Do you want to produce art professionally, but find the phrase "starving artist" decidedly unromantic? Learn how to turn your artistic passion into a career at the free Artist Micro Credit Program clinic and workshop, on Saturday, June 23, from 9 a.m. to 2p.m. at the ArtServe headquarters in Fort Lauderdale.

Artists from all disciplines, from musicians to painters, dancers, writers and filmmakers, are encouraged to attend this free business workshop.

Sponsored by the Broward Cultural Division and the South Florida Regional Planning Council, the workshop will prep artists and creative entrepreneurs for their applications to the Artist Micro Credit Program – established to finance artistic entrepreneurship in Broward County. Participants will learn how to prepare a business plan and how to effectively work with lenders to obtain financial support, as well as network with past alumni of the Artist as an Entrepreneur Institute.

Rafael Cruz, regional director of the Small Business Development Center and Cheryl Cook, director of Loan Programs of the South Florida Regional Planning Council, will direct the workshop. The program will also host keynote speaker Kim Hall, the editor of Professional Artist, a national magazine for fine artists. Hall will deliver a lecture entitled "Developing a Brand for the Artist."

Attendance at the workshop is highly recommended for Broward-based artists and alumni of the Artists as an Entrepreneur Institute. Spaces however are very limited for this free clinic. For more information or to register for the program, contact James Shermer, grants administrator of Broward Cultural Division, at 954-357-7502.