Tracy Spiers Professional Practice: Artist residency begins

It's always been a dream of mine to do an artist residency, so my work placement is fulfilling a desire that I hope will open new doors in future. Stories, objects and the people who used them fascinate me and to be in a place which holds hundreds of untold narratives relating to my home town is a privilege. I have a personal interest in Stroud's Museum in the Park in that my mum Jan spent her childhood years in the mansion house that holds the district's collection. She moved in with her parents Kitty and George Ham at the age of 3 in 1947 and moved out ten years later when she was 13. Kitty only died last year, just weeks before her 97th birthday, so my placement acts as a tribute to her. Petite and always looking immaculate, Kitty had an adventurous, cheeky streak to her personality that I never felt was allowed to fully show itself. So what better way to bring that to life by creating a series of images incorporating Kitty as a miniature figure with the objects that are now in the house she once lived. I believe if you are passionate about something it comes through so time just flew today as I immersed myself in an imaginative world, allowing the objects and their own narratives to entwine with my own little Kitty.

Working on site at the Museum in the Park

KEY BENEFITS
Even from day one, I can see one valuable benefit of a residency in that it provides a space to work, both physically and mentally, away from distractions of every day life. Four hours of non-stop drawing zoomed by. It was refreshing chatting to staff, volunteers, members of the public and artist friends who took the trouble to chat while I drew and were so encouraging. One can feel quite vulnerable working in public, but once I focussed on the task ahead, my inhibitions soon left. It was quite a surreal moment however reporting for duty at 10 o'clock to find two of my university tutors already at the museum about to start a meeting. At least they knew I was working!

In researching what other illustrators who have carried out residencies have learnt from their experiences, I found this quote from Alistair Gentry. In an article by Matthew Caines in the Guardian (Caines, Guardian. (2013) Artist-in-Residency Schemes: top ten tips. At: http://www.theguardian.com/culture-professionals-network/culture-professionals-blog/2013/jul/03/artist-in-residence-schemes-top-tips (Accessed on 07.01.2014)

"A residency should be a beginning, not an end. Following one particular residency, I had a 10 year relationship with the venue. I worked with them many times subsequently and they supported me both pragmatically and in more emotional ways. To me this is absolutely a model of what a residency should lead to." Alistair Gentry, artist and writer.

This statement is one I trust will apply to me. The Museum has such strong personal connections, but also the staff have always been so supportive of my ideas. I have worked with them professionally as a writer over the years, endeavouring to promote their exhibitions and events. Hopefully this residency will mark the start a new relationship as an artist.

Today's drawings and the objects that inspired them