ARTISTS TALKING

# 80 [28 July 2009]

Events here at the Salzamt in Linz have got me thinking about the way artists get treated sometimes. The atmosphere between the three international artists here (including me) is glum to say the least. Instead of getting on with work, we are all pretty worried about money as we have still not been paid. I have just been paid a bit from Tate Liverpool and have borrowed off three people to keep me going. I will have been here three weeks on Thursday and have also paid for my travel to get here. Needless to say, I don't have any savings to rely on, haven't worked this month elsewhere and so have no income until September 1st (Yorkshire Sculpture Park). I just feel glad that there are people I can ask for help and that I have pounds not Krooni.

I am starting to feel a bit foolish as there is absolutely nothing I can do about it. I came here on the strength of some emails (the first from Liverpool Biennial - so I know the money will come). There is no contract, no guarantees and even the amount we are getting seems to have changed (materials money has disappeared from the equasion). Apart from not really getting the benefits of being in a new exciting land, there is also the worry that I have to exhibit some new work in three weeks. I had hoped this residency would be a good chance to play about with some materials (wood, concrete and resin were in my head) or make something really ambitious in this wonderful space I have, but currently I am saving my money for food. Although I am sure the money will come before then, time to play about and make is also important, and it feels like it is slipping away. I shall have to be content for now with my paper and cardboard... and I am still being ambitious, but not in the ways I hoped! I feel like this problem may be fixed for the next batch of residents as we are almost like guinea pigs, but that doesn't help today.

So, how often do artists have to put themselves in this position? I know I have, many times. I have also signed contracts, which included payment dates, amounts and what was expected of me. I got paid on time and did what I said (sometimes more) and it was easy and good. Perhaps contracts don't always work out either? It just seems artists are not very likely to have savings, a steady income or other back-ups (i.e. living in your overdraft already), so they will be ill-equipped to deal with delays and non-payments. Pah. I suppose another lesson learned; not to rely on immediate payment or to trust vague figures from an email. At least we have beds!

# 79 [28 July 2009]

So, the Linz blog has had to go for now. I stopped blogging about my work for lots of reasons last year, and thought it might be different during a residency. But it's not. I think I tend to get overly introspective and it's just not that great for the work-making.

It was getting complicated too as various people here at the Salzamt in Linz were reading it, and when I found that out I felt pretty uncomfortable about how much of myself was laid bare for them all to see!

In the meantime, there are some observations I have been making about artists working here and some interviews to write up. I am also busy writing an article for the Linz Neuner Magazine. Just need to wait for my sunkissed glow to die down (ahem) before Jens can take my portrait to go with it.

# 78 [21 July 2009]

As I mentioned earlier, I thought the Capital of Culture year in Liverpool pretty much ignored and perhaps even took money out of (?) the grassroots art culture (some of the best, fiestyest and most innovative in the country may I say!). That fact seems to pale into insignificance when the olympics loom into view.

criticalnetwork put it very well on their latest bulletin:

"criticalnetwork says NO! to the Cultural Olympiad

We have been receiving a large number of submissions regarding events that form part of the Cultural Olympiad. Please note that we will not list any events that form part of this pointless, hegemonic and excessively drawn-out programme.

As a collective of artists practising throughout the UK we directly oppose the Cultural Olympiad at every level on the basis that it aims to co-opt the work of artists to white wash the crimes of the 2012 Olympics and manufacture an appearance of acceptability at the expensive of (primarily grassroots) arts activity throughout the UK.

A large proportion (more than £200m) of the ludicrous £10bn cost of the 2012 Olympics is being redistributed from the arts sector nationally and is creating a culture in which artists and art organisations are compromising their integrity, desperately trying to incorporate irrelevant Olympic themes in to their work in the hope of receiving financial support. The Cultural Olympiad is the folly of cultural middle-managers and policy makers, it is art as tourism, it is the Capital City over the rest of the country, it is not going to feature on criticalnetwork."

