Sharing can be difficult. Especially for artists.
I tend to have studios that are tucked away and secluded. It gives me the freedom to create in a seemingly private environment. My studio is it's own little world. I lose track of the hours and forget what I must look like buzzing around the room at a million miles an hour carrying objects that are as large as myself. The studio, to me, is a neutral zone. I come here to get away from everything else. Much like Native American cultures use dream catchers to keep out the unwanted dreams, I have a 'shit catcher' that keeps all the unnecessary crap from entering the studio door. No evil thoughts, no drama, no carnivorous bugs, nothing. Even treacherous people get stopped at the entrance. While this peaceful seclusion services my creative freedom, it doesn't exactly aid in getting the art out into the world. So, I'm going to try something different. I'm going to share.
I made the choice to rent my studio in a building that is full of artists with the hopes that I'd extend my connections; however, when I arrived, I managed to weasel my way to the very top floor, which is only half occupied and much quieter. Noticing my tendency to hide in the corner and run from any sort of attention, I have been making deliberate attempts to put myself out there by keeping the studio door open, going to gallery openings and studio mixers, etc.
I tend to have studios that are tucked away and secluded. It gives me the freedom to create in a seemingly private environment. My studio is it's own little world. I lose track of the hours and forget what I must look like buzzing around the room at a million miles an hour carrying objects that are as large as myself. The studio, to me, is a neutral zone. I come here to get away from everything else. Much like Native American cultures use dream catchers to keep out the unwanted dreams, I have a 'shit catcher' that keeps all the unnecessary crap from entering the studio door. No evil thoughts, no drama, no carnivorous bugs, nothing. Even treacherous people get stopped at the entrance. While this peaceful seclusion services my creative freedom, it doesn't exactly aid in getting the art out into the world. So, I'm going to try something different. I'm going to share.
I made the choice to rent my studio in a building that is full of artists with the hopes that I'd extend my connections; however, when I arrived, I managed to weasel my way to the very top floor, which is only half occupied and much quieter. Noticing my tendency to hide in the corner and run from any sort of attention, I have been making deliberate attempts to put myself out there by keeping the studio door open, going to gallery openings and studio mixers, etc.
I've cleaned out a corner of my studio. No, it's not for photographing or a new huge sculpture in the works. This is the space I will be sharing with a friend from graduate school. We will both be working in the space on our own independent projects. While I am very much a one-woman-show, meaning I'm extremely self-sufficient and require little to no assistance with the physical production of my art, I'm aware that I still need the help of others. By sharing the space, sharing resources, sharing connections, and sharing ideas, the hope is that we will both benefit in our own way. And then there were two...