The Artist as Citizen Conference is a six-day conference produced by Artists Striving to End Poverty, and held at The Juilliard School in New York City.

The Conference borrows its name from a book by Juilliard’s former president, Dr. Joseph W. Polisi, who wrote “there should be no dividing line between artistic excellence and social consciousness.” Inspired by Dr. Polisi’s vision and powered by ASTEP’s experience and international community of artists, the conference serves as a laboratory and launching pad for the next class of great American leaders in the arts.

Our mission is to strengthen the role of the arts in our society by connecting, developing and mobilizing a more diverse, more strategic, more empowered generation of American artists. To do this, we focus on three main threads of inquiry — Artistry, Activism and Entrepreneurship — areas with which an emerging twenty-first century artist must have at least a passing familiarity. What is unique about the Artist as Citizen experience is that ASTEP deftly weaves these three subjects into a single conversation, just as they are three interwoven parts of an artist’s career. This allows each and every artist we work with to determine for themselves how they will make the pieces of their puzzle work together towards their desired ends.

First and foremost one’s work must speak for itself. Through daily Perspectives classes, electives, and a four-day interdisciplinary creation process that culminates in a presentation for invited guests at Juilliard, the conference allows artists of all forms & backgrounds to explore diverse vantage points and to continue to hone their chosen craft within the confines of the inspiring Juilliard rehearsal studios. Previous Perspectives classes have included Improvisation, Art in Public Spaces, Repurposing Found Objects, Clown, Puppetry and more.

If an entrepreneur is a person who manages and assumes the risk of a business or enterprise, then all professional artists should conceive of themselves as entrepreneurs. It is no longer feasible, if it ever was, for an artist to seal themselves off from the realities of the marketplace. As such, the more financially literate a young artist is, the more likely they are to find support, stability and success in their careers. Through partnerships with NYC’s The Financial Clinic and Dr. Bill Baker, author of The World’s Your Stage and President Emeritus of WNET, the conference provides fellows with an economic snapshot of the industries they’re seeking to join, as well as practical tools to navigate the ups-and-downs of choosing to monetize their passions.

Activism is the use of vigorous action to bring about political or social change. We take a wide view of what might constitute activism but are uncompromising in our belief that artists should play a part in bringing about a more just, more humane world. Previous presenters have included journalists, community organizers, civil rights activists, faith leaders, representatives from the United Nations, and many more, all facilitated by ASTEP, a global nonprofit with over ten years’ experience using art as a tool for social justice.