In an era called "the age of art," how can its value be connected to society? "A Year of Thinking About Art Monetization" Launches

In an era of advancing AI and efficiency, we re-examine the value that only humans can create.

Currently, the importance of "sensitivity," "creativity," "autonomy," and "inquiry skills" is being discussed in various fields, including business, education, welfare, community development, tourism, and organizational building.

"This is the age of art." "Autonomy is necessary."

Indeed, opportunities to hear these statements are increasing. However, why is it difficult for the work of artists and art workers who create this value to continue?

Art possesses the power to pose questions, open up sensibilities, embody physicality, and reweave relationships. Its value certainly exists. Nevertheless, the circuits for translating that value into society and connecting it to compensation and ongoing relationships are not yet sufficiently established.

From the field, there is still a significant disconnect between art and society.

Is art merely something to be enjoyed in leisure time and appreciated as a work? Or can it be connected to broader domains such as education, welfare, business, and communities as practical knowledge that re-examines human values and the state of society?

From this question, "A Year of Thinking About Art Monetization" begins.

Monetization here is not a technique for efficiently selling works. It is a term for creating structures, cycles, and circuits to connect the value of art to society and ensure the continuation of creative activities.

Spark Plug Alliance / Racka Inc. is recruiting demonstration partners, observers, artists, and art workers from all over Japan to participate in this project.

"After-School Art Secret Base" Connecting Education and Art (2024)

About "A Year of Thinking About Art Monetization"

"A Year of Thinking About Art Monetization" is a practical research/platform where not only artists and art workers, but also editors, demonstration partners, Business Philosophers, and observers gather to explore the possibilities of connecting art and society.

Potencialists bring the "seeds of creativity" within their activities and questions, editors shape them into forms that can be communicated to society, and demonstration partners provide feedback from the field. Furthermore, Business Philosophers (external advisors with a cross-disciplinary perspective on business, culture, humanity, and society) and observers bring questions and viewpoints from different domains.

Without being confined to the binary choice of selling or not selling works, we will explore ways to connect the creativity of art to various areas of society through editing, social action, advocacy, and more, while protecting the artist's core.

Study and Consultation Session for Social Collaboration with Artists (2024)

Activities

This project plans to carry out the following activities, primarily online:

- "Art Monetization Conference," an open online dialogue session planned to be held once a month. - Small-group thematic dialogue sessions. - Dialogue on project seeds with editors providing support. - Discussions, exchanges, and information sharing within the community. - Consideration and implementation of demonstration experiments as needed. - Dissemination to society through records, reports, and advocacy videos.

Thematic dialogue sessions will cover topics such as corporate collaboration, human resources/training, regional revitalization, vacant house utilization, welfare, healthcare, education/child-rearing, art coordination, grants, the choice of selling/not selling works, and the core and attitude of creative activities, depending on the participants' interests.

In all cases, these are venues for exploring potential connections to various fields of society, not for fitting art into existing frameworks.

*Activities may be changed or developed through dialogue with participants.

Talk event "Speaking Square" held at experimental facility ZOKZOK

Implementation Phases

This project will proceed in the following three phases:

Phase 1: Gathering Colleagues and Sharing Intentions | June-September 2026 Participants' questions, challenges, core activities, and connections with society will be organized through dialogue.

Phase 2: Consideration of Demonstration Themes | October-December 2026 While continuing to engage in dialogue, themes and combinations for demonstration will be considered.

Phase 3: Small-Scale Demonstration and Dissemination | January-February 2027 Small-scale demonstrations will be conducted, and the next steps will be verified through feedback and documentation. Concurrently, the process will be documented and disseminated as advocacy videos.

Project "Open Dialogue Journey" Visiting All Fields of Society with Artists (2025)

Recruitment Overview

This project is recruiting participants in the following three capacities:

A. Potencialist (Artist/Art Worker, etc.) Participants who bring "seeds of potential" from their activities and questions to explore new possibilities for connecting art and society.

B. Demonstration Cooperation Partner Organizations and groups such as facilities, companies, NPOs, schools, and stores that wish to engage in new projects, relationships, and utilization of spaces through an art perspective.

C. Observer Individuals who wish to first observe the activities and then consider art monetization and the sustainability of culture and arts by drawing upon their own fields and interests.

*There are no restrictions on place of residence. *Activities will be conducted primarily online. *If demonstration experiments are conducted, individual consultations will be held based on the content.

Application Period

Potencialist: July 1, 2026 - October 31, 2026

Demonstration Cooperation Partner: July 1, 2026 - January 31, 2027

Observer: July 1, 2026 - End of Project

Participation Fee

Basically free *Depending on the scale and content of the demonstration experiment, there may be out-of-pocket expenses.

How to Apply

Please apply through the application form below.

https://forms.gle/RAS3V3MBYCFXUCLn6

"Educator meets Artist" Matching Dialogue Project (2025)

What We Want to Value in This Project

This project values a space for dialogue that does not rush to find answers but also does not shy away from reality.

Respecting both selling and not selling. Not underselling one's core, and not defining others' cores. Criticism is conducted to move forward, and failures are treated as clues for the next step.

We will create a space where people can speak with confidence, while also not looking away from practical issues such as money, time, compensation, and sustainability.

"New Tactile Play" Material Development Project for Childcare x Art (2025)

Representative's Comment

We ourselves do not have a clear answer regarding art monetization.

As we continue to work in the field of culture and arts, we increasingly feel that "this way of doing things has its limits."

On the other hand, we also feel that there may be undiscovered possibilities and unarticulated methods somewhere.

How can we deliver the value of art to society? How can we create a cycle for continuing creative activities? How can we give form to potential that has not yet been articulated?

The answers to these questions will not come immediately. However, we can surely create a space to think about them together.

"Art Monetization" is a very powerful phrase.

Therefore, in this project, we want to carefully consider not just how to sell works, but what to sell, what not to sell, what to protect, and how to connect with society.

This will be a year of exploring ways to connect with society while protecting the core of expression. If any part of this resonates with you, please join us.

Spark Plug Alliance / Racka Inc. Representative: Taku Morishima

Taku Morishima

Project Overview

Project Name: A Year of Thinking About Art Monetization Implementing Body: Spark Plug Alliance / Racka Inc. Adopted Project: Sapporo City Cultural and Artistic Creation Activity Support Project 2026 Implementation Period: July 2026 - End of February 2027 Activity Format: Primarily online. Demonstration experiments will be adjusted individually according to content. Target Audience: Artists, art workers, cultural and arts professionals, and individuals who feel potential in art nationwide. Also targets those who want to explore the possibility of connecting with art in fields such as business, education, welfare, and community, as well as those who want to participate in the project's questions from a slight distance.

Contact Information

Spark Plug Alliance / Racka Inc. Contact: Taku Morishima Email: [email protected] Phone: 050-3155-1455 WEB: https://artkids-net.com/oc-1yart/ SNS: https://www.instagram.com/art_himitsu/