Something’s happening was 3rd in Octobers Top ten Artists talking blogs. Which is nice!
After a lot of umming and ahhing I have decided to move studios. I’m not moving far. It’s the studio next door, in the same ‘Space’ building, and still two doors down from my flat. I will have a larger space for less £’s, and studio to myself for majority, as other artist I’m sharing with won’t be in much. Disadvantages are I will lose the frank yet useful feedback I was getting in previous studio share. I have every intention of turning the new space into a haven, a den, ‘my shed’.
Recently I’ve been concentrating on meeting other artists. The building I am in only has six studios and it’s very quiet! I have found some lovely communities in the SE London area but struggling to find regular groups or events in the hackney area where I am based. There are bits and bobs but its all a bit sporadic – am I missing something, anyone out there? It is early days and perhaps it is something I should consider setting up myself.
I did attend an Artist Speed Networking event last week. In pairs we had 10 minutes to discuss each others practice and then you moved onto the next person (there was a bell and a horn!). Scary, challenging, and interesting having to find quick sound bites for my practice, give useful feedback whilst trying to find a common interest.
It made me think about the word ‘networking’ I think we borrow this from the business world and in ways it defines what we do. And the artist’s practice often is a business. However it instantly brings to mind white collar workers or a corporate world – which feels artificial and not necessarily something I want to be part of. Here’s a Wikipedia entry for business networking.
But what was I doing if I wasn’t networking?
