in accepting the studio as a graduate i was faced with how to fund myself while within the residency. i say fund myself as i’ve come to realise how strategic one needs to be when relying on self generated funding for projects – the lead times are so long. therefore when an opportunity to apply for a part time support role at a nearby college was drawn to my attention i made dam sure my application hit all the required markers. i might well have talked about this is a previous post. i have now started in the role and finding a rhythm with that work and the time in the studio.
the student residency cohort consists of four of us. when we first sat down together, we learnt about the exhibition in the foyer at the end of the residency displaying work made during our time at banks mill. in the last couple of weeks, i’ve started thinking about this show. i need to start thinking a bit more seriously about what i’m going to place in the space. we are about 6 months into the residency.
first things first-how do i respond to the space? the bulk of the work shown in the foyer is wall mounted and this is something that i don’t really set out to create. therefore i am thinking i need a framework for the space and work within this.
as the part time employment role settles down and i can relax a bit about money, i now can begin to further think about the practice development. today i’ve written to a professor in ireland in response to a tweet i saw a few weeks ago. not sure what might come of it and to be honest i like the whole ad hoc feel to it.
another block of writing i am thinking about a lot of the time is that connected to the phd application. i feel slightly overwhelmed by the formalisation of the thing. i need to look beyond this to compose something and accept it might not be accepted. the longer the process goes on the more formed the thinking becomes.
i take a moment to breath and relax.
currently on the wall of the studio i have this cardboard tube arrangement. today i see how this is the basis of something for the foyer show, alongside a yet to be thought about performance.
to some extent, having the part time role is providing a book ended focus for the days i can practice on. it’s forcing my hand to be organised about how i use my time and in turn this gives me a break from the college environment.
after several months of waiting for the role to start and the connected uncertainty to this, i am feeling optimistic and upbeat about what is yet to come.
