Narrative Shift
How artists and organizations strengthen the way they understand, communicate, and advocate for the value and impact of their work.
Core Learning Question: What are the most impactful ways of shifting the narrative about BIPOC arts and artists so their creativity, brilliance, and ensuring presence is celebrated and supported?
What this story shows
The findings in this learning area suggest that narrative shift is not only about changing how program participants are perceived by others, but also about changing how they understand, value, and name their own work.
This story shows that:
- Participants described shifts in how they understand and communicate the impact of their work.
- Increased confidence and affirmation supported greater clarity in how participants spoke about, framed, and advocated for their work.
- With that clarity, participants were better able to communicate their work on their own terms.
- Participants increased visibility and broader recognition of their work.
Participants Strengthened How They Understood, Named, and Shared the Value of Their Work
Across BANF programs, participants described becoming more grounded and confident in their work. For many, this included shifting away from scarcity toward greater confidence and clarity, while also unlearning expectations shaped by traditional funding structures focused on deliverables and work products. Participants described space to reflect, process, dream, plan, and recognize the impact of their cultural contributions.
A. Increased Confidence + Affirmation
Participants described becoming more grounded and confident in their work, shifting away from scarcity toward greater confidence and clarity. They also described that adapting to BANF’s abundance-orientation, including process-based funding, prioritizing authentic connection and rest, and having time to dream and plan, often required time and unlearning after years of operating within traditional funding structures focused on deliverables and work products.
Programs like this really infuse the artistic community with a sense of purpose and connection. I felt seen in ways that I haven't in over a decade. It allowed me to dream bigger and chase after more ambitious projects.
- Artist Participant
B. Communicating Impact
Across programs, participants described a stronger ability to understand and communicate the impact of their work — not simply as output, but as knowledge, practice, and community resource.
C. Visibility, Recognition + Legitimacy Across the Ecosystem
Changes in how participants understood and communicated about their work also shaped how their work was recognized more broadly. Participants described increased visibility, stronger recognition of BIPOC-led cultural contributions, and greater legitimacy within their communities.
For us and for many artists, visibility matters deeply … Through BANF, our work and stories have been amplified in meaningful ways … There is something profoundly affirming about seeing our artists represented in the media, being seen, named, and honored. Their stories deserve to be shared, and their wins are truly all of our wins.
- Organizational Participant