ARTISTS TALKING

# 61 [3 January 2011]

This blog has lost its purpose a little - partly as my own writing and studies have gained more purpose and focus. Something to be celebrated.

I've decided to set up a new blog at Artists Talking, and to engage more with the artists and writers contributing here.

The blog is going to be called Art, Philosophy & Faith: Tracking my Doctoral Research on Agnes Martin

I'll get it started soon!

Becky xo

# 60 [10 December 2010]

Launching.... My Writing Service for Artists

It’s a commonly held idea that art needs no words. But, as contemporary artists, we know that isn’t quite true.

Historically speaking, from Marcel Duchamp and Rene Magritte’s surreal, verbal experiments, to Mark Titchner and Lawrence Weiner’s concrete poetry (above), the nuances of art and language are closely connected.

Then, of course, there are the practicalities. Publicity, funding, opportunity and public interpretation.

No artist I’ve met looks forward to writing artist statements, press releases or application forms. You want to focus on your work, stay in the studio (or get out of doors!), not get distracted and held up fretting over text.

Writing Service for Artists

That’s where I can help. In my Writing Service for Artists I work with artists, designers and curators to produce creative, descriptive, theoretical and explanatory text.

Wall texts
Interviews
Catalogue essays
Artists statements
Press releases
Critical responses
Application forms
Blogs
Web sites

I listen carefully to your vision and insight in order to produce words that work with your art, positioning your practice within contemporary, theoretical and historical contexts. As an artist and published art critic qualified in Fine Art and History of Art, I can translate art into words for exhibitions, proposals, web sites and publicity. I know how important the words are: too important to entrust to generalist copywriters who have not shared your experience.

To find out more about how the Writing Service for Artists can free you up to focus on your work and transform its public presentation, email me today (becky @ beckyhunter.co.uk). Take advantage of my 20% discount for new customers: offer expires 31 January 2011.

*Also… if you have texts already written in German, I can translate them into beautiful English for you!

This page’s web copy was produced with the marvellous assistance of Gabriel Smy / Smyword.

Read more: http://www.beckyhunter.co.uk/workshops/writing-service-for-artists/#ixzz17iL7MBfq
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution

# 59 [9 December 2010]

While I was neck-deep in dissertation stress, my Dad told me a tale about a man, an axe and a river. For the last, mad weeks of my Masters, the story was a lifebuoy, calmly bobbing in my mind while I summoned the courage, each morning, to face writing and editing, and to quell the rising panic that (despite my weeks of research and passionate drafting) I had nothing to say.

The story goes something like this,

In ancient times, there was a man engaged in building a temple. Breaking up stones, he swung his axe with such gusto that the heavy axehead flew from its wooden hilt, soared down the grassy hill and plopped into the fast-flowing river. He wrung his hands, tore at his hair and burst into tears. Rather a fuss for a burly stonemason to be making.

At this moment, the prophet happened to be walking by. Taken aback by the tradesman’s howling, the prophet asked him what the matter was. The man told him, between giant sobs, that the axe was the prized possession of a friend, loaned to him for the sacred purpose of temple-building, and now the axehead was gone forever, churned up in the wild water.

The prophet had a think, then told the man to pick up the wooden axe-handle, walk down the hill and wait by the water’s edge, holding the hilt out over the surface of the river. As the stonemason did so, the axehead floated into view, as if magnetically attracted to its other half. He was, naturally, very happy and continued with his work.

What I took from this is that creativity, particularly under pressure, is a flimsy, flyaway thing. If we lose it for a time, it’s best not to panic. Instead, wait at the place we last saw it. It was there all along. It we wait quietly for a little while in front of the laptop, notebook or sketchbook, inspiration, ideas, the ability to see, words, whatever it is that we’ve been missing, will gently rise to the surface of our minds. And we can get on with our work.

By the way, this vignette is adapted from the Bible, my Dad’s go-to book (2 Kings 6:1-7), but I think it’s useful for those of us with different, little, or no faith of the conventional kind.

# 58 [6 December 2010]

While I catch up with my new, fully freelance life, here's a snippet from my 'professional' blog. More personal blog notes coming soon here...

Interview with Lucy Adlington, The Parlor Boutique Dec 2nd, 2010

Having just taken the leap into full time self-employment myself, it was wonderful to chat with Lucy Adlington about the trials and pleasures of her work as a designer-maker.

