An 8 a.m. breakfast session on Wednesday, Sept. 18 marks the launch of a new initiative designed to bring artistic minds together in conversation for the benefit of the creative community at large. The event, in the Kelly Center Cox C, will last until 9:30 a.m.

Katherine Ware is establishing “Creative Conversations,” in cooperation with The New York Times and the College of Fine Arts. As a CFA adjunct, she teaches two classes, “The Arts Organization” and “Arts Management,” both required for students minoring in Arts Administration. There are 40-60 TCU students with that minor, although they all have different majors.

Katherine views the new twice-a-semester opportunity as a forum for bringing like-minded people together, to talk about the various issues rooted in artistic ventures. This includes arts professionals working in the Fort Worth community as well.

“I see this less about arts administration and more about entrepreneurship,” Katherine explains. “Even an artist needs to understand the business side of things.”

This first session leads off the discussion with thoughts about declining attendance at arts events and the kinds of out-of-the-box ideas that arts groups are using to build new audiences while retaining the old ones. Material published in The New York Times and news items gathered from the internet will be used to get the conversation rolling. Other potential topics include museum architecture, audience etiquette, derivative work, museum content, the role of government-supported public art, audience aging, the rise of the citizen critic, or anything the group deems worthy of discussion.

Katherine, who labels herself “a facilitator in the arts,” comes from a varied background but is basically a theater manager with a “portfolio career.” “The idea for ‘Creative Conversations’ is born out of both my classroom experience and my professional experience so why not take advantage of this venue to bring them both together,” she says.

For more information, email Katherine at kbware@swbell.net.