ARTISTS TALKING
Visual art exhibitions and events with a platform for critical writing
Subscriber resource
Light-Proof / A Prova di Luce
A regular visitor to Italy since 1981, when Alan Rogers moved there on a more permanent basis his "youthful, romantic love affair" with its warm Mediterranean light was soon replaced by the realisation that day-to-day conditions for contemporary artists were far from ideal.
Two years ago I moved from Cardiff to the resort of Jesolo Lido, just outside Venice. It is the first time I have lived abroad without a specific residency, scholarship or exchange to work on. This time there was no quick connection to the local artistic scene, or any other assistance. Like life after college all over again, I had to re-enter the art market at an emergent level, regardless of my achievements in the UK. I wrote to the British Council in Rome requesting contacts. Their reply was "state and regional authorities offer very little, if any, support to living artists, though the Italian Ministry of Culture is currently looking at ways of promoting and supporting contemporary art. These ideas are at an embryonic stage". Under the new Berlusconi government most artists agree that the embryo is in for a long gestation. There are no national or regional arts councils as we know them and only a few individuals who believe artists might operate successfully within communities, schools and hospitals. I've yet to find a body responsible for public art although contemporary public sculpture is sometimes seen. There is no equivalent to [a-n] MAGAZINE, virtually no advertised...
. . . to read the rest of this resource
and access all Knowledge Bank and Publication articles subscribe online - from only £6.
If you are a subscriber please login here.