The PAiD program is delighted to offer free online workshops to support artists’ career development. The first cycle of programming ran from summer through fall 2024 and covered a variety of topics such as portfolio presentation, contracting, budgeting and more, and was presented by diverse facilitators, including established public artists, administrators, and subject area experts. Click on the links below to watch the recordings.
The second cycle of workshops will build on these topics and begin in January 2026. Complete details about workshop topics and scheduling are listed below.
Upcoming Professional Development Sessions
4/27/2026 | 6PM - 8PM (PT)
Via Zoom
5/04/2026 | 6PM - 8PM (PT)
Via Zoom
5/0602026 | 6PM - 8PM (PT)
Via Zoom
5/11/2020 | 6PM - 8PM (PT)
Via Zoom
5/13/2026 | 6PM - 8PM (PT)
Via Zoom
Previous Professional Development Sessions
These workshops are designed to help artists navigate finding and applying to public art open calls.
These workshops are designed to help artists navigate finding and applying to public art open calls.
Take a deep dive into crafting portfolios for public art open calls. Learn best practices for structuring and presenting your work, with special guidance for first-time applicants.
Take a deep dive into crafting portfolios for public art open calls. Learn best practices for structuring and presenting your work, with special guidance for first-time applicants.
This session offers an overview of standard public art contract terms, including key elements such as insurance, intellectual property rights, and the artist’s and commissioning agency’s obligations and duties.
This workshop will provide insights and strategies for effectively communicating designs after a project has been selected for a public art commission
Build practical skills for budgeting a public art project. This introductory session offers insights into getting starting on formulating your project budget from veteran public artist, Charles Dickson.
Expanding on the first session, this workshop dives deeper into the specific components included in a public art project and how to effectively create and manage a budget during the lifespan of public art commission.
Join us for a comprehensive overview of the lifecycle of a public art commission. We will walk through the various stages that define a public art commission, from design and engineering to fabrication and installation.
Explore best practices for engaging diverse stakeholders, fostering dialogue, and incorporating community input into a public art process.
Explore field-wide questions about the role and purpose of public art in our community. Join us in a dialogue that considers how public art shapes the cultural landscape around us, and how we engage together to shape the future of that landscape.
Commissioning agencies from across LA County joined us to provide insights into their upcoming artist opportunities and provided information about how artists can work with them.
Explore strategies for effectively and accessibly addressing contexts and concepts in public art.
Our final workshop will share stories of LA County artists who have sustained and supported artistic careers through public art.
Public art often comes with unexpected challenges—but these moments can lead to meaningful growth. In this session, artist Susan Logoreci will share how she uses feedback, constraints, and even rejection as opportunities to evolve her creative practice.
Designed for artists scaling up their practice, this workshop addresses budget tracking, timeline development, working with teams and subcontractors, managing installations, and using digital tools (like Gantt charts and cloud storage) to stay organized and in control.
Sustainability in public art isn’t just about environmental compliance—it’s a creative opportunity. This session explores how artists can thoughtfully integrate sustainability into their practice through material selection, production methods, and conceptual framing.
This session demystifies the public art proposal process. Artists will learn how to craft a strong conceptual narrative, integrate technical feasibility, develop a preliminary budget, and effectively communicate concepts to stakeholders.
Public art often means working in complex bureaucracies and can lead to misunderstandings and a sense that transparency is lacking in the civic art field. This session seeks to address this dynamic by inviting artists to learn about the processes, policies, and structures that inform the civic art process within government agencies.
Managing the financial side of a public art project can be just as creative and critical as making the work itself. This session equips artists with the tools to plan, track, and steward project funds from commission to completion.