Couldn't have said it better.. I hope the park will at least continue to be used, how depressing to go somewhere like Barcelona and see a garveyard of a park that was once an over-budget, must have thing just for the Olympics. I am not a fan, yet here I am trying to get a flight from BA in their competition. This is all tied in with the Olympics and they say on the website 'This scheme will look for individuals who demonstrate the values associated with Olympic and Paralympic Games and who strive to be the best' hmm, I strive to be MY best, which is not the same thing.. but I really want the flight. Victoria, a book artist in Argentina, and I have been emailing for ages and have also been brewing great plans! Am I a hypocrite? Is British Airways giving away free flights (based on some bizarre voting scheme, but they go ahead and pick the shortlist regardless) system the same as supporting the Olympics? I hope not!

Don't even get me started on the allotments. 

To subscribe to criticalnetwork bulletins go here:

http://www.criticalnetwork.co.uk/home.php

Do any artists really want the Olymipics? I'm curious..

# 77 [21 July 2009]

If anyone has a few spare minutes perhaps you could go here:

http://www.greatbritons.ba.com/users/16501

You have to sign up I'm afraid and can either leave a (nice!) comment on my profile or give it 5 stars by clicking on the last star on the right... this should help get the project shortlisted.. maybe?

When you write yor profile they ask you to include 'emotive stories' to get the sympathy/support of the British public.. I, however, have no sob story - I just want to get an interesting exchange project between book artists in Liverpool and Buenos Aires off the ground!

Thanks, very grateful to anyone who can take a few minutes out to help.. only five days left to vote!

# 76 [19 July 2009]

"His report will warn of a growing culture of unpaid, unadvertised internships now increasingly required to get into competitive fields which is excluding even relatively well-off children if their parents lack the social connections to secure them."

Alan Milburn's report on private/state education cited by Gaby Hinsliff in an article from the Guardian today:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2009/jul/19/pr...

# 75 [17 July 2009]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2009/jul/15/yba-...

The Guardian interviews four graduates fresh out of Goldsmiths - these lot don't seem to be letting the recession dictate things for them..

# 74 [14 July 2009]

"Arts Council England today announced final details of an organisation-wide restructure that will transform the way it serves the arts and audiences. The restructure will save £6.5 million a year in administration costs and these savings will be invested in the arts."

http://press.artscouncil.org.uk/Content/Detail.asp...

# 73 [12 July 2009]

One of the local artists working here at the Salzamt (for a one-year period), Katharina Gruzei, is leaving to go to Salzburg for a months teaching today, so I asked her if I could email the questions I wanted to ask in my interview, so she could respond by email, or be prepared for a quick interview next time she is around. We ended up talking about making a living anyway and talking about the precarity and sheer edges in an artist’s existence.

I asked whether she makes a living from her work and she replied that currently she does, but in the autumn, her stipend runs out and the worry begins again. It seems to me she is very talented and proactive and will have no trouble finding future support, but I thought that I am in exactly the same position. This year and until July 2010, I am supported: I have enough income from bursaries and residency fees to live without too much worry. I know, however that there is nothing after July, and so I will be busy doing applications in the autumn and spring to try and fill this void, or at least provide a small stepping stone to the next respite.

We also talked about the fact that we never found ourselves in the most desirable position: having made some work and then being given money/time to make new work. The bursaries we both have are to make new work within a time-frame, or more honestly, to try and make new work alongside other activities such as teaching and writing reports that are attached to this funding. This makes the supported time feel like there is little room for mistakes: the funding brings pressure and a spotlight that did not exist before. This seems ironic when I consider that the funding is intended for a period of making new work, time to play and experiment, fail, figure it out and start again. Perhaps this real experimentation is never possible when you are being given public or charitable funds? This money comes with responsibility to produce things and show money well spent. Perhaps also, it is just the nature of making art that we (artists) are too hard on ourselves, feeling pressure acutely and being unable to escape the looming uncertainty that comes after any opportunity?

http://katharinagruzei.blogspot.com/

# 72 [11 July 2009]

This article, from the latest issue of Variant, is really interesting..

Artist as Executive, Executive as Artist
Kirsten Forkert

http://www.variant.org.uk/35texts/CultLeader.html

It references this article from the Guardian on 19/01/08, which I reckon is also worth a read:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/jan/1...

‘No pay, no gain: The reliance on unpaid interns in Britain’s industries puts poorer graduates at a disadvantage and makes a mockery of our so-called meritocratic society’, 

# 71 [11 July 2009]

I have just added a new blog post on Intute: Toolkits and free advice for the visual arts. Have a look!

The post has links to various organisations and online resources with free advice and opportunity listings. Happy browsing.