Four leaders in the Atlanta arts community joined forces to share their powerful stories as part of "WomenLead Presents: The Creative Journey" on Nov. 7. This lunch-and-learn event, made possible by State Farm, provided an opportunity for students to meet creative women leading in their fields. They provided insight into their careers and the importance of ambition, vulnerability, and the desire to leave an indelible footprint for future generations to follow.

• Elizabeth Talaska is the director of development for Georgia State’s College of the Arts. Prior to joining the university’s major gifts team, she spent nine years as a “single-person shop” for development and communications at a local grassroots nonprofit. By the time Talaska left, annual giving had grown from less than $25,000 annually to over $1 million dollars yearly.
• Tamala Baldwin is an executive producer and director who has created narrative, branded, and documentary work for the past eight years. At the beginning of 2023, Baldwin wrote and directed her first Christmas movie, “Blended Christmas,” starring Jennifer Freeman, Victoria Rowell, and Anthony Dalton, which is scheduled for release on Christmas Day 2024 as a BET+ original.
• Jessica Kiger serves as the director of community engagement and education at the Atlanta Opera. In this role, Kiger leads the development and management of the company's community engagement and educational initiatives, fostering strategic partnerships, and overseeing program planning.
• Lynsey Weatherspoon is a portrait and editorial photographer based in Atlanta and Birmingham whose work has appeared in The New York Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Time, ESPN, and ESPN-owned The Undefeated, among others. Weatherspoon’s work has been exhibited at The African American Museum in Philadelphia and Photoville NYC.

Kathryn Hartgrove, professor of voice in Georgia State’s School of Music, moderated the panel. An accomplished mezzo-soprano opera singer, Hartgrove teaches WomenLead in the Arts each spring. She kicked off the conversation by asking each leader about their first steps into working in creative spaces; each woman shared more about how they have been able to leverage their multiple talents to forge successful careers.

Baldwin said professionalism, discipline, and leadership go hand in hand. “Everyone that I work with – you have to be excellent. You have to be thorough. You have to be organized. And I do my best as a leader to show you how to do that. So, whenever I have a [production assistant] or coordinator or anyone … I set the tone by showing and expressing exactly what I want because we cannot fail.”

Kiger and Weatherspoon talked about being aware of the communities they serve. For example, Kiger has worked to introduce opera to underserved areas as a way to spread awareness about the power of the arts. Weatherspoon took photos on Election Day around metro Atlanta and spoke about the intentionality of capturing images of different communities. She said, “I had to be sure I was equal in who I was covering.”

Talaska’s work involves connecting with donors for scholarships and other types of support for students, and she said understanding a person’s motivation to give is key. She added, “Anyone engaging in philanthropy, anyone being interested in caring for other people, is special, somewhat unique, and doing the work.”