History

 At a four-top inside Kavarna Coffeehouse in 2017, three local makers sat discussing how they could support each other. By the end of this conversation, SAGE was born.

SAGE stands for “Share, Accept, Grow, Encourage”, and over the years, that’s looked like a variety of outputs.

In 2017, we were monthly gatherings that ranged from three to ten people in attendance. We hosted our first “Pop Up and Platform” events inside what was formally known as the Leap Room, and in November, set up a small market within the CP Auction event.

In 2018, we were partners with a marketplace called “The Eclectic Market” in the Broadway District. This would be the first location we hosted a community event, which called “DIY on the Fly”. This event would go on to become “Creative Community”, and, more recently, simply referred to as “Open Studio Night”.

In 2019, we filed and received official 501(c)3 non-profit status, and would participate in quite a few events with On Broadway, including all of their Ignight Markets, hosting an outdoor gallery called “Creative Community”, and a maker’s market during their Beer and Wine Walks.

In 2020, the pandemic caused us to shift greatly. Our last in person monthly meeting was in March, where we hosted over 40 local artisans. Since April of 2020, SAGE has hosted their monthly meetings virtually from their Facebook page. We made porch deliveries of art supplies to encourage creatives to “just keep making”, launched Artist Trading Cards so folks would continue to feel a sense of connection, and hosted the inaugural Toy Maker’s Fundraiser. For the first fundraiser, 86 stuffed animals were created and auctioned off to raise money for SAGE and 22 additional non-profits in the immediate community.

In 2021 we focused on how we could assist artists in making their art seen without hosting an event. We started the SAGE Gallery Program, by which art from local artists was placed inside businesses in the Downtown Green Bay area. We also launched The Little Art Boutique (The LAB for short) on our website, inviting artists to utilize supplies in our studio to test new creative endeavors without the overhead cost of materials. In November of 2021, after receiving a Main Street Bounceback Grant, SAGE moved in to our current studio location at 225 N. Washington Street.

In 2022, SAGE created a board position for a Diversity, Inclusivity, and Accessibility Specialist. With a new studio location, we also began our “One Night Only” program- quarterly art exhibits curated by individual board members in an effort to showcase a variety of art and themes. We restarted our “Open Studio” nights the third Tuesday of every month, and in July, SAGE completed its first public arts project in Pulaski with a mural at their Memorial Park. Wanting to ensure our studio was utilized in support of the artists, SAGE acted as host to “Coming Out, Coming Together”, and exhibit of LGBTQIA+ artists, curated by the queer community. We closed out the year with the 3rd Annual Toy Maker’s Fundraiser and “Art as Resistance”, our fourth quarter “One Night Only” exhibit.

Our growth continued in 2023, as SAGE focused on facilitating a regular schedule in our studio, increasing opportunities for artists and creatives to showcase their talents, and promoting our signature outreach program, “Creatively Engaged Community.” We acted as host to solo exhibits curated by artists in our local community and held more than a dozen “One Night Only” exhibits curated by different individuals. We assisted the Green Bay Chamber of Commerce Leadership Program in creating a mural and teen art space inside Foster the Village, sponsored the mentorship and creation of a mural with the youngest artist to contribute to On Broadway, INC’s “Mural and Busker Festival”, and functioned as a fiscal receiver for the first time so local artist, Cujo, could work with elders in our community. In May of 2023, we partnered with Casa ALBA Melanie and the ADRC of Brown County to host Creatively Engaged Community with Hispanic elders in the Green Bay area, resulting in an exhibit both inside our studio and as part of “Estamos Aqui” held on the UWGB campus. In July, SAGE partnered with Aspiro to assist 25 individuals with disabilities in painting canvases. These canvases were then handed off to 5 local artists to contribute to the works, and the completed paintings went on to raise over $1500 for our friends at Aspiro. We dedicated November in our studio to Native American Heritage Month, working with the Oneida Nation Arts Program and the Hill family to showcase Native American Artists.

In 2024, SAGE places its efforts within community outreach, applying for grants to bring our Creatively Engaged Community Program to Veteran’s First of NE Wisconsin, the Treatment Court System of Brown, County, Golden House, and the Mandolin Foundation. We look to facilitate programming around running a creative business with St. John’s Shelter and Aspiro by assisting individuals in creating a handmade product and selling it at local Green Bay events. We also look for local artists to utilize our studio space more, encouraging them to host meetings, classes, and their own exhibits within our four walls at no cost for the venue. And, finally, we created a proposal to introduce a “Mobile Art Studio” to the Green Bay area, partnering further with community organizations to bring art and artistic opportunity to our neighbors.