4 Circles. Real Decisions. Come Shape What's Next.
Four creation circles. One week. This is NOT a drill.
Four creation circles. One week. This is NOT a drill.
Tomorrow through Friday, we have circles for music, mentorship, exhibition planning, and creative writing — and every single one of them is shaping something real. A performance platform. A teaching artist training. Our next gallery exhibit. An international writing collaboration. These aren't just conversations; they're decisions. And the people in the room are the ones who get to make them.
So... Come be in the room.
[Image: Pop-Up Art Stop, 2026]
LINKAGE EVENTS
Coffee & Chat | Every Monday — 9am till whenever Start your week with your people. Show up as you are, talk about whatever, stay as long as you want. It's like our own clubhouse. Join the Zoom
Music Creation Circle | Monday, July 13 — 3:30–4:30pm Continuing the conversation on the member-driven virtual performance platform (yes, we're making this a real thing!), "not another podcast" podcast, plus work on the Linkage Anthem. Come with ideas, come with feedback, come with just your ears. Join the Zoom
Community Arts Mentorship Circle | Tuesday, July 14 — 12–1pm We're talking Teaching Artist Training — what it would take to build a roster of Linkage members ready to facilitate art workshops in the community. We want YOUR input: what do you want to learn more about? Curriculum design, healing-centered facilitation, group management, adapting your practice across audiences, client relations? Come tell us what matters to you. Join the Zoom
Exhibition/Display Creation Circle | Wednesday, July 15 — 9–10am Planning our next Lansing Gallery exhibit — potentially installing in September! Bring your theme ideas, title suggestions, and any wild innovative ideas you've been sitting on. This one's wide open. Join the Zoom
Creative Writing Circle | Friday, July 17 — 11am–12pm Two exciting conversations on deck: a new collaborative project with UK's Penned Up called 10x10 — a creative writing initiative running in 20 UK prisons from September through February, centered on the theme of DISTANCE (chosen by people in prison themselves). Writers receive feedback, and Bronze/Silver/Gold selections get printed on photo tiles and sent to the writers. We're exploring doing something similar with Linkage's — and you'll want to be part of shaping it. Also discussing EMU WHV writing club collaborations. They are very interested in hearing our ideas, so lets make a list! Join the Zoom
[Image: Pop-Up Art Stop, 2026]
GROW YOUR PRACTICE!
Cherry Republic Artist Showcase | Open Now Any medium, any experience level, must be 15+. Submit original illustrations (digital or physical) inspired by Northern Michigan. Prizes: $2,000 first place, $1,000 second and third. No AI work. Just real art. Submit here
Storytelling for Startups — FREE Webinar | Wednesday, July 16 — 10am Practical tools for sharpening your message, pitching with confidence, and making your investor deck actually work for you. If you're building something and want to learn how to talk about it — this is worth an hour of your time. FREE. Register here
High Society Detroit — Monthly Exhibition Series Detroit-rooted and connected visual artists sought for a monthly co-headlining gallery experience. Selected artists get exhibition space, promotional support, event production, and documentation of their work. Painting, photography, mixed media, sculpture, textile, experimental — all welcome. Apply here
WCC Entrepreneurship Bootcamp | Deadline August 1 Washtenaw County residents: 15-week program moving you from concept to launch — business model, investor pitch deck, mentorship. Free for WCC students and Washtenaw County residents. Cohort starts September 3. Apply here
[Image: Pop-Up Art Stop, 2026]
OUT IN THE COMMUNITY
The Writer's Block — Free Monthly Writer's Workshop | Wednesday, July 15 — 6pm Hosted by local poet Lashawn Smith-Wright through The Vision Detroit, this free monthly workshop is for poets, songwriters, fiction writers — all kinds. Come get sparked by prompts and share your work with fellow writers. All levels welcome. Get tickets (FREE!)
Drawn Together — Weekly Visual Artist Hangout | Every Thursday — 7:30–11pm A space for local visual artists to connect and make art together. Bring a project or use their supplies. The Vision Creative Space, 17340 Lahser Rd., Detroit
The Vision Open Mic | Saturday, July 18 — 5:30–8:30pm Poets, musicians, comedians — come share your work or just soak it in. Free. Always feels like home. The Commons, 7900 Mack Ave., Detroit
Doodles & Dialogue — Illustrators Meetup | Saturday, July 25 — 2–4pm AIGA Detroit + Daizydoodles are hosting a free meetup just for illustrators. Freelance, in-house, student, hobbyist — all welcome. Good conversation, new connections, FREE. Vesper Book & Wine, 5001 Grand River Ave, Detroit, MI 48208 Register here
[Image: Pop-Up Art Stop, 2026]
GRANTS WORTH KNOWING ABOUT
We Are Moving The Needle — Early-Career Microgrants | Deadline October 23 Music producers, engineers, and songwriters with 0–5 years of experience (including rising college seniors): this one's for you. Grants of $500–$1,000 to support career-advancing needs — travel for an internship, audio courses, new equipment. US citizens and permanent residents. No rush on this one, but put it on your calendar now. Apply here
The Awesome Foundation — Detroit & Ann Arbor Chapters Monthly $1,000 micro-grants, no strings attached, for awesome projects of any kind. You pitch your idea, the chapter votes, someone wins $1,000. It's genuinely that simple, and it's genuinely that cool. Detroit Chapter | Ann Arbor Chapter
NEED A LINK? Everything in one place — Zoom links, forms, and more: LiNK Hub
Okay, that's it from me! Go enjoy what's left of your Sunday, and I'll see you in a Zoom this week.