Working on something meaningful is a common desire – but how? We started asking folks to share the story of how they ended up working on a project they felt was meaningful because we wanted inspiration but also because we wondered if hearing from people from across a range of industries would help us identify patterns making it more likely for anyone to be able to find and work on projects that they would find meaningful. 

Elonte Davis

The most meaningful work I’ve done has been my educational and community-centered practice. In 2026, that included leading eight Detroit Public Schools classes titled Lifting Marginalize Voices, speaking to seven classes during my Michigan State residency for my solo exhibition, Homeroom: Detroit Taught Me First, and facilitating my Detroit Institute of Arts workshop, Memory Engineer: Building Detroit’s Living Collage. Read More>>

Nick Middaugh

Last year I was the keynote at a local event for the rotary club, great start collaborative, and the child advocacy center. The goal of the event was to garner additional community support and engagement for these vital services. As a male survivor of child sexual abuse (CSA), being involved was incredibly meaningful for me. Read More>>

Joseph Campbell

In July of 2023, I was able to realize what I would label my first official album. The project was titled ‘I’ll Talk To You Later’ and contained 11 tracks all produced by my good friend and current collaborator Tobias Lehman (AKA. tobiutah) another talented force in the Columbus, Ohio underground music scene. Read More>>

Deanne Gertner

Three projects come to mind. 1. An essay manuscript called Failure Cascade: Essays on Estrangement. This project took me about 6 years (and my whole life) to write. It was incredibly demanding from an emotional perspective. I credit my good friend and poet, Emily Vizzo, for encouraging me to pursue a book-length project. I hope it finds an editor soon. Read More>>

Erica Carr

One of the most meaningful projects I’ve worked on centered around collaborating with a fellow artist on a shared canvas. What made it especially powerful was not just the artistic process, but the deeply personal circumstances behind it. During a particularly difficult time in my life, I was experiencing intense physical and emotional strain due to a serious traumatic brain injury. Read More>>

Adam Golob

The most meaningful project I’ve worked on as an artist is writing my novel Nemesis Rising. I’ve published a range of academic books and research which are very meaningful in a professional sense, and I have worked on projects dealing with asylum, which are perhaps the most meaningful in their impacts. Read More>>

Kriszti Sarusi

Floating Reality, which is an art exhibition series, is meaningful to me because it’s not just an exhibition — it’s something deeply personal that grew out of real friendships, passion, and a need to create space for artists who might not otherwise have one. I co-created it with two of my close friends, and what started as a simple idea became a living, breathing collective. Read More>>

Angela Winter

Every website and brand I create carries meaning for me, because bringing someone’s dream into reality and empowering incredible people with tools that help them change the world is, at its core, why I do this work. Read More>>

Vilpa Shah

Honestly, every bridal henna I do is the most meaningful project to me — because every bride is a world of her own. When a bride sits in front of me, she carries with her a unique story, a lifetime of emotions, and the hopes of an entirely new chapter. She places her hands — and in many ways, her trust — in mine. Read More>>

Vonnetta Cornish

Each movie I’ve written and executive produced has been meaningful but my current project, “The Exit Row II: Unraveled,” is the most meaningful one right now. With this movie, I challenged myself to create a sequel that is truly a brand-new story, with new characters. Read More>>

Mariya Devuyst

The most meaningful project I’m currently working on is building a platform to teach aspiring cake designers how to create and run a profitable side business in luxury wedding cakes. This project has really grown out of my own experience. When I first started, I realized quickly that learning how to bake a beautiful cake is only a small part of the equation. Read More>>

Jodi Sun

This is actually a question I’ve never been specifically asked before. I was a bit surprised that one piece sprang to mind immediately, and I’m grateful for the reflection it spurred. It was a watercolor painting called ‘Transcendence’ that I started on the cusp of making the leap to sell my art professionally. Read More>>

