The Baker Artist Portfolios and Awards, the Baltimore-born prize and online portfolio platform that gives artists working in Baltimore City and its five surrounding counties a free, professional home for their work—and distributes $90,000 in prize money each year to artists across disciplines from visual art and photography to film, literary, performing, and interdisciplinary practice—is changing homes. After 19 years under the administration of the Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance (GBCA), the program, including the Baker Artist website and annual Awards Program, is transitioning to Creative Alliance.
The move comes as GBCA announced it will sunset this year, a development that sent a wave of concern through Baltimore’s arts community and, for the Baker program specifically, sped up a transition that had already been in the works. That timing has left plenty of artists wondering what happens next. “Numerous artists reached out after the announcement about GBCA wanting to know what will happen with the Baker Artist Program,” said David London, Director of the William G. Baker, Jr, Memorial Fund (Baker Fund). “I am happy to report that the program will continue and will become embedded within the new host organization.”
“It is both an honor and a genuine joy for Creative Alliance to partner with the Baker Fund, an organization that shares our deep belief that artists deserve not only recognition, but meaningful opportunities to grow, thrive and sustain their creative lives,” said Jason Steer, executive director of Creative Alliance. “Together, we are strengthening a community of artists across Baltimore and Maryland and affirming something central to our mission: when we invest in artists, we invest in the cultural future of our entire region.”
Connie Imboden, president of the William G. Baker, Jr. Memorial Fund, speaks of Creative Alliance with admiration. “Our new partnership with Creative Alliance will ensure that the Baker Artist Portfolios and Awards Programs will not only continue to serve artists through online portfolios, exhibitions and awards, but also unlock new opportunities and possibilities for the Baltimore region’s incredible artist community,”
Imboden speaks of resources as one of the draws: “When looking for a new partner, Creative Alliance was a perfect fit. It has such a long-term commitment to supporting artists and so many resources and opportunities at its disposal. It felt like the perfect place to build on our many existing relationships in the community and we get to tap into their brilliant staff, who all bring their own area of expertise to the Baker Artist program.”
London was careful to credit the organization that managed the program since 2008. “GBCA was the original and founding partner for the Baker Artist Portfolios and Awards Program,” London said. “Everything that the Baker Artist program has been for the past 19 years has been under the purview and direction of the Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance. There, it grew literally from the seed of an idea to what it is today. These were innovative ideas about how artists might present themselves to the world, in the future. And here we are in the future, and it’s still relevant, it’s still user-friendly, it still has a place within the Baltimore community and within the larger worldwide arts ecosystem.”
London spent over a decade working on The Baker Artist Portfolios and Awards during his tenure at GBCA. During that time, the program grew from an awards program with online submissions and an annual exhibition at the BMA, to a year-round program including events, showcases, exhibitions, and opportunities not just for awardees, but for all artists who create a Baker Portfolio.
London is now Director of The Baker Fund, which not only supports Baltimore’s artists through the Baker Artist Awards, but also provides over $1 million in annual support to the Baltimore region’s arts and culture organizations for operating support, capacity building, and innovative projects. The Baker Artist Portfolios and Awards represent just under 20% of the Fund’s annual giving.
Next year also happens to mark the 20th anniversary of the Baker Artist program — a milestone that will now be celebrated under a new roof.
So what does the move actually change for artists day to day? Less than you might think, according to Alix Fenhagen, who continues to manage the program under its new home. “Much of what I do will stay the same, but there are more people to help support the work, and more importantly, the artists,” she said. “There’ll be a whole other team to help people with issues getting their work up on their portfolios or accessing their accounts.”
She also pointed to new opportunities for Baker artists to plug into Creative Alliance’s existing programming and physical space. “There is so much programming, spaces, and creative events that are already happening there, which overlap with the program’s goals — and the ability for Baker artists to tap into and become a part of that is really exciting for me.” This may include exhibitions, readings, or performances at Creative Alliance, alongside in-person opportunities to connect with other Baker artists working on their portfolios side by side.
Practical details — email addresses, points of contact — will shift, but continuity is the priority. “The ability to contact me will be just as easy, and there’ll also be another email that will enable people to get support on issues that come up all the time,” Alix said. The team is also revising parts of the portfolio-building process that have historically tripped up artists new to the site.
Artists have been asking the obvious questions, wondering how to find out about the awards. Alix’s answer was direct: “Anyone who has a Baker Artist portfolio or has had a Baker Artist portfolio, we know who you are and we will communicate with you.” Bakerartist.org is also still open, and new artists can start their portfolios at any time. Baker’s dormant social media accounts will also be relaunched in the coming weeks, and artists are encouraged to follow Creative Alliance’s own channels in the meantime for updates and deadlines.
Beyond continuity, the move also brings artists access to Baker technology that’s already been quietly tested. The Opportunity Portal lets partner organizations find and recruit artists, who can apply using their existing Baker portfolio as a work sample — it’s already been used by The Parkway and, over the summer, by WTMD for First Thursdays. A companion Juror Portal aims to cut down on administrative busywork for artists applying to opportunities. And new community landing pages will let approved groups — a MICA alumni network, an arts district, a Creative Alliance member cohort — get their own page on the Baker site spotlighting portfolio artists who share that affiliation.
As for timing: September is the transition month, as branding, content, and messaging shift over. Baker and Creative Alliance are targeting October 1st to officially launch the 2026/ 2027 Baker Season along with a kickoff event and info sessions for artists , with a deadline set for January 29, 2027 for artists who wish to create or update their portfolio to be considered for a 2027 Baker Artist Awards.
For now, the message from Baker’s team is simple: the program isn’t going anywhere. It’s just getting a new home, with excellent people behind it.
