Voices from Hastings

We speak to Sharon Haward, artist and facilitator of artlab in Hastings, supported by the Axis Vacant Space scheme.

Sharon Haward is an artist, curator and educator based in Hastings and she has many years experience of collaborating with artists, curators and students on exhibitions, festivals and projects in the UK and Europe. Her own work is a blend of installation, sculpture and photography often with a site related element, and developed from residencies. 

Alongside her practice, Sharon has worked as an educator at the local HE college and at regional galleries has enabled Sharon to recognise a gap in support and sense of community for mature students after gaining degrees and for mid career artists trying to maintain their practice alongside work, family and caring responsibilities. 

artlab was created, with the help of Axis, to make a regular, accessible space that fits the needs of the participants with a focus on experimentation, collaboration and mutual support. Activities devised for artlab are shaped by the group and to date have included mini residencies, crits, drawing sessions, professional development talks and the aim is to broaden the scope of the organisation in the new year.
 

Can you tell me about what you’re doing in this space and how it came into being?

The space is called artlab and it has multiple functions. When offered the space I didn’t need a place to work but I was in contact with a number of recent and older graduates from University Centre Hastings and felt that if I took on the space I could offer them a place to work and a space to connect and maintain a sense of community. 

I recognised that after graduation it is easy for ex-students to loose confidence and work patterns and thought that some regular meetings would help bolster their practice. We meet as a group once a month to discuss progress, to plan future sessions, to recount recent gallery trips etc. recently we have spent time talking about materials and techniques in relation to painting. 

There are currently 9 regular members of the group, some are local ex students and others are artists with quite a bit of experience but with a need to meet up with other artists on a regular basis, and they come from further away. They decide as group how best to use the space, so outside of the regular meetings there have been single and paired residencies lasting a week or more, a couple of drawing sessions, 3 crit sessions and a professional development session. 

Plans for the future include making small sculptures workshop, a Christmas sale of work, more drawing sessions, exhibitions, and a further crit group with artists outside the group. 

How has the space influenced your work or shaped the way you collaborate with others?

Artlab has provided the group with a sense of belonging and as a group of mature individuals with families, jobs, aging parents, children etc,  artlab offers a space to maintain/ develop or reconnect with their practice amongst like minded people. As a group they are pretty independent and resourceful as well as being supportive of each other,  and I am there to create a framework. The space has been an important creative nexus for the individuals in the group. 

"Artlab has given me the freedom to experiment in a public facing space. It has provided valuable discussion & exchange, by introducing me to new local artists."

April Yasamee 

In what ways has this space fostered a sense of community, and what has emerged from those connections?

Through regular meetings and activities the group had become bolder and more ambitious, they are thinking more broadly about how the group could develop and embed a range of different activities. Some members have invited other artists to join for a session or to join more long term. 

What do you feel spaces like this contribute to the wider artistic and cultural landscape of Hastings at this moment?

We’ve only been going since March/April so it’s hard to say how we are contributing to the wider community, but it has become unique in that it appeals to and supports mature artists, emerging and mid career; the Instagram account has highlighted our existence and increasingly other creatives know we are there. If we plan and install an exhibition in the near future that will help cement our place in the town, which already has 100s of artists.

It’s brilliant to have access to a space that works both as studio and exhibition space, and through it to be able to meet, discuss and share work with others. My work has already developed as a result.

Kim de Paolis

What challenges have you encountered while developing or maintaining the space, and how have you navigated them?

The space is an awkward shape and rather scruffy, however the group, as it exists at the moment, is happy with it as a work space rather than an exhibition space. The frontage is pretty grim and the front is just a shutter so it’s pretty cold in the winter as we are right by the main door. The caretaker has let us use a heater, but it’s still quite cold. There is nowhere to put any branding and the shutter could do with painting, but we are not sure if it’s worth investing in time and money in getting any paint as we are not sure how long we’ll be there. 

What does it mean to artists to be given the use of these types of Vacant Spaces from Axis?

Having spaces to work and meet, like those provided by Axis, is very important for artists because they help them stay connected. Having a free, hassle free space means that artists can focus on developing their practice and supporting each other, especially when they have busy lives already. Studios and the cost of spaces that can be rented for meetings and projects are expensive and not everyone can afford to join groups with big up front costs - Axis spaces mean that artists from all kinds of backgrounds can meet each other and develop together. The aim of artlab is to be able to offer support to artists from any background and to create a space where artists can shape the projects they want to do.

 

Having access to the space in Priory Meadow had been hugely beneficial for me. Firstly, being in a new environment stimulated new ideas and installation work which has since been accepted for two exhibitions. Secondly, using the space as a meeting place with other artists has promoted extremely useful discussion, critiques, exhibition planning and collaboration. Thank you very much for this opportunity.

Katharine Weston Smith