We recently connected with Rachel Flores and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Rachel thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

Our organization was established by a woman who wanted the arts to become more accessible to people in the community. Since then, the organization’s programming has grown to include not only opportunities for individuals to grow their own skills through classes and workshops, but also outreach in the community to bring the process of creating art to less-served areas. It has become clear in the last two decades that our mission has evolved to focus more on the impact of art on mental health, including both the creating side and the experience of viewing art.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am the Executive Director of the Amarillo Art Institute, a nonprofit art school that has now expanded to become the manager of an art center, called Arts in the Sunset. One of the biggest “problem” I am able to solve for our clients is to give artists a place to work, a place to grow their skills, and a place to showcase and sell their artwork. I have loved art from a young age but was drawn into the nonprofit sector after college. I developed skills in nonprofit management, grant writing, fundraising, etc. and when a position in my hometown came available to work as the director for the Amarillo Art Institute, I leapt at the opportunity. I am proud to see that over the past nine years I have been here the organization has grown exponentially, our reach has increased from around 1,200 individuals a year to now around 18,000. We are helping people focus on their mental health, we’ve created a community where people feel encouraged to create and be themselves.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

Developing relationships. Our organization didn’t grow through strategic marketing plans, it really grew because we took the time to get to know our clients and made them feel like their story mattered. Although we are now getting big enough that we cannot always sit down and have a twenty minute conversation with every new member to get to know them, I intentionally empower my staff and other key artists and members to be that personal touch for the organization. One of the consistent reviews we receive are how welcoming and friendly everyone is to visitors, and it’s the culture I’ve tried to create since the first day. I love it when a client comes in after being gone a few years and either myself or another staff person remembers specifics about that client. They are usually surprised and utter, “you mean you remember me?!” There is no substitute for making a client feel like they matter.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

This really is the story of Arts in the Sunset, but when I was originally hired as the Executive Director, I managed the art school component of the building, which was approximately 25,000 square feet of open space for our clay studio, classrooms, etc. About a year into working at the Institute, the organization’s founder and the owner of the building passed away suddenly, with no heirs for her estate. It took nearly a year for her will to be construed by a judge, and the next several months were very tumultuous. The foundation she named in her will to manage the building had to be created, and several individuals appointed by the judge had no connections to the arts or the founder herself. Out of sheer self-preservation for our organization, my board and I advocated for myself to serve as a liaison on the foundation board, which soon developed into a voting position. In May 2019, after countless tries for the foundation to obtain nonprofit status, the foundation made the decision to turn over all management of the facility to the Institute, which at the time had one employee…. me. The “facility” was a 1960’s indoor mall outfitted with art galleries and vacant space. The first action needed was to save the building, it had been patched for years and had regular leaks, the electrical bill was $17,000/month, and everything needed to be remodeled and brought up to code. The building was 340,000 square feet as well.
I did, of course, have the choice to jump ship. I certainly did not have the knowledge to enter a construction project on a massive building, but after the tumultuous few years since the founder’s death, I was so determined to maintain her vision and see it come to light. So, I pivoted, learned how to draw a floorplan, worked with architects and contractors, learned about leasing and insurance, basically learned how to become a landlord and construction manager. I had a wealth of knowledge and help from my board, particularly the board president who spent countless hours with me pouring over drawings and bids. Somehow, we did it, and now have a right-sized building with more functionality and sustainability than ever before, we house 26 resident studio artists, an outdoor performance space, a public gallery and gift shop, and we still have our school, which offers classes and workshops on a wide variety of media. I cannot say when in my life I ever thought I would have had a hand in such a large project, but to this day I’m still glad I said yes when it was time to pivot.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://artsinthesunset.org
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-flores-63a15964/