September Update 🏮🍂

The days are getting shorter, the evenings are cooler, and we’ll be spending more time indoors. I usually dread this time of year, but I’m looking forward to getting a lot of work done. At least that’s the plan. Invariably, something always blows my plans out of the water; overcommitting, unexpected workloads or crises, and burn out. But I’m learning to pace myself and take time off. Working longer hours doesn’t necessarily mean getting more done, in fact if you’re tired or stuck it’s better to take a break or even a nap.

I recently found some time to return to the co-operative art school project for the first time since lockdown and it’s very exciting! Those who’ve been waiting to hear the outcome of the survey will be happy to know that it should be ready in the next couple of months. I have no social science training so I have no idea what I’m doing. I make it up as I go along, taking several different approaches, especially as the sample is quite small and the perspectives so diverse.

Plans and developments in the pipeline; I’m putting together a funding application for the next stage of the co-operative art school project, working on some writing and interviews and planning to publish an open call for the 2nd issue of URgh! on co-operatives in the arts. More on these and other developments in the next newsletter.

For the time-being I wanted to let you know that there are still a couple of slots for free Artquest One to One advice sessions in Oct/Nov. So head on over there if you’d like to discuss your practice and plans for the future. Be the first to find out about new Artquest One to One dates as soon as they’re posted by signing up to the Artquest newsletter, it also comes with a great selection of opportunities.

The Autumn 2023 Art+Critique online course starts in about a month and there are four places left. The course is popular beyond the M25 and it is more affordable as an online course with hybrid off-site visits, so the format is the same. We have just completed one year of a pilot peer support group for those who want to stay in touch after completing the course. I’m still working on a  couple of new shorter courses so stay tuned for updates.

Wishing you a prolific and satisfying autumn 🏮

📌 Artquest One to One
Free one-to-one remote advice sessions for London-based artists
Book a free Artquest one-to-one advice session to get feedback about your work, build a strategy for an upcoming project, get practical career advice, discuss the logistics of operating as an artist and find out about other arts organisations and how they can support you.

🍒 Art + Critique
Critical & Contextual Studies in Art Practice Online, Autumn 2023
17 Oct 2023 – 5 Mar 2024, Tuesdays 18:30-20:30 BST/GMT+1
£ 435/£ 348 Concessions (student, unwaged, disability)
This course integrates practice and theory to address our concepts of art, how they are transformed and the problems of making art in the broader context of social conflict.  The syllabus offers a solid background in essential histories and discourses of contemporary art to help artists address questions about their practice and its context: about what art is, how it is judged and how it relates to society. The curriculum emphasises critical inquiry in art practice and research and supports participants as they develop their practice and research in a series of lectures, seminars, workshops, group tutorials, off-site visits and assignments. The curriculum fosters experimentation and collaborative study in a community of peers.