Creative Conversations

Join the Conversations

Register for the Creative Conversations sessions you plan to attend with the corresponding links. You will be sent a Zoom Meeting link at a later date.

• Nov. 4 • Engaging Rural Communities

  Speaker

  with Eric Grace
  Executive Director, Lancaster County Council of the Arts

  A Lancaster County native growing up in the small, then-rural community of Indian Land, Eric brings a lifelong passion for the arts to his role, drawing on a background in creative strategy, education and music ministry to shape a more vibrant and inclusive future for the arts in Lancaster County. He attended Mercer University in Macon, Georgia for undergraduate work, and received his master’s degree from the University of South Carolina.  He also holds a nonprofit professional certification from the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance. Eric has spent time in the advertising and public relations industry, healthcare, education, and the nonprofit sector.

  As executive director of the Lancaster County Council of the Arts, Eric leads the organization’s mission to enrich the quality of life in Lancaster County through arts, culture, education, and community engagement. Under his leadership, LCCA has expanded arts access across the county through public art initiatives, arts integration in schools through a Kennedy Center partnership, and forming partnerships with other community nonprofits and corporations that connect creativity to economic vitality and community pride.

• Jan. 13 • Arts + Military and Veterans

  Speakers

  Robert LeHeup
  Executive Director, Bullets and Bandaids

  Robert LeHeup is the founder and executive director of Bullets and Bandaids, a nonprofit organization that bridges the divide between veterans and civilians through storytelling and art. A former U.S. Marine Corps infantryman who served two tours in Afghanistan between 2001 and 2003, Robert’s experiences with trauma, loss, and rediscovery inspired him to create an initiative that transforms isolation into connection and pain into purpose. After his service, he earned a degree in Writing for Media from the University of South Carolina and went on to write across multiple forms of media. His journey toward healing included a TEDx talk that helped him confront the emotional aftermath of war and inspired the founding of Bullets and Bandaids in 2012. The project has since grown into an international collaboration featuring veterans, writers, and artists from across generations, demographics, and geography, including participants from over a dozen different countries. Robert’s work embodies his belief that radical empathy, honest storytelling, and intentional art can heal individuals and communities alike.

  Gabby Jones, MT-BC
  Neurologic Music Therapist

  Gabby Jones received her bachelor’s degree in music therapy from Queens University of Charlotte. Gabby works as a board-certified music therapist at Piedmont Music Therapy, a 501(c)3 that aims to connect and grow with individuals of all ages and abilities through music therapy treatment and community programming. She has experience working in a variety of communities, including substance use disorder recovery, mental health settings, veteran support, adults and children with physical and intellectual disabilities, and stroke and TBI recovery. Gabby is passionate about encouraging self-care and mental well-being in the communities she serves, aiming to provide inclusive and transferable treatment outcomes through therapeutic musical experiences.

• Feb. 10 • Working with Artists

  Speakers

  Anna Chen
  Watercolor Collage Artist and Redux Artist-in-Residence

  Born and raised in South Carolina, Anna Chen is a watercolor collage artist who lives in Charleston. Her work aims to explore how everyday places and objects can evoke universal emotions within us. She has shown at HedHi Studio, GAP Gallery, Drummond Studio Gallery, and Public Works Art Center, and has work in the permanent collection of the Medical University of South Carolina. She also writes a weekly roundup called “Get Your Art Together” on Instagram to help promote local art events in Charleston and teaches a monthly watercolor collage class at her studio at Redux.

  Buff Ross
  Executive Director, Redux Studios

  Before taking the reins as the executive director role, Buff Ross founded Alloneword Design to focus his services on museums, artists, and other cultural organizations, in addition to commercial clients. Prior to this, he served as the assistant director and curator for The Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art. His life is littered with a rangy collection of other occupations, including roofer, painter, associate professor, cook, ship worker, fishmonger, potter’s assistant, archeologist, and budding restaurateur. Returning to Redux Contemporary Art Studios is allowing him to utilize his master’s degree in museum studies in a more formal role. Buff has been involved in some form since its inception, the last 10 years as a board member before assuming this new role.