Hennessie Martin

My most meaningful project to me, is probably my debut novel, The Paths That Cross. I feel like I let the world into my heart and my mind. While there are some truthful parts to the novel, it is largely fictional. But I think opening myself to allow others to see my heart, mind, my feelings and emotions, isn’t easy for me. Read More>>

Rello Be

My most meaningful project was my very first one, called Make It Make Sense. It was filled with broken thoughts, mixed emotions, pieces of my past, moments from my present, and visions of where I aspire to be. That project wasn’t just art to me. It was healing. It was reflection. Read More>>

Gemma Smith

I would say Catbaret, my cat-themed variety show that I’ve been hosting and producing since 2018. I started the show as a monthly variety show at a small comedy club in Queens, New York, and over time it has grown and evolved. For the past two years, I’ve been producing it at Caveat, a theater on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Read More>>

Federico Wulff

Well, you know, looking back, there are a few projects that did more than just build my resume—they actually changed me. By 2010, I had already built a solid foundation, taking on lead roles in commercials, corporate projects, a few film spots, and even starring in a sitcom. Read More>>

Maura Walsh

Shortly after the COVID-19 shutdown, I, like many others, grew concerned about the music and art spaces that were forced to suddenly close, unsure if they would survive. In 2019, the year before the pandemic took over, my partner and I attended 63 concerts in our city of Chicago. Read More>>

Aaron Thomas

My most meaningful project to date was a 3D animated short film titled “Be There.” I took on the role of lighter while in graduate school, and it marked my third time handling both set lighting and shot lighting for a subtle, emotionally driven story. The film explores themes of overcoming addiction and pursuing one’s passions. Read More>>

Jaime Saunders

Before I rebranded to J.Lee Photography, I was Creative Pixels. I loved the name so much I have it tattooed on me… lol… but, with any growth, things change. However, while operating under Creative Pixels I did a yearly event called “Shoot for a Cause”. The first year was Cancer Awareness, the next was Autism Awareness and moved on to several more from there. Read More>>

Abigail Marie

The most meaningful project I have worked on is one that I am still working on and I hope to work on for a long time. I’m in a Minneapolis based alt rock band called pity party. I have always wanted to be in a band. Read More>>

Alicia Snyder

I wouldn’t necessarily define it as a single project, but rather an initiative that has grown into something deeply meaningful to me. Our Youth Market events at The Blu Door have, without a doubt, been one of the most impactful things I’ve been a part of. The idea came from a very personal place. Read More>>

Erin Bright

The most meaningful project I’ve worked on isn’t a single product or launch. It’s becoming the person and the structure that can actually hold Alchemy and Art as a whole. Because this business was never meant to be one thing. It’s astrology, candle making, ceramics, writing, ritual, and education. It’s layered, and it asks people to engage with it more deeply than just buying something. Read More>>

Kate Minju Kim

The most meaningful project I’ve worked on is my first photography exhibition, which came out of an artist residency in 2025. Even though I’ve wanted to be a filmmaker since high school, it took me a long time to fully see myself as an artist, even while I was actively making films and writing scripts. Read More>>

Amy Lai

I was in a creative burn out, where I started to feel like most of my work was created with the purpose of selling. Read More>>

Gina Cas

The latest project I’ve been working on has been a total surprise even for me, as I started working on it earlier than I’ve imagined and it has developed faster than I’ve expected as well. Read More>>

Jordan Padilla

One of the most meaningful projects for me lately has been working with Forrest Frank. I’ve been his keyboardist since the start of the project about two years ago. At the time, I was playing on a lot of different things, but I felt pretty disconnected from most of it. Read More>>

Jordan Moed

As a band, we feel this upcoming record we’re about to release is one of the most meaningful projects we’ve ever created. This record was as much fun to make as it was frustrating. Read More>>

Heath Towson

The most meaningful project for me is usually the one I am currently working on. This Spring, I have two large projects I am working towards, which I am incredibly excited about! In May I am hosting an architectural trolley tour, focused on the works of architect Douglas Ellington during the ‘boomtown’ era of Asheville’s history during the decade of the 1920s. Read More>>

