ARTISTS TALKING
Visual art exhibitions and events with a platform for critical writing
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Oh, Vienna
Julie Read gives an account of her experience on a residency in the Austrian capital.
Last year I was invited to apply for an artist-in-residence programme hosted by the Bundeskanzleramt (Austrian Federal Chancellery). Application is by slide, proposal and evidence that you have established yourself as an artist for a number of years. Their letter and website go to great lengths to tell you how successful the scheme is, exhibitions that have been organised with visiting artists and how this programme will enable you to engage in the artscene in Vienna. This, I thought, was something in which it was worth investing time. In reality, my two-month experience was far removed from this. I found it hard to comprehend how this programme had been so successful when I came up against people from the organisation so unwilling to help, who offered no introductions to anyone or showed any interest in my art or studio practice. This experience has also been shared by others who I have been in contact with. As an individual artist it is often not beneficial to approach galleries and curators in pursuit of exhibitions. The attraction of a residency at an organisation is that being under their auspices makes networking a little easier. The Bundeskanzleramt seemed to find this...
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