Team Diva Real Estate is passionate about supporting local Seattle artists, and we are so happy that we had the opportunity to be a corporate sponsor of the Artist Trust Benefit Art Auction Brunch in 2023. Art Trust gives hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants to artists across Washington state. And Artist Trust event sent out emergency funds to artists in 2020-2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our amazing team members Roy Powell (and his wife Katy), Lindsy Russell-Mitchell, and Rocky Flowers all were able to represent Team Diva at the benefit. 

Many of our Diva Dwellers may not know this, but art is what connected Team Diva founders Kim Colaprete and Chavi Hohm to Roy Powell! Roy is currently on the Artist Trust board, and has been deeply involved in Seattle’s art scene for many years. We interviewed Roy about Artist Trust, as well as the role of art in his own life. Thanks for sharing your smarts with us, Roy!  

Team Diva Interviews Roy Powell About Why He Joined the Board of Artist Trust

We are so excited about the work that Artist Trust is doing in our state and local communities. Our very own Roy Powell is on the board, and we interviewed him to learn more about this incredible organization and the role of art in his own life. 

Why is art so important to you?

Roy: Ha, well, that’s kind of a broad question. It feels like asking “why is air important to you?” For me, making things the easiest way to share an idea or learn something new. Helping someone experience a moment is more powerful than just telling them about it. Art gets tricky because it requires both the artist and the viewer to engage for that communication to work. A society without art and artists is bland and unimaginative. I’m not interested in living in that world.  

Tell us about your artist background!

Roy: I moved to Seattle for college and became a fine art major at Seattle U, focusing on painting and printmaking. After I graduated, I was a working artist with a day job selling toner. I had a bunch of studios around town, including one in Magnuson Park with Franc Gurrero and a longtime studio in Capitol Hill I shared with my friends Greg Boudreau, Peter Lloyd, and Joseph Steininger. In my late twenties, Kim and Chavi invited me to use a part of their basement as my studio. The Chez Diva studio was a part of how I ended up transitioning to working in real estate.

In the video above you can see the very old artist studio I shared with friends on Capitol HIll.

Why did you join the board of Artist Trust?

Roy: I got to know Artist Trust when I was a working artist. In 2012, I was trying to figure out how to grow my career as a painter and printmaker, and I applied for the Artist Trust EDGE program, a professional development series. Through that process, I learned a lot about making my art practice into a business, and more importantly, I got engaged with the organization and became a fan of its mission. Years later, I started dating my now-wife Katy, who was actually working at Artist Trust when we met. Small world! I joined the board this year because I want to support artists in my community, and Artist Trust does it best here in Washington.

What does this organization do for Seattle artists?

Roy: Artist Trust provides hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants to artists across Washington state. It was born out of the vacuum created in the late ‘80s when NEA grants were no longer given to individual artists. While the EDGE professional development program no longer exists, they still offer tons of professional development resources and training for artists at low or no cost. During the pandemic, Artist Trust sent out a ton of emergency funds to help keep artists afloat through the chaos that was 2020-2021, too.

There was recently a fundraiser for Artist Trust. How did it go? How much money was raised?

Roy: The 2023 Artist Trust Benefit Art Auction Brunch was an incredible event. I had a table full of teammates and artist friends Pete Fleming and Allyce Wood. Team Diva was also generous enough to be a corporate sponsor of the event. The nonprofit raised more than $260,000 through auctioning local artists’ work and raising the paddle donations. 

Team Diva and friends donated just over $10,000! Thanks, friends.

How can someone support Artist Trust?

Roy: Learn more about Artist Trust’s work and donate at artisttrust.org. 

Thank You For Giving Back to the Community Roy by Joining the Board of the Artist Trust

We absolutely love supporting local arts, and we are so honored to have had the opportunity to be a corporate sponsor at the Artist Trust Benefit Art Auction Brunch in 2023. This important organization is crucial in supporting the arts across the state of Washington but also locally. They provide hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants to artists across Washington state. During COVID-19, Artist Trust also provided emergency funds to help artists during 2020-2021. Our amazing team members Roy Powell (and his wife Katy), Lindsy Russell-Mitchell, and Rocky Flowers all were able to represent Team Diva at the benefit. And thank you Roy for sharing your first-hand knowledge of Artist Trust with us! 

We are here to help. Our team understands that the process of buying or selling a home can take a year or two. And we are more than willing to give you a personalized plan to get the ball rolling. Feel free to contact us directly at thediva@teamedivarealestate.com or call/text 206-271-0264.