Artists in residence in England and the experience of the year of the artist

Abstract

The Year of the Artist was a celebration of artists of all kinds held in England between June 2000 and May 2001, and it used artists in residence as its main vehicle. This chapter looks at how well the Year of the Artist achieved what it set out to do, how it operated in different regions, and how the Year of the Artist contributed to the development of artists’ residencies. Residencies developed from a relationship between visual artists and industry into a concern with social agendas. They also constitute a form of employment for artists. The first and second sections of the chapter comprise a brief survey of how artist in residence schemes developed, and then a more detailed look at schemes operated by three different organisations in the 1980s and 1990s further sets the context for the Year of the Artist. The Year of the Artist celebrated and promoted the artist in society, and encouraged artists to work in unusual locations. The third section of the chapter comprises an analysis of the database of 977 residencies collected by Arts2000 as the Year of the Artist progressed. Data from two surveys conducted in the Northern region are also considered. Research suggests that the Year's effects were felt mainly locally, rather than nationally. Some evidence shows public attitudes towards artists changed in the North. Cultural diversity was reflected in most regions’ pattern of residencies. The Year of the Artist had an inbuilt bias towards regions with smaller populations. London achieved fewer residencies than anticipated, but compensated with larger scale projects. Several regions demonstrated strengths in particular artforms. The available evaluations are neither consistent nor truly independent. The Year of the Artist allowed arts policy makers to use artist in residence schemes‐an existing managerial tool‐for a different purpose. The traditional, social dimension of residency was underplayed, displaced by the emphasis on getting artists into unusual places. The historic domination of the visual arts in artists’ residencies did not change during the Year of the Artist.

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