News comment - Page 3 of 9 - a-n The Artists Information Company

When Inverleith House closed to the public last year, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh said it no longer intended to use it as a gallery for contemporary art. Now, as it hosts its first exhibition since the closure, Regius Keeper Simon Milne has said reports of its demise were just a “rumour”. Neil Cooper takes issue with this rewriting of history and cautions that the fight to truly save this renowned Scottish art gallery is far from over.

The recent Artist Hotel event organised by Bristol’s Knowle West Media Centre involved an overnight stay in a community centre as part of a wide-ranging discussion about community art and artist-led regeneration. Rowan Lear reports.

In the second of two short provocations inspired by his time as the 2016-17 Clore Visual Artist Fellow, Maurice Carlin reflects on his uneasy relationship with the art world and proposes artists think beyond the opaque and insular system of endorsement and patronage that defines it.

The UK has the most highly developed arts infrastructure in the world. But, asks 2016-17 Clore Visual Artist Fellow Maurice Carlin in the first of two short provocations, imagine if it all disappeared overnight. Would it make a difference to your career? Would you still make art? And what do we want this infrastructure to do?

In the midst of a growth in performative and participatory art at international art biennials, Documenta recently confirmed the site of a new permanent institute in Kassel. Inspired by an academic conference on conserving contemporary art, Laura Harris assesses the challenges the institute faces in a climate where the experiential is increasingly taking precedence over the art object.

One half of the London-based performance company There There with Dana Olărescu, Bojana Janković argues that the economic pressures more and more artists face are ultimately shaping the kind of work that gets made, especially by emerging artists, with profound and long-term consequences.

Being a mother of young children and continuing your art practice is incredibly difficult. Inspired by a recent symposium exploring the challenges of being a ‘mother artist’, Frances Bossom – who presents a ‘Proposal for a Guide for Art Parents’ at June’s a-n Assembly event in Bristol – calls for an approach that values the complex reality of motherhood.

Yesterday’s announcement of the 2017 Turner Prize shortlist saw two artists over 50 nominated – Hurvin Anderson and Lubaina Himid – reflecting the recent decision to drop its longstanding under-50 rule. Fisun Güner welcomes the change, arguing that it better reflects the reality of many artists’ careers while also ensuring a particularly strong line-up for this year’s prize.

In the lead up to the general election on 8 June, a-n’s Director Jeanie Scott announces a major five-year strategy to make sure the new government understands – and reflects – the needs and contribution of the UK’s visual artists.

What will Brexit mean for artists’ copyright and what should artists be thinking about and doing as the process of disentanglement from the EU begins? Abby Yolda, head of communications at the Design and Artists Copyright Society (DACS), outlines the organisation’s view.

LaBeouf, Rönkkö & Turner’s anti-Trump artwork, HeWillNotDivide.Us, has been closed down after just one day in Liverpool, its fourth site since launching in New York on Donald Trump’s inauguration day. Laura Harris argues that the controversial work’s fate embodies the struggle facing left-wing political artists.

Disabled artist Beth Davis-Hofbauer recently produced the self-initiated report, Autism Matters: Making Galleries and Museums ASD/SPD Friendly. She explains what prompted her research, why it is a problem that needs to be addressed, and what galleries can do to become genuinely accessible to all.

At the recent symposium, ‘Art is not a Commodity: Examining Economic Exceptionalism in Art’, Rosalie Schweiker argued that artists need to “stop faking orgasms” and instead start clearly vocalising their dissatisfaction with the art world. Here, we publish an edited version of her presentation.

The Brexit vote and Trump’s election polarised debate on immigration, censorship and democracy. But while artists have overwhelmingly supported Remain, artist and writer Sarah Peace argues that it’s time to stop sneering at Brexiteers and instead focus on providing a cohesive and compelling case for a thriving creative sector in post-Brexit Britain.

As Washington DC prepares for the 20 January presidential inauguration and the rest of the world is gripped/appalled by the latest predictably narcissistic Donald Trump Twitter outburst, London-based artist Sonya Dyer – who was on a residency in Nebraska during the election – reflects on her US experience and considers what the new era means for art and artists.

Ferens Art Gallery in Hull has reopened after a £5.2 million refurbishment largely funded by Hull City Council. But while the local authority should be commended for its commitment to culture, Sheila McGregor argues that the blame for council cuts in towns and cities across the UK needs to be forcefully directed at Westminster politicians rather than hapless local representatives.

a-n’s Executive Director Jeanie Scott reflects on an incredibly busy year for the organisation that has seen the publication of the Paying Artists Exhibition Payment Guidance, wide-ranging support for artists through a-n bursaries, and membership reach a record high. And, despite an increasingly messy global situation, says there’s much to look forward to in 2017.

At IAA Europe’s recent annual two-day general meeting in Berlin, a key workshop discussed the issue of social security and the mobility of visual artists within Europe. Pippa Koszerek reports that, despite Brexit, such discussions remain important to UK artists.

Newcastle-based artist Kathryn Hodgkinson believes that the city council’s planning decisions are having a detrimental effect on the area’s creative community. In the wake of the recent decision to demolish the creative space Uptin House to make way for ‘yet another block of student flats’, she argues that local authorities need to embrace the true value of artists.

The New Art Gallery Walsall remains under threat of closure but gallery director Stephen Snoddy has vowed to fight hard to keep it open. Chris Sharratt argues it’s a battle that can’t be lost.

Artist Catherine Bertola is concerned that HMRC’s new ‘Making Tax Digital’ proposals, which the government claims will make tax administration more efficient and easier for taxpayers, will result in additional administrative pressure for many artists and self-employed freelancers with low and erratic incomes.

Hot on the heels of the closure of Inverleith House gallery in Edinburgh comes the news that Glasgow Sculpture Studios is to end its exhibition programme. Chris Sharratt sees worrying signs for the resilience of the visual arts sector in Scotland.

The just-opened ‘Abstract Expressionism’ exhibition at the Royal Academy chronicles a key moment in 20th century art, presenting some of the period’s most iconic works. Fisun Güner reflects on the significance of this last great age of the artist as hero and tortured genius.

This year’s Jerwood Drawing Prize continues its reputation for being deliberately provocative in its definition of ‘drawing’, with the top award going to a video piece. Lydia Ashman soaks up the medium’s shifting forms.