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Art of Leadership: Nurturing Creativity and Community with Abby Becker

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BmoreArt’s Picks: January 14-20

Abby Becker is the manager of Station North Arts and Entertainment District, where she works with the Central Baltimore Partnership to activate and promote the district and expand support for local artists and businesses. I met with Becker at the newly relocated Mobtown Ballroom to learn more about her work as an arts leader, and our conversation ranged from the complexity of demands that she balances, to her origins and identity as an artist, to why art matters to us as humans.

Becker’s role in Station North ranges from strategic planning and grant writing, to activating events across the district. Through this work, she builds relationships with partners and collaborators toward uplifting the creative community and strengthening the neighborhood’s arts infrastructure. She balances all this with her own creative practice as a musician, performing with her band Cora Sone, and writing scores for original projects like Rock Operas, puppet shows, and theatre productions.

While these two sides of her work hold distinction, for Becker they are intertwined and interdependent. “I think it’s really critical to be an artist in this role,” she says. Her lived experience as an artist informs her management work, though staying dedicated to her creative practice takes intentionality. “It helps to have a project deadline like a show, or to take a class or participate in a residency. I have to be working on my own craft. I have to show up for it, and that accountability helps me. But then the challenge becomes how do I also just play for fun and try new things.”

Becker’s origins as an artist started during childhood, although she didn’t initially plan to pursue it as a profession. “My dad was a musician. I was the kid that really took up the mantle of music, but then I went to Goucher college for the Peace Studies program.”

She planned to work as a human rights lawyer or in the field of International Relations. But right after she graduated, Becker lost her father and her perspective shifted. She started writing music as a way to process her grief and move forward, and her interdisciplinary education in techniques of dialogue, conflict mediation, and philosophies of justice set the stage for her work in the arts.

“I feel in some ways that working in the arts is the most anti-capitalist field. We’re talking about a kind of production that can’t really be quantified. We monetize it, but we don’t do it because of a number,” she explains. “It’s because we’re human, and I think we need to remind ourselves that we’re not machines.”

Photo by Michael Ivan Schwartz

Art as a portal into our humanity and its anti-capitalist qualities are foundational elements of the broader Baltimore arts community as well. “Relationships and trust are the kind of cachet that this world lives on,” she says. “What I love about Baltimore is the art world is not industry driven; it’s creativity driven or driven by sheer willpower. The goal of the economy is not based around the goal of a massive profit, and so the things that you can make happen are based on your track record, and the people you know, and the people who are willing to work with you and give you a chance.”

Focusing on creativity fueled by relationships rather than profit, Becker sees artists as one of Baltimore’s biggest assets and the differentiator that really makes this city special. Though as Baltimore takes notice of its creatives and their contributions, she is acutely aware of the interesting tension at play; with the value of the city’s creative class becoming more visible, it’s harder to maintain the creativity-driven ethos. Once economic value is attached to artistic contributions, she explained, the focus becomes more profit driven.

In her work, Becker advocates for tangible resources that will support a creativity-driven ethos, like affordable housing and workspaces for artists. I asked her what the artists she’s advocating for can do to support this process, and she talked about her core value of integrity and the importance of follow through. “Do what you say you’re going to do,” she explains, “Yes, artists need to be able to think differently and be different in the world. But if you want the world to support you, you still need to have one foot on the ground.”

Becker demonstrates a commitment to artistic vision along with practical action and an ability to hold space for both structure and flexibility. She honors her individual voice while also looking beyond herself to collaborate and contribute to a greater whole.

Abby Becker at a Station North Arts Walk, photo by Lena McBean
What I love about Baltimore is the art world is not industry driven; it's creativity driven or driven by sheer willpower.
Abby Becker

Can you talk about how your role as the Manager of Station North A&E District fits into your overall identity as an artist?

As an artist in my role, I get to be an advocate. There are days when I am the person in the room saying that art is essentialnot tangentialto making a healthy, interesting, vibrant place to live, and what artists do is labor, which is deserving of compensation just like other jobs. 

What is the most important aspect of sustainability that supports you to continue this work?

I’m very intentional about my time. That looks like having strong boundaries, working efficiently, considering my projects carefully, and also giving myself time where I don’t have to do anything at all. I don’t try to be a superhuman, because I think that sets a dangerous precedent for our health and our labor practices. I’ve seen so many people burn out in the nonprofit sector, and I don’t want to do that. So, I strive to do great work, but I work the time that I’m paid for. It’s challenging to know that there is always more I could be doing, but if I made a practice of overextending myself, I’d just be reinforcing that unsustainable model which is so pervasive.

You talked about your value of integrity. What are some other defining values that are crucial to your work in the arts?

Imaginationdreaming towards the world as it could be.
Ambitiondaring to attempt great work.
Collaborationknitting people and places together.
Fair Compensationstriving towards just valuation of artist labor in a market economy and giving due credit.
Qualitydo it with excellence, make a great experience for everyone.

It was exciting to meet in the renovated Mobtown Ballroom and hear a bit about how important it’s been to you to bring Mobtown to this location. Can you share more about this huge achievement and the process that led up to it?

I knew owners, Michael and Sarah were looking for a new location, and we invited them to do a series of pop-ups during larger Station North events. Jack Danna, our Director of Commercial Revitalization, has been behind Mobtown 100%, and he deserves a ton of credit. It is very rare to be able to move new tenants into a building during the period of sale, which can take 1-2 years for a project of this scale.

We couldn’t let the building stay dark for that long, and it’s thanks to a good deal of cooperation among all parties involved that Mobtown Ballroom & Café, and Club Car as well, have been able to open.

Photo by Mollye Miller
Photo by Theresa Robertson
Photo by Side A Photography

What, if anything, has surprised you about leading and managing an A&E District?

Trying to be everything to everyone. It’s impossible.

You shared your vision of a vibrant North Avenue with a bustling entertainment scene. Can you describe a recent outing or favorite experience you’ve had in Station North where you felt aspects of that vision in play?

I was heading home from a Station North Art Walk and ran into a giant group of friends on the street. They had gone to dinner at Tapas, a film at the Charles, an improv show and were heading to check out Mobtown Ballroom and Club Car. To see people moving among these spaces, to see people on the streetthere is a point where you get this critical mass of energy and it’s just beautiful. 

What exciting projects do you have on the horizon that we should keep an eye out for?

Personally, I’m making my first full-length album with my band Cora Sone. I’m also excited about new, monthly second Friday Station North Art Walks! The coolest thing about this is that it’s being led by our local venues and artists, with Beth-Ann Wilson (Night Owl Gallery) leading the charge. Come out every second Friday, 5 – 9PM. We’ll have a digital map posted on social media and on our website.  

What else is important for BmoreArt readers to know about you?

Say hi to me! Ask me about my jacket collection.

 

Photo by JPG Industry

Header image by Theresa Robertson

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