Milton Art Center (MAC) recently received a grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council to help plan the launch of a community supported art (CSArt) program which will promote local artists by bringing their art into the hands of community members through a model based on community supported agriculture.

Over the last 20 years, community supported agriculture has become a popular way for consumers to buy seasonal food directly from local farms. The community support art (CSArt) initiative is a fun twist on the community supported agriculture model. But rather than receive produce, fish, or dairy — community members buy “shares” to become “shareholders” and receive original artworks by local artists. The CSArt idea was first successfully developed and implemented by Minnesota’s Springboard for the Arts and has been replicated by many arts organizations throughout the country.

With the same buy-local spirit in mind, MAC’s CSArt program will be an endeavor to support a direct maker-to-buyer relationship between artists and community members working and living in Milton and its surrounding communities. The CSArt Program will support MAC’s goal to strengthen relationships between local artists and our community.

As they plan the launch of MAC’s CSArt Program, Milton Art Center needs community members input. Through a combination of surveys, meetings, and focus groups, MAC will collect data necessary to create a program that will be successful. The planning effort starts now. Please send an email to csart@miltonartcenter.org if you are interested in participating.