Arts Professional Story: Elysabeth Alfano, Fear No Art Chicago

When I started my first two businesses in the arts—an art gallery and an accessories design company—I had no idea what I getting myself into. Similarly, when I ventured to create the TV show, Fear No ART Chicago—and, inadvertently, a production company—I couldn’t have been further from understanding what was involved.<!--break--> I certainly didn’t foresee all the obstacles in my path. The only thing I did know was that I had a great idea. That passion carried me through every setback and over every hurdle.  

Fear No ART Chicago, my third enterprise, is a TV show airing on WTTW in May, with artist interviews airing independently on the Fear No ART Chicago website starting in June. Through my first two business ventures, I became familiar with the arts and the business/client side of things, so I knew that what most people care about (whether they can afford to collect art or not) is going behind the scenes and into artists’ studios. They’re pondering things like, What was the artist thinking when he made that? How did she do that? What made them think they can charge that? Is passion enough? These are the sorts of things that people want to know in connecting to the art world. Therein lies the purpose of Fear No ART Chicago: to bridge the gap between the public and the arts by going behind the scenes on TV.

Ah, if only good ideas were enough! I conceived of this project three years ago. Three. Long. Years.

I started by conducting informational interviews around town with producers and non-for-profits to learn all I could about creating a TV show. For an entire year I knocked on doors and introduced myself to people. I didn’t leave any stone unturned and finally teamed up with Scott Silberstein of HMS Media.

Enter: year two. With HMS Media, I shot a pilot segment and edited it with the help of Catherine Hickman and Kristin Klinger. While I just distilled the process into a single sentence, it actually required an enormous amount of work, particularly since I’d never done it before. Even with the help of experts like Catherine and Kristin, organizing artists, locations, and wardrobe; writing segments; and scripting and editing, while learning to script and edit, was a tremendous job. I dug deep into the learning process. 

I spent year three cold calling networks and cable stations in the worst economic downturn ever. As you’ve probably guessed, however, once again I didn’t leave any stone unturned. I sent out more than 40 informational packets and made countless follow-up phone calls. I received several offers from cable stations, but the offers weren’t very good. Then I connected with WTTW.

Public Television being what it is, WTTW couldn’t offer financial assistance with production, but they could offer a good distribution platform while allowing me to retain ownership. So the only thing that was now holding me back from a TV show was finding sponsors to finance the large production costs associated with television—again, in the worst economic downturn ever.  

Now I was more determined than ever. I had a great idea, and I had distribution. I knew somehow the money would come through. I contacted everyone I could think of, sending out more packets and following up with phone call after phone call, email after email. Again and again. By now some people are very sick of me! 

The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, Columbia College (the exclusive Fear No ART Chicago educational partner), The Chicago Fashion Foundation, and Le Cordon Bleu all came through with support.     

As they say, be careful what you wish for, because financing is just the beginning. Marketing, marketing, marketing is really the key, and there’s no substitute for guerrilla marketing. (In fact, "Marketing on a Shoestring" was the class I taught at Columbia College years ago when trying to make ends meet in the early years of my art gallery.) I connected, and continue to connect, with all and any who might want to co-promote.

So three years later, with everyone and their mother receiving a call from me in some fashion for something, Fear No ART Chicago will air on WTTW on May 7 at 8:30pm, May 12 at 10:30pm, and May 23 at 4:30pm, with a new episode coming in September and artist interviews and posts on the website between quarterly shows. Discovering the artists behind the art, I visit the studios of blues and folk singer Nicholas Barron, fashion designer Lauren Lein, and Moto chefs Homaro Cantu and Ben Roche. There will also be two screenings of Fear No ART Chicago at ART Chicago in early May.  

So how did I get from there to here? It’s my personality to work really hard and learning new things is exciting for me, rather than daunting. However, mostly I’m inspired by the passion of a good idea—knowing and believing that I can create something exceptional, something that will fill a niche and bridge the gap between the public and the arts. This belief keeps me going every time I have to say, “Um, sorry, I am not sure I know what you mean by that,” or every time I hear, “There’s just no budget.”  And I say and hear those things a lot.

A body in motion stays in motion, and I just keep moving. One foot in front of the other, I continue creating. No fear.

Elysabeth Alfano is a Chicago native who has been living and breathing the arts all her life. After studying art history and fashion in Paris and Florence, she returned to Chicago and opened an international art gallery. Having the itch to create herself, she began designing and producing accessories. Alfano has also taught graduate and undergraduate classes at Columbia College, written art reviews, consulted artists, acted and performed in the Improv for Actors Series with Second City, and done voiceover work. Her latest project is creating, producing, and hosting the television show Fear No Art Chicago. It will have its initial airing on WTTW in spring of 2010, with intended quarterly shows, and will be co-produced with HMS Media.