes the successful launch of RecaudArt, a programme to teach migrant artists in the UK how to fundraise. Over the course of one month, 13 artists of varying disciplines—from cinema to painting and dancing—attended a series of workshops and talks that guided them through the process of finding and securing grant funding. Each artist was Latin American, and the selection from an open call prioritized women, the LGBTQ community and those with socially driven practices. In the short time since completion, a handful of the group have already been successful with applications. And due to funding from The Supporting Act Foundation, everyone's participation was totally free.

While the first edition is under wraps, Romero and the rest of the Xácara team, including Adam Walsh, Software Architect and Developer, are already making plans for how to improve it. “We would like to invite lawyers and accountants as guest speakers,” she says, “which is something we didn’t think about at the beginning but it’s going to be super beneficial.” Surveys with the participants also captured a range of feedback, such as how the creative cohort especially liked the practical exercises, and the important role guest speakers played in demystifying how the arts worked.

Montserrat Fuentes Romero during session with RecaudArt team.

Yet the hope is that RecaudArt has a long-lasting impact beyond its one-year cycle: ”when it’s completed, it’s not just goodbye forever; people remain in contact with each other, and have a community of people to share ideas with so they can support each other.”

Part of the impetus for the programme was Romero’s understanding of the professionalized nature of fundraising today, especially in the UK. “When I moved here, I discovered fundraising was its own kind of art,” Romero reflects. “Fundraisers have degrees, training and certifications; institutions employ people to focus on this one thing. Yet, in my experience, we don’t have that in Mexico in the same way, it’s less formal.”

The challenge Romero felt then is something she regularly sees in other artists: a crisis of confidence. It was intimidating to apply for opportunities and grants, or even to network with others in the arts, especially at an early phase of your career. Things become all the more difficult when English is your second language, as is the case for the UK’s diverse creative community.

Snippet from RecaudArt report.

Many of the conversations during the RecaudArt programme revolved around how to translate artistic ideas in a way which would be compelling for others, whether that’s in the dry and serious format of a grant application or how to express yourself on social media. Sometimes, Romero pointed out, artists hope “the work will speak for itself” so they won’t need to do anything for promotion, yet she thinks institutions play a really positive role in creating community around art. “I think it’s important that everyone thinks about it like a natural and organic collaboration.”

So how do you bring creative ideas out of your own head and put them into the world? The most common mistake is to not apply at all. “Many people are too scared to even ask. The worst thing that can happen is to receive a ‘no’, which can feel really bad” admits Romero. Yet she also turns her attention to ways that institutions could be more generous and supportive. “It begins with being friendly.” Official language and complicated processes can be off-putting, especially to inexperienced artists. And the lack of feedback can be confusing, especially when people pour so much time, energy and hope into an application. “We are in a country that is changing, with multiple communities from many different backgrounds. More could be done to give people the same chances, to make things more fair.”

To create a really successful application means giving yourself the time to properly think through what you plan to do, Romero advises, and if possible, share it with a friend—you might be surprised what isn’t clear. It’s essential to be easily understood by the person who will make the decision, and also for it to follow the guidance of the grant itself. And when outlining a budget, artists often forget to pay themselves, or to account for additional costs or overspending, meaning they lose money on the project: Be as pragmatic as possible with your budget.

Crucial to Romero’s process for writing grants is about finding ways to stay confident. “At the beginning, I found it easier to write in Spanish and then translate it back into English.” While this takes more time, it’s “a lot of pressure” to try and translate your artistic ideas into an application, and to turn your thinking from one language into another. “I always recommend people give themselves time. You will get there in the end.”