I profiled Lucy’s gorgeous gems a while back for a local magazine and have always been impressed with her DIY attitude, high aesthetic standards and super multi-tasking ability – as well as being a mite envious of the woman’s ability to look flawless whatever the situation! Here, we talk about her motivations, challenges and inspirations…

How long has the Parlor been running and what made you set the business up?

The Parlor opened in June 2007 officially, online, but I’ve been making and selling jewellery since 2002. The store took over a year to put together as I did everything entirely myself! It was a huge learning process along the way and I made sure I took my time as, ultimately, it felt more satisfying that way. The jump from hobby to business came from a desire to create something more tangible that I could work at part time whilst the rest of my life was in hiatus when I was diagnosed with M.E.

Talk us through the inspiration behind your latest pieces.

The site is updated constantly with new pieces, as I tend to come up with designs sporadically and sometimes work a collection through that theme. My main inspiration for pieces like c’est la vie rose was to create a huge statement piece that was both heavy and full of grandeur harking back to the silent film era. It’s my favourite piece as it always gets noticed. I have a couple of collections coming up next year around one of my ultimate inspirations but that will remain top secret until its finished!

Why vintage?

I’m a huge collector of 20th Century pieces of costume clothing and jewellery: the fact that these pieces are incredibly intricately made and have lasted the test of time is why I look to the past to bring back the ‘built to last’ ethos. I have a few costume jewellery pieces from the likes of stores like Woolworths that were made using brass and beautiful faceted glass stones, and they’re still in mint condition today. I aim for the same quality with my own pieces.

A lot of the charms and cameos I use have an incredibly story, the origins of which started in West Germany – before the Second World War the jewellery store owner re-located to the U.S.A and brought his stock with him. For whatever reason it was left sitting in a barn and, after a fire, his wife decided to auction off the remaining pieces and, as such, a fantastic array of pieces became available (all in near mint condition) to the market. I then re-create them into simplistic, quality jewellery that’s either created in very small numbers or a true one off. I love to be able to sell my customers unique pieces with a story to tell.

What is the biggest challenge you have had to face in being a self-employed creative?

To keep going. We’re living in a recession and also an independent creative age thanks to the internet, so there’s a lot of competition out there and the high street can be ruthless in latching onto designs and reproducing them for considerably less. Also, working solo means there’s no one backstage to take the reigns when it comes to time off or holidays. And you have to be incredibly self disciplined as well as driven, particularly if you’re having those moments of self doubt!

Read more: http://www.beckyhunter.co.uk/#ixzz17Lbch8se
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution

# 57 [29 November 2010]

Becky blogs for Arts Professional… Nov 29th, 2010 by Becky. [Edit]

I am delighted to have been invited by Arts Professional’s editorial team to be one of their brand new creative bloggers. I’ll be writing regularly on how to manage and grow an emerging, freelance arts career – like mine! – as well as publishing plenty of revealing interviews with bright, successful women in the field. Here’s my first Arts Professional post…

Five Tips for Portfolio Career Success

‘Portfolio career’ is such a deceptive phrase. For me, those two words bring to mind a finely tuned array of innovative projects, managed with airtight and formidable efficiency.

I must admit, however, that my ‘portfolio’ is a little too much like the one I heaved around, aged 19, on the tube and in cabs between various art school interviews: overstuffed, unwieldy and containing work on an assortment of somewhat arbitrary themes. Despite this, I remain passionately committed to intertwining art, criticism, public speaking, academic research and blogging, in pursuit of creative integrity and a satisfying alternative to the 9-5.

To extend the art school carry-case metaphor, every scuff, bump and torn page, while disappointing, marks an opportunity to polish up and redraft. In other words, even career mistakes highlight opportunities for growth. The tips below have emerged from my personal freelance setbacks.

1. Ditch the perfectionism. I find this helps with finishing projects on time; working only my planned number of hours in order to preserve a decent hourly wage within my flat fee; and having the self-belief to take on new, more complex projects as I allow myself to take creative risks.

2. Value relationships. Rather than viewing each new contact as a business opportunity, I try to enjoy and to cultivate the friendships that crop up in my various lines of work. This way, I appreciate people for their personality as well as their skills; work collaboratively instead of competitively; and have some fascinating friends.

3. Be realistic about pricing. When I started getting unsolicited enquiries about my art writing, a chat with a more successful writer showed me that I was drastically underselling myself. New clients were happy to pay more because they recognised my strengths -perhaps more than I did.

