Creativity Explored

Creativity Explored is an internationally renowned studio and gallery space for artists with developmental disabilities in San Francisco. It provides artists with space, opportunities and support to create and develop their practice fully.

1. Unlike the majority of other organisations in this research, Creativity Explored’s main focus is to provide support to people with developmental disabilities.
2. Most artists who attend the studio come at least 3-4 days a week. Some come 5 days a week, (this is not common in the UK, where participants often struggle to find financial support to attend programmes even 1 day per week.)
3. Creativity Explored operates across two studios. The larger supporting roughly 60 artists a day and the smaller supporting roughly 15 artists per day.
4. The organisation has an onsite gallery space at the larger studio that has a rotating exhibition programme that showcases the work of participating artists.
5. The programme’s two studio spaces are open to the public.
6. The teaching methods at Creativity Explored are focused on challenging artists to develop their practice to a high standard that can compete within mainstream contemporary art.
7. Compared to the other organisations in this research, Creativity Explored is currently in a comfortable financial position and therefore able to pilot new programmes such as their highly developed marketing programme that includes image licensing and rental partnerships.
8. One artist from Creativity Explored has recently been supported to become self-employed.