The fourth article in this series pays a visit to Copenhagen in Denmark, where Henrik Plenge Jakobsen is immersed in some big issues. “When I think of Western culture I get a mental image of exclusion, particularly in relation to the individual versus society. The concept of ‘liberty’ is hard to transgress. Because of this it becomes easier to limit yourself and your attitudes toward life in general.”
Susannah Thompson discusses ‘Vault 2001’ and considers the implications of visual arts programming within a multi-disciplinary venue.
The rise of independent artist-run spaces across the UK, and a seemingly impenetrable gallery circuit in London, appear poles apart. Gordon Dalton in Edinburgh and Tim Birch in Manchester visit two young, ‘commercially-minded’ spaces that have picked up on this, and are encouraging an art market in exciting and challenging contemporary work outside London.
A recurring issue for artists is the constant search for a suitable space in which to work and exhibit. Artists have increasingly addressed this through improvisation and adaptability, to the point where spaces run by artist collectives have become almost synonymous with formerly disused (or unwanted) spaces. As Malcolm Dickson noted in his comment on artist-run spaces (October issue) – “The motivation now is more pragmatic by necessity, in that you just have to do it in order to get work shown (whether your own or other artists)”.