Taryn Seng

The most meaningful project for me has been what I’ve been working on this year. I always struggled to come up with subjects to make my art about, so last year around October I came up with 4 quarterly themes to explore this year. I just wrapped up my first theme, “Soft Rebellion”. The theme explored my own femininity, contradiction, and addressing my own insecurities. Read More>>

Shauna Garrett

The most meaningful project I have worked on to date has been one of my own – an upcoming interview-based web series called, “Kindred Avenues.” I began developing this project around 2021, after a humanitarian aid trip to Puerto Rico with a group called Worship Puerto Rico (led by the fearless Cinnamon “La Canela”) where I interviewed a few locals and heard their stories of grief and resilience after an onslaught of natural disasters. Read more>>

Casey Hebel

The most meaningful prooject that I hav worked on to date has to be me senior capstone project that I completed for my undergrad. The parameters for this project were the limits of my imagination and decipline. So I capatilized on the opportunity to create the most ambishious project i could imagine. My capstone project is my contemporary interpretation of the traditional journeyman’s toolbox. Read More>>

Claude MarQuis

I had been painting for more than a decade when I stopped to pursue music. In a strange way, that transition became my most meaningful project — not a single work, but the act of shifting itself. It taught me that I didn’t have to limit myself to one identity in the arts. Read More>>

Nympha Ozougwu

I recently curated a poetry anthology bringing together 90 women writers and poets from 9 countries of the world – Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, Malawi, Botswana, Uganda, France, United Kingdom, United States. Read More>>

Reese Pike

I recently worked on a new musical called Ways to Win the Woods, which reflected the lived experiences of women navigating homelessness through the lens of the fairytale Hansel and Gretel. I composed and orchestrated the music for this project, and my mom wrote the lyrics and the book. It was very special to get to work together in this setting. Read More>>

Viktor Sokorai

One of the most meaningful projects I’ve worked on was the Netflix series Shadow and Bone. I was selected for this production specifically because of my deep and high-level martial arts background. The creative team wanted the fight scenes to incorporate authentic kung fu elements, which gave me the opportunity to fully integrate my traditional training into the choreography and performance.Read More>>

Alberto Fabbretti

The most meaningful project I have worked on is a commercial and print campaign for the 10th anniversary of The Broad museum in LA, which was released starting in September 2025. I was cast as lead actor to play the boyfriend in a young couple who’s visiting the museum. The project was listed on a casting website as a short film for The Broad museum. Read More>>

Jean-Paul Flerin

Starting JeanPaulxo as a clothing brand – is an extension of myself as an artist & professional. I used the skills I learned working for major companies and brands to start my own empire of what clothing & branding should look like – online to offline or vice versa. Read More>>

Fredrick Ewelike

The most meaningful project I’ve worked on is The Alfie White Project. It’s more than just a short film, it’s a proof of concept for my first feature, and in many ways, it represents the culmination of years of discipline, growth, and belief in my voice as a filmmaker. Read More>>

Alison Hiltner

Well, first, I’d say projects are a bit like your children—you can never pick a favorite. But there have definitely been works where the research led me in eye-opening directions. Because of a project created through the Target Collaboration program with the Weisman Museum and the University of Minnesota’s School of Medicine, I was embedded in two cardiac labs. Read More>>

Dat Kyd

My upcoming album “reflections”. Reflections” is a conceptual body of work that captures Dat Kyd’s evolution over a ten-year span, from adolescence to adulthood. The album explores every dimension of the word “reflection”—from self-examination and mirrored identity to repeated patterns and the transformation of experience into art. Read More>>

$UNNY Dee

I’ve had some amazing projects I’ve worked on in my 15 year career, most might think it’s my famous Creep City Movie which made it all the way to theaters out here in Houston.Tx, but the formation of my female R&B Group KompleteMusik is at the top of the list for me. I’ve always been a huge fan of R&B groups especially female groups like TLC, Total, SWV etc thanks to my big brother Dontae Read More>>