Female artistic identity in place: the studio

Craft and the Creative Economy

“…In particular, for women artists, a studio external from or separate to the home has been a cherished marker of one's professional status as a visual artist; the physical presence of a dedicated studio space that people can visit is a powerful signifier of one's status as a 'serious' artist, and one 'that many women artists demonstrate a strong attachment to ... because it continues to be a hard-won resource' (Bain 2004, p. 171). In her study of Toronto-based visual artists, Alison Bain found that for women in particular the studio remained something of a guilty pleasure, with the 'selfishness' afforded by the space -physical and mental -seen as a privilege (Bain 2004; see also Taylor 2013). Though Bain notably identified that even for these visual artists there was a marked shift towards the desirability of a home-based studio for professional artists with children.…”

“…They are directed, therefore, at managing the juxtaposition of the social relations of production and reproduction. (2000, p. 117) Among the technologies of the self Felstead and Jewson thus identify as necessary for the successful conduct of home production is the work of establishing and maintaining 'the interface between these work routines and the life of the household' (2000, p. 112); hence the appeal of the separate studio for many creative workers (Bain 2004(Bain , 2005Taylor 2013). But what happens when not only the space and hence time of paid work are becoming conflated with that of the household, but the space of paid work presumes the public performance of the collapse of this boundary?…”

Resisting the creation of forgotten places: artistic production in Toronto neighbourhoods

“…The art‐school educator Carol Becker (2000, 239) might suggest that we do not seek the opinions and concerns of artists with respect to urban issues because the predominant image of the artist in North American society is ‘the romantic one of the artist on the fringes—wild, needy, visionary, alone, ahead of his or her time, misunderstood… But we do not have in our collective consciousness, or probably unconsciousness as well, images of artists as socially concerned citizens of the world, people who could help determine, through insight and wisdom, the correct political course for us to embark on as a nation’. In scholarly literature, artists are acknowledged as having a vital role to play in urban place making through the location of studios and social spaces (Bain 2004), the creation of public art (Malcolm 1997; Widdis 2000; Hall and Robertson 2001; Hubbard et al . 2003; Koster and Randall 2005), and ‘the flamboyant sexual cachet which has been traditionally associated with artistic milieux’ (Jordan 1980, 16).…”

The Promise of the Affordable Artist's Studio: Governing Creative Spaces in London

“…Affordable studio providers recognised that artists' studios embody distinctive cultural and social characteristics in the popular imagination: they are seen to generate creative behaviour and inspire artistic labour (Jones, 1996), they can be romanticised isolated spaces of production (see, for example Bauer, 2008, Jones, 1996, Hughes, 1990, Zakon, 1978 or be central to the working lives and professional identities of creative practitioners (Bain, 2005(Bain, , 2004. Consequently, the affordable studio would need to reflect this diverse array of practical, technical, professional and personal uses.…”