FEE: Free | Registration Required

Ask Me Anything: Art as a Tool for Community Change

Thursday, May 21, 2026 | 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM CT | Zoom Meeting

Artists everywhere are finding creative ways to respond to the needs, ideas, and opportunities within their communities—from zines and fashion shows to winter play and beyond.

Join Sarah Johnson (Winona) and Sophie Wang (Twin Cities) for a conversation about their community-based artistic practices. They’ll share how they balance their own creative vision with the needs and ideas of their neighbors, what they’ve learned through their projects, and how art can be a powerful tool for organizing, engagement, and addressing local challenges.

The discussion will be moderated by Michele Anderson, Rural Director of Springboard for the Arts.

Panelist Sarah Johnson (she/they) is a community-engaged multimedia artist and Licensed Professional Counselor whose work focuses on prevention, mental health, art, and community building. Sarah founded The Joy Labs, LLC in 2021 and works to build connected, healthy, and resilient communities.

Panelist Sophie Wang (she/her) is an artist, researcher, and educator based in the Twin Cities. She creates prints, zines, and comics exploring science, technology, labor history, queerness, immigration, and systems of power, encouraging audiences to question the structures and knowledge systems around them.

Moderator Michele Anderson (she/her), Rural Director of Springboard for the Arts, is a composer, creative writer, and pianist whose work centers multiracial and multigenerational rural futures rooted in repair, stewardship, and joy.