pub(lic) conversation relocated

Update 02/12/2007: and now we’re pushing the capacity of VIVID too!

Demand for places at this event has been very high. If you have already booked and happen to have a fold up chair or cushion handy please feel free to bring it with you as we may be slightly short on seating.

There are (very) few spaces left, BUT BOOKING IS ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL. IF YOU HAVEN’T ALREADY, PLEASE EMAIL selfservice@hotmail.com ASAP TO BOOK

PLEASE DON’T JUST TURN UP – WE CANNOT GUARANTEE WE WILL BE ABLE TO LET YOU IN IF YOU HAVEN’T BOOKED.

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We’ve had so many people book places for the upcoming Pub(lic) Conversation about studio provision and support for artists in Birmingham that we’ve had to find an alternative venue.

Shame, because the Lamp is a crackin’ good pub.

The open discussion will now be held at VIVID. For those of you who haven’t got experience of Digbeth warehouse spaces, make sure you wrap up warm.

Unfortunately the new venue does not have a bar so you may want to bring your own (in addition to the extra jumper) if you feel you can’t wait until after to visit one of the local hostelries.

There may be a small budget for refreshments, and possibly a tea urn too!

Same as before though, please email selfservice@hotmail.co.uk to book a place.

PUB(LIC) CONVERSATION ABOUT STUDIOS AND ARTISTS WORKSPACE IN BIRMINGHAM

Tuesday 4th December, 7.30pm
VIVID,
140 Heath Mill Lane,
Birmingham.
B9 4AR

Guest speaker and host, Lucy Byatt, Director of Spike Island, Bristol.

In December, after a six month stay of execution, Birmingham Artists will lose the subsidy for their studios at Lee Bank. This space was the only Birmingham City Council subsidised artists’ workspace in the city. Meanwhile other studios (including those the majority of Self Service members inhabit) are in privately owned buildings that are often cold, damp, insecure and uninsurable.

Self Service feel this most recent withdrawal of support for artists’ practice, should act as a catalyst for a wider discussion about the lack of affordable, fit for purpose studio provision and production facilities in the city

  • How should artists in Birmingham respond to the council’s action?
  • Could artists be doing more to demonstrate the intrinsic value of arts practice to the city?
  • Are successful models for studio provision just about providing artists with space to work?
  • Is the Creative Industries agenda at odds with the realities of most artists’ practice?

With these, and many more, questions in mind we have have invited Lucy Byatt to host a pub(lic) conversation around this issue.

Everyone is welcome, though as we are limited by space, booking is essential.
PLEASE EMAIL selfservice@hotmail.co.uk TO BOOK A PLACE.

Spike Island is a national centre for the production and exhibition of contemporary art. Located in Bristol, Spike offers excellent studios as well as project and exhibition space for the making and showing of ambitious new work. Spike Island emerged from an artist run initiative developed in the late 70’s, Bristol Art Space. Whilst it is no longer ‘artist run’ the values of support to artists and those developing their career within the contemporary visual arts remains a high priority.

Lucy Byatt has been Artistic Director at Spike Island in Bristol since September ‘02. In her five years at Spike Island her role has been to build the vision and create the organisational change required to enable her to deliver the recently completed £2.25m capital development. Spike Island has retained its generous number of low cost studios and created new space within the building to establish the Associate Programme so providing access for many more people developing a path within the visual arts. The galleries, right at the heart of the building, now refurbished, are amongst the most exciting spaces in the UK. The much improved residency studio space has enabled Spike Island to enlarge the International Residency Programme so creating a web of networks across Europe and beyond.

Previous to this she was based in Glasgow, where in 1993 she did the MFA at Glasgow School of Art, and Concordia University Montreal. In 1995 she joined Visual Art Projects as co-director, balancing her own practice as an artist with the demands of working with this newly formed arts commissioning organisation. During her four years at VAP the agency became influential, commissioning some of the most ambitious artist’s projects in public space in Scotland. In 1999 she left VAP to establish The Centre also based in Glasgow, an agency again focussed on artists working in the public domain, The Priority for The Centre was to build a critical context for this work through discussion, collaboration, conferences and publications.

For more information see www.spikeisland.org.uk

Currently Self Service is Tom Bloor, Jo Capper, Mona Casey, Faye Claridge, Ruth Claxton, Greg Cox, John Hall, Cheryl Jones, Nikki Pugh, Liz Rowe and Matt Westbrook.

For more information see www.pubconversations.co.uk