In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Leia Maahs, then Executive Director of the Southwest Folklife Alliance, surveyed heritage-based artists in Arizona about their immediate and long-term needs. Many said they needed a virtual marketplace and ways to increase their economic mobility.
A pilot online market with 10 artists was launched during the Tucson Meet Yourself Folklife Festival (held largely virtually in 2020). All artists sold work and many expressed interest in their own e-commerce platform. With a one-time gift from MacKenzie Scott, SFA created jobs and invested in web developers, designers, curators, artists, and project managers to launch Loom Market.
As the pandemic has eased, and in-person selling is back in full-swing, Loom Market will be shifting away from e-commerce to a hybrid model of in-person pop-up markets and community gatherings at the Center for Cultural Organizing in Southern Tucson, beginning in mid-2026.
How did Loom Market support artists?
Loom Market offered artists a virtual space to sell their artwork, expand their professional community, and access professional development opportunities. Artists did not pay fees or overhead to sell on the site, but were invited to donate one of their art pieces to an annual auction. All funds generated at that auction went directly back into supporting the Loom Investment Fund.
What other services did Loom Market offer artists?
Loom Market offered opportunities for direct sales as well as professional development, helped artists build community with other artists and supporters; facilitated a space for peer-to-peer workshops on topics such as social media, marketing, and photo documentation; helped artists build greater capacity and economic mobility.
How did Loom Market create greater societal equity?
Loom helped us envision a world where:
- Traditional knowledge of a community is respected and supported.
- Artists have access to the tools they need to be successful.
- Support for artists creates a sustained impact in well-being and community resiliency.
- Supporters and donors make sustaining investments in artists and their communities, year-round.