4. Sleep. After years of late night deadline scrambles, I now know that I do my best work when I’m well rested, so I make bedtime a priority (arts careers are often less than glamorous!). This is especially important when dealing with the hectic travel schedule that often comes with multi-project work.

5. Set new, exciting goals. One major advantage of a freelance career is that I can dream big about my future and make step-by-step plans to get there. Right now, I am working on a business plan for a contemporary art gallery and studio complex. By identifying concrete goals, I am also able to propose and select projects that will best equip me to get there: my portfolio therefore becomes more coherent and my motivation soars!

Do you have any top tips for arts career success? Do share them in the comments…

Read more: http://www.beckyhunter.co.uk/2010/11/becky-blogs-for-arts-professional/#ixzz16hhFeT8Q
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution

# 56 [9 October 2010]

Oh dear! Dissertation mad focus is getting in the way of sharing my potentially briliant (or more likely, jumbled) thoughts with the a-n crew. So i thought I'd post my freelance journal from my website, and also a couple of new links to articles I've recently had published...

Lately, I have missed having a regular blogging schedule. In particular, I’ve missed the weekly gift that the Freelance Journal set of posts gave of half an hour to think and write about what I’m doing with my life, to realign with, and to question, my goals and values, and to prepare my mind for next seven days. I absolutely credit online journalling, since the beginning of 2010, with the excavation of some of my lifelong dreams - and, in part, for the courage and energy to work towards them.
 
So, thoughts on life, academia and freelancing...

It’s only two weeks to go until my MA dissertation is done, bound and handed over. I loved the research phase of the project, but writing has been tough and the central arguments, vague and coagulating in my brain, are only just starting to come together now. Thankfully, I have a bunch of wonderful girlfriends - some who I’ve known for years and some, bless them, who are an amazing online support troop - who have been there, and I’m finally becoming convinced that the damn work will get done and will get done well!

Freelance-wise, September/October has so far been a pleasantly fruitful period, with one of my favourite interviews ever taking place (dare I hope it is the start of a super friendship?); my appointment as UK Managing Editor of Whitehot Magazine; a book review; and two excellent writing commissions for an independent sculptor and an Arts Council funded, artist-led exhibition - more to come on those at a later date.

On a practical note, I did plenty of down-to-earth-freelance-businesswoman type stuff, such as file my tax return; create brand spanking new sexy headed paper for quotes, invoices and suchlike; reorganised my paper financial records and folders on the Mac; and set up new Excel spreadsheets to help with calculations. I thought this worth mentioning, partly as I’m so proud to have completed these usually-annoying tasks, but also because these activities taught me about the sheer pleasure of doing useful-but-boring things as procrastinatory tool. I mean, if you’re going to practice dissertation avoidance, a few hours put towards claiming a tax refund (and then buying gorgeous new boots with the cash) must be better than watching back to back Curb Your Enthusiasm!

On a more fun, lifestylie note, I’ve been loving taking long walks, going gluten free (SO much more energy, you would not believe it, it can’t be a placebo effect, surely?), munching my organic veg delivery and watching 1999 episodes of the 1900 House with my mum in the evenings. I’ve also been ordering books like a fiend on Amazon in preparation for my first-time-in-three-years novel reading bliss out. So far, Virginia Woolf’s The Waves, Anne Lamott’s Hard Laughter, and (ahem, I’m just curious and idealistic) Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert have made the list. Recommendations much appreciated...

# 55 [21 September 2010]

Back in the UK, slowly recovering from jetlag/brain-freeze, have set up a makeshift 'office' in my parents back bedroom, where I'm staying until I finish my dissertation and figure out what to do next.

I miss my US-based partner like crazy, and am trying to distract myself with work and with long walks around the sheep farm near my parents' house. I missed lambing season, and missed the harvest, which is disappointing. But the Autumnal breeze, and the flapping leaves, are gorgeous nonetheless.

I recently subscribed to a-n for the first time in a few years. I *just* qualified for the artist rate, which I'm really thrilled about - having a Fine Art degree, several exhibitions to my name and several (albeit small) paid painting and drawing commissions.

This feels like a real step forward for me in terms of reasserting my creative identity, calling myself an artist, or at least a person who makes things and writes stories (Louise Bourgeois did both of those things!)

I'm looking forward to making the most of those resources, and drawing more support and friendship from the a-n community - as well as giving something back!

