Alumni Encounter : Eric Preisendanz

The Business of Creativity

There is a lot of chatter these days about young entrepreneurs and the need for greater entrepreneurship. Eric Preisendanz BFA '10 (Sculpture) has created what may well be one of the most original and meaningful entrepreneurial companies yet. His organization, REVOLVD, sources, curates, installs and rotates temporary fine art exhibitions through subscriptions to businesses, institutions, collectors and "appreciators."

The company's inaugural exhibition, New Urban Optics, was on view this past spring at Jefferson Hospital's Sydney Kimmel Cancer Center. The exhibition, which displayed 55 paintings by UArts alumnus Justin Rubich BFA '10 (Painting + Drawing) and Philadelphia mural artist Anthony Torcasio, was called a "groundbreaking stride" in linking the hospital to the Philadelphia arts community and was praised for transforming the space from dull to enlivening for patients and their families. Eric credits UArts faculty and staff for helping to make the critical connections with the hospital that enabled both the exhibit and the launch of his business.

REVOVLD evolved from Eric's desire to change his life. After being involved in a car accident on the way home from a corporate job he was finding unsatisfying, Eric questioned the way he was spending his days. He realized what was missing was time to re-engage more fully with the arts. Instead of replacing his car, Eric invested in his dream-a company that links artists, who often have few places to exhibit their work, with businesses aspiring to cultivate a creative environment in their public spaces, without necessarily having to purchase the work. Eric had been showing his own work, maintaining contact with former classmates engaged in the Philadelphia arts scene, and had maintained a network of contacts developed as an undergraduate at UArts, including alumni, professional artists and arts organizations in the region. No less significantly, he had gained invaluable project management and business experience after four years as a full-time property manager for Target Corporation. It was the right moment to launch the enterprise.

Eric researched the business landscape regionally and nationally and developed a formal business plan. "My internships as an undergraduate helped me develop the skills to curate exhibits and collaborate with people at all levels of an organization. The guidance I received and contacts I made through the University's Corzo Center for the Creative Economy were invaluable," Eric says. Small classes and access to his teachers were the best part of his UArts experience. "The faculty know who you are. They care about you. These relationships continue to deepen and endure, even after you graduate." And they've been an essential part of this new venture.

REVOLVD has ambitious goals: 1,000 works of art by Philadelphia artists in circulation at all times -- from medical waiting rooms, to private collections, to the lobbies of office buildings, to civic spaces. Eric knows that artists can "never stop making," and also, that while profitability does not drive the desire to make art, commercial success impacts an artist's capacity to thrive and keep creating new work. "I'm nervous every day," he admits about being a young entrepreneur, "but I know we must communicate the value of the