SRS STUDIOS STATEMENT
SRS: Supported Residential Services (SRS) which offer accommodation to men
and women living with mental health issues, physical/intellectual disability,
acquired brain injury or drug/alcohol dependency.
Pop Up Studios: Weekly art workshops held “in-house” at a SRS presented by Arts
Access Victoria. The pop up studios are an opportunity for residents to access
professional art practice in the convenience and comfort of their residential
home. These studios are aimed at introducing residents to the practice of art
making, building new skills and techniques.
Open Studios: Weekly art workshops held at a community venue local to one or
several SRS who have already undertaken a series of Pop Up Studios and are
ready for their art practice to be further developed in a studio environment
which is independent to their residential home. Open studios provide a focused,
professional and welcoming space for SRS residents to further develop their
skills and techniques in art making as well as an opportunity to connect with
their local community.
What do the SRS Studios offer?
Professional Arts Practice
Our studios are an opportunity for people from residential services to
engage with art making in a professional studio environment with high quality
materials and industry level tutelage and advice.
Process Driven
Our workshops focus on the process of art making – what it is to be an
artist, what materials an artist may choose to work with and what ways an
artist may choose to showcase their art. We offer a broad range of skills and
techniques as well as different genres approaches and styles that participating
artists can learn about.
Choice
Our studios offer people choice. Choice in how they make art, in what
way they choose to make art and how they wish to develop as an artist. While in
the studio, each participating artist is given a choice in how they
participate, be it through
o
observation (watching other people make art)
o
hands on art making
o
refining established skills (many people come
with existing skills they wish to build upon, rediscover and/or explore in the
studio)
o
trying new skills/mediums
o
talking about their process and ideas
o
researching art practice by looking through
books, journals and other resource materials for reference
o
researching art practice through seeing local
exhibitions
We offer support
to participating artists as well as encouraging their own independence and
autonomy in decision making while making art.
Professional Pathways
We strongly
support the opportunity for participating artists to become leaders in the arts
and have the following experiences on offer for this reason. We have structured
these opportunities in a way that offers support as well as incremental
challenges, should participating artists seek to pursue them:
o
Artists Talks (an opportunity for artists
to present their works to the studio, discussing their process and ideas as a
way of self reflecting and seeking critical feedback from the group. This is
also an opportunity to develop confidence in presenting their artworks and
ideas to an audience and public speaking)
o
Skills Share (an opportunity for artists
to lead the studio in a workshop of their preferred technique. For example, a
participating artist who has established strong skills and enthusiasm in
printmaking might wish to run a workshop on print making for other
participating artists to learn from. Skills shares can happen in the studio a
participating artist regularly works in, or in another SRS studio that they
visit)
o
Show case outcomes (an opportunity for
artists to develop skills in showcasing artworks for public presentation. An
artist might choose to exhibit their works solo, as a group exhibition or to
collaborate with another artist, to select and curate the exhibition or to
assist with publicity and promotion)
Art first
Participation in our studios means participating in art making. We do
not work from a model of art therapy, nor do we offer any kind of therapy. We
are not interested in “curing disability”, we are interested in offering people
an opportunity to engage in arts practice.
Who Are We?
Participating Artists: Artists that participate
in the SRS Studio workshops. The majority of participating artists are SRS residents. Other
participating artists include visitors to the community facility that the
studio operates from, for example visitors to The Olive Way Drop in Centre.
Previous experience in arts practice is not a requirement for participating
artists, and the SRS studios welcome people of all levels of art making whether
a beginner or experienced artist.
Lead Artists: Artists employed by Arts Access Victoria that facilitate and lead
the day to day running of SRS Studio workshops as well as long-term creative
journey of professional development for participating artists. Lead Artists are
professional, practising artists with industry experience as well as experience
in facilitating workshops for people who experience disability and or mental
health issues.
Support Artists: Artists employed by Arts Access Victoria that work alongside the
Lead Artist to deliver the workshops. This includes providing individual
support, as required, to participating artists under the direction of the Lead
Artist as well as support the lead artist in the development and implementation
of art practices and outcomes.
Our Studio Space
Integral to the
success of our workshops, our physical studio space prioritises:
o
high quality materials
o
light
o
safe OHS practices
o
accessible
o
comfortable
o
open and welcoming
o
secure
o
inclusive
o
room to move
o
an adjacent comfortable, safe space for people
to have a break
o
obvious entry and exit
Our Studio Rules
In order to have a productive, supportive and enjoyable
workspace environment, we have the following rules in place:
o
respect materials
o
work safely
o
respect each other’s space
o
no hugging – just handshakes to greet
Want to Know More?
If you would like to know more about the SRS Studios Program please conact Arts Development Officer Aliey Ballemail aball@artsaccess.com.au or direct line telephone 03 8640 6009
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