I also just registered for a creative writing course with the OU. This shouldn't be too much a time/energy drain as it doesn't begin until after my dissertation deadline, and it's the most beginnerish one they offer. It will be interesting for me to try and make sense of art and my experiences away from art in the past few years through fiction and observational word play.

Looking forward to it all.

I've just finished putting together a newsletter - which will be coming out monthly from now on. It will cover my travels, reading, research and activities to be an artist... If you'd like to read it click here.

I'll try and get back to daily writing on here as I really appreciate the community and I like the opportunity to consider what I'm doing, how satisfied I am, and what changes I might make.

Anyway, much love to you all, and on with the damn dissertation!

# 54 [1 September 2010]

I'm finding at the moment that dealing with disappointment is a big part of each day.

From things like cancelled interviews and publications, to struggling with insomnia and adjusting some medication I'm on in order to not feel fuzzy headed all the time, I'm having to adjust my expectations about how much I can achieve each day and what other people are supposed to do for me.

I think this is at least the second time I've written something like this in 2010. It's such a hard lesson to learn, isn't it? As artists, academics and creative people, we want always to be challenging ourselves and doing new things, expanding our horizons and abilities. Then something comes up and we're suddenly just trying to keep head above water for a while.

Is balance and routine the answer here? Or is burnout and overwork just part of the creative life? I want to say no to that, and live in a way that keeps me healthy.

# 53 [25 August 2010]

Setting up an artist-led space: the 'Why' factor...

Rosalind recently asked me a pertinent, and challenging, question. It’s had me shaking in my boots – well, sandals, actually, we’re having a heatwave here in Philly – and thinking hard. So, after a few days of wondering, I decided to set a timer and blog my tentative, flighty, totally unedited, stream-of-consciousness, passionate answer…

Why do you want to set up an artist led space?

- I want to be in West Philadelphia to be with my amazing partner & I want to have a real, hardcore purpose and set of goals to work on while I’m here

- I care passionately about the arts, always have, probably always will, and have always dreamed of running a small space, with a garden, plenty of light, and a friendly atmosphere

- I’d love to facilitate artists residencies and having a physical space set up would be an ideal way to do that

- I’m a bit of a control freak and so, rather than work my up in a big commercial gallery or museum as a curatorial assistant and so on, I would rather carve out a modest space on which I can make my mark, and help other independent artists and curators to do the same

- Also, I have an entrepreneurial type of spirit – hence the blogging, the freelancing etc – and, as above, prefer the challenge of running a business of sorts rather than working for a salary

- Running a gallery in West Philadelphia in particular brings together my two desired outcomes in life – developing contemporary art and doing something socially active, socially worthwhile (which I feel I’ve neglected over the past few years) – I hope that community outreach and education in the city’s poorer/high-crime areas can be part of the gallery’s remit

- I’ve found over the past few years that working as a writer has brought me into contact with so many more interesting and helpful and friendly people that I would otherwise have met. I’m kind of antisocial and shy (would you believe!?), so interviewing people and calling people regarding research and giving presentations pushes me out of that comfort zone and into brilliant new relationships, friendships, opportunities and networks. I reckon running a gallery would make for a similar push out of my comfort zone into new wonderful experiences and friendships

- Making friends in Philly is very important to me, as a newbie here, and I hope that having a real project on the go will (as above) push me to meet new people and enjoy life

- I’ve worked in galleries and always wanted to be the one in charge, haha! On a less control-freakish note, when I’ve worked in galleries, I’ve always paid attention to systems, mailing-lists, PR, ways of handling work and people, even little things like cleaning the gallery floor and making notes on the condition of paintings each day – I want, one day, to be able to teach someone else the ropes, help others embark on their art careers

- I’m an artist

Ok, timer buzzed… I feel a little exposed, but there you go… trying not to judge myself or my motivations… I’ll keep thinking about ‘the Why’. Thanks to Rosalind Davis for the great question!

# 52 [11 August 2010]

These were my end of day tweets:

* Perfect NYC day! V productive research meeting, interviewed lovely artist, Cohan Gallery show, high line, cheesecake @ Veselka, ahh.

* ps - I used to eat at Veselka every week (way back before it was on Gossip Girl).

Thought I'd paste here as they sum it up pretty well!

Also... you can find me on twitter if you want more (though my life isn't usually so glamorous).

http://twitter.com/musehunter