3. Describe your interaction with other artists in your country of travel/residency.
My primary interaction with artists was with the other participants of the Network program and the resident artists at the center during that time. On top of these, there were a number of visiting artists who came for a brief stay – anywhere from a few hours to a few days.
Those staying at the center lived in the same house, worked in the same studios, and ate at the same table. Living together we were constantly getting to know one another, developing friendships though common experience. Working in the same studios, we were constantly able to watch each other work, noting the different processes and stages of development of ideas. Yet while living together gave us the opportunity to interact, the dinners essentially forced us to develop a group identity. Dinner was one time every day where we all saw one another and all participated in a single activity. Besides this, sharing cooking duty was a good opportunity to get to know another artist in another way. I paired up with a different artist for each of the 7 dinners I was responsible for during my time at the center.
Each artist, whether a Networker, a resident artist, or a visiting artist, gave a slide presentation to the group. Often these slide shows were not only about ones work, but a window on each person’s life and history. It was interesting to see all the different opportunities that different people had taken. Matt drove from England to Kosovo to deliver an oversized “Peace Postcard,” Jakob works in a factory that assists artists on large-scale ceramic works, and Rabi and Renata funded this trip by conducting raku workshops, using the kiln they adapted from a tamale cooker. The different paths that people had taken in their work gave a strong background to their current work.
Other notable interactions with artists during my project were a series of conversations with Priscilla Mouritzen about the history and management of Guldagergaard, a visit to Studio Viktoria, a cooperative studio in Copenhagen, and a tour of the Danish Royal Academy of Fine Art with Professor Karen Harsbo.
Jo Kamm 