PUB(LIC) CONVERSATION ABOUT STUDIOS AND ARTISTS WORKSPACE IN BIRMINGHAM
 
Tuesday 4th December, 7.30pm - Lucy Byatt
 
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.
 
Lucy Byatt was educated at Brighton University, Glasgow School of Art and Concordia University in Montreal, Canada. In 1995, after working as an artist over a number of years, she joined Visual Art Projects in Glasgow as Co-Director and in 2000 she established The Centre, an independent commissioning organization where she worked with artists including Graham Fagan, Toby Paterson, Simon Starling, Siobhan Hapanska and Vong Phaophanit
 
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.
 
For more information see www.spikeisland.org.uk