PHOTOGRAPHY SHOP

BACK TO JOURNAL

 PHOTOGRAPHY & PRINT THE FAIR

Where to meet artists?
Whether you are a landscape painter, an abstract expressionist or a filmmaker, like-minded artists are never too far away.

Artist studios Becoming a member of a studio is probably the easiest way to meet artists, plus it’s an excellent way to take your work to the next level as it will give you access to more space and facilities that you just can’t get at home. The great thing about having a studio in a building filled with other artists is that you are all on the same page. Providing you pop to the kitchen to make a coffee every now and then and make the effort to say hello and be sociable with other artists, you will quickly make friends. Bow Arts, who have a variety of artist studio buildings throughout London, are a good choice for affordable artist studios, with shared spaced starting from £105 per month at the time of writing.

Classes and workshops Many artists wrongly associate classes and workshops with amateur arts, which is not always the case. Even so, why not expand your network and meet individuals who are just starting out? Art classes and workshops are in fact filled with professional artists looking to learn a new medium or meet like-minded people. After all, artists are not always the most sociable of people so forcing yourself out of the studio and into class is sometimes the only option. Most of the major art colleges offer evening and weekend art classes across a variety of mediums, however you could also join classes in a local studio, like The Kiln Rooms in Peckham, who specialise in ceramics.

Exhibitions and open studio events It is surprising who you can bump into when visiting an exhibition. Better still, events that accompany exhibitions, like Tate Lates and other talks and experiences, are a fantastic way to meet other creators. An important part of making meaningful connections in the arts is showing your support. You should attend open studio events and small, artist-run exhibitions and engage in meaningful discussion about the work. One thing to be mindful of is art fairs, which sound like a great way to meet other artists but can, in fact, be the worst place to make connections. Gallerists and artists often pay quite a lot of money to be at art fairs and they therefore need to sell. Only start up a conversation with an artist at an art fair if you are genuinely interested in buying a piece or if it is very quiet.

Social media There are a multitude of Facebook groups, for example, that are dedicated to specific mediums and are there for one thing and one thing only: for artists to network and offer one another advice. Artists who join Facebook groups are actively looking to engage with other artists, and that could be you. Popular groups include Artists Trying to Make a Living Creating Art, a global community of more than 160,000, and Portrait Artists UK, which has more than 4,000 members. What are you waiting for? Go out there and meet like-minded artists and find your tribe.