• March 17 • Cultural Tourism and Festivals

  Speakers

  Abby Anderson
  Executive Director, Congaree Vista Guild

  Abby Anderson is the executive director of the Congaree Vista Guild and has been in that role for more than six years. In addition to managing the business, Abby does marketing for the Vista district, plans two large signature events and works directly with businesses and the city on improvements to the district. Abby came to the Vista from the Columbia Fireflies baseball team, where she was vice president of marketing & public relations. She assisted in the creation of the Columbia Fireflies brand and was instrumental in introducing the brand to the community. 

  Abby is a member of the Junior League of Columbia and spends her free time with her husband and two children.

  Kat Spadacenta
  Community Development Coordinator of the City of Camden

  Katharine Spadacenta is currently serving as the community development coordinator for the city of Camden. In this role, she promotes the Downtown Camden Cultural District and its assets and provides organizational support for festivals and events that take place in the Cultural District and throughout the city of Camden. She is the staff liaison for the city’s new Public Art Committee and has worked with artists and merchants to create public art projects that compliment the Cultural District, encourage locals and visitors to engage with art, and increase public awareness and attendance within the district.

  Harvee White
  Public Art Coordinator, South Carolina Arts Commission

  Harvee White is an arts advocate and public historian from the Atlanta metro area (by way of Bossier City, Louisiana). She holds a bachelor’s degree in art history from Georgia State University, and a public history master’s degree and museum studies certificate from the University of West Georgia. She has worked in program management/community engagement roles at various museums in the Southeast and was named as one of South Arts’ National Arts Leaders of Color fellows (class of 2023/2024). Currently, you can find her living, working, and snacking on gummy worms in Columbia. 

• April 21 • Advocating for the Arts

  Recording coming soon!

  Speaker

  Jeff Robinson
  Executive Director, South Carolina Arts Alliance

  Jeff Robinson is the executive director of the South Carolina Arts Alliance, a statewide nonprofit organization dedicated to advocacy, leadership development, and public awareness for the arts. In his role, he leads efforts to strengthen public policy, public support, and public funding for the creative sector at both the state and national levels. The organization’s flagship event, South Carolina Arts Day, brings hundreds of arts leaders, legislators, students, educators, and advocates together at the State House each year to elevate the significant impact the arts have in the Palmetto State.

  Prior to joining the S.C. Arts Alliance, Jeff spent nine years in arts education as a middle school band director in York and later as a teaching artist at the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities. A lifelong musician and arts advocate, Jeff holds a bachelor’s in music education and a master’s in arts administration from Winthrop University. He serves on various statewide boards and task forces, and is the chair of Palmetto State Arts Education. He also serves as the national secretary-treasurer for Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, the nation’s oldest and largest music fraternity.

• May 19 • Arts + Health/Healing

  • Tuesday, May 19, 2026
  • Noon-1 p.m. ET
  • Register for May 19

  Speakers

  Katie Hinson Sullivan
  Director of MUSC Arts in Healing

  Katie Hinson Sullivan, MPS, LCAT, ATCS, ATR-BC is an art therapist who has worked in diverse settings including schools, outpatient clinics, hospitals and various nonprofits, supporting children and adults impacted by trauma. Before returning to Charleston, she spent three years at Rikers Island, using art as a tool for healing with incarcerated individuals. She is now the founder and director of MUSC Arts in Healing which serves patients, families, and community members across inpatient and outpatient settings, as well as through school and community partnerships. Katie is passionate about growing access to the arts in health and advancing the field of art therapy through education, research, and policy advocacy.

  Dale Savidge
  Registered Drama Therapist

  Dale Savidge, Ph.D., RDT, ATC Executive Director is a Greenville-based theatre director, educator and entrepreneur. He holds a doctorate in English and theatre from the University of South Carolina. He is a Registered Drama Therapist under the guidelines of the North American Drama Therapy Association. He has created five books of writing and art by survivors of substance use disorder, sexual exploitation and with juveniles in a detention center. Savidge has created productions, programs, and companies and travels widely, leading and attending conferences and workshops in locales such as Singapore, New York City, and Puerto Rico.