I start my residency tomorrow. I’m going to be working there two days a week, with two and a half in my paid job and half a day running an art workshop. I’ve been so excited about the residency and now that it is upon me I feel anxious. I’ve been reading other people’s residency blogs and they all seem to be more focused and more mature in their practice. I have no evidence yet that I will be able to produce work outside the college setting – how will I get on without tutors and other students around to learn from and get feedback from.
I know how I have worked in the past – I love to work with archives and do a lot of text-based research about places and people and stories then I photograph and draw and paint to develop my ideas. That’s my anchor, and from them I have to wait to see what grows.
I also know that I need encouragement, and I don’t know where I will get that from in this new setting. My work isn’t decorative or particularly accessible, I need people to take time to appreciate it. I don’t know how it will go down.
But alongside the nerves, I feel really lucky to have this opportunity. I hope it will give me the structure and discipline to get back into my practice which has lapsed over the summer. It is also provides me with a studio, which I feel sorely in need of. I can’t work at home – too many distractions. So roll on tomorrow. Now I’ve written down my nerves I can get on with packing my materials and looking forward to getting in there!
