Creative communities across the world are jamming in new cultural centres, for hobbyists and professional fine artists.
Ever wanted a space where you could tinker with electronics, or maybe just edit a video with Final Cut Pro? Don’t have the gear to build a project but need to get started somehow? Or maybe you never went to Art School but always wanted to discover something about making things, while meeting a bunch of cool people? Creative centres across the globe are providing a space for this very need.
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Hackerspaces
Meet Hackerspaces, member-based labs where participants meet like-minded people with like-minded creative practices. Loaded with a bunch of tools and equipment, all hackerspaces share a similar ethos – a place to make, share, create and engage.
It’s not too dissimilar from the Dorkbot model (which has flourished all around the world) – regular meet-up labs and critiques for hackers, designers, engineers, programmers and artists.
Hackerspace team Electromagnate are currently creating a doco on US-based Hackerspaces, called REMADE: THE REBIRTH OF THE MAKER MOVEMENT. They’re documenting NYCResistor, Noisebridge in San Francisco, and Pumping Station: One in Chicago, to name but a few. The goal of Electromagnate is to help the world understand what’s going on in the hackerspace scene, as you can see from the trailer :
Art Labs
Many artists flock to the studio complex, usually a facility of either shared or private partitions, to connect and make within an active cultural community. Often connected to galleries, studios give artists a way to collaborate, and exhibit – emerging into the broader community of their local art industry.
Art Labs (or digital culture centres) however, are fast becoming the first port of call for art students after they leave art school. For work, play, residence, and keeping connected with a network of artists – labs and creative cultural centres are offering the public and art professionals a new type of social lifeblood for the art world.
Often an artist is short on cash, so renting a studio can be a daunting thought. Many choose to work out of their homes or bedrooms, and apply to galleries, art labs and residencies via ‘open calls’ to get their foot into the international art scene.
But as the Remade trailer points out, there is a difference between a digital cultural centre, or art lab, and a Hackerspace. A digital lab or art centre might have its own purpose, for one a specific focus on Art (with a capital A).
Hackerspaces verge more onto electronics, soldering, mechanical engineering, and tweaking readily available technologies. They extend not just from objects for contemplation or critical critique, but for daily use – Hackerspaces are Life Labs.
Art Labs on the other hand, cater for a more specialised audience, but vary inasmuch as the audiences that are targeted. Focuses shift from traditional mediums, to electronic art, or can be age specific – such as a centre specifically devoted to young people. An art lab can either be a public or private enterprise, or non-profit, and if the program within the art centre is of a high technical or conceptual level, there will likely be an application process.
Residencies
A common element of the art lab or centre is what is known as the ‘artist in residence’ program. These are generally short term periods where an artist works with the facility and its community to create various projects, and engage in the culture of the organisation and its locales. Artist In Residence programs are offered, in most cases, to emerging, mid-career, and established artists.
I’m using my Artstart grant to undertake my first ever Artist In Residence trip later this year, to an organisation in New York City, called Harvestworks. Harvestworks is a non-profit arts lab formed in 1977 in New York City. I’ll be spending a few months at Harvestworks basically jamming on some projects, learning some new skills, and picking their brains on how they run their centre.
As part of my grant application I stated my long-term intention to start a similar organisation to Harvestworks in my home town – in Melbourne, Australia. So, as research, my residency trip will take me from Tokyo to Amsterdam, to NYC (where I’ll be based for 2 and half months), Chicago, San Francisco and LA as I try to check out as many Hackerspace/Art Labs as possible!
Aside from everything else to see in NYC, I’ll be able to check out art centres like Eyebeam, and 3rd Ward. I’ve got one months accommodation booked at another organisation, called The Cave, which focuses on dance, and inter-disciplinary arts.
On my way to New York I’ll be able to check out STEIM in Amsterdam, which caters for all manner of electronic and sound-making practices, and ATA in San Francisco on the way home (which is more of a gallery and screening space). I’ll also be doing a quick 3 day installation in Tokyo, at Design Festa Gallery (more details about that later 
).
If you want to find out more, there’s a great book out called WE LOVE ARTISTS: ARTIST RESIDENCIES FROM AROUND THE WORLD, via RAM Publications. The book goes a long way to explain the culture and practice of the arts residency, with a huge catalogue of artists and organisations who engage in them.
A New Art Lab for Melbourne
For a recent graduate of a fine art course, finding a studio can be expensive. Not only that, but keeping connected to a like-minded group of people is important to staying in the loop. Studios and collectives can be closed circles, but also maybe a “Hackerspace” isn’t exactly what you’re looking for. You want the collaborative, open-source environment, but with more of an art focus. Wouldn’t it be great for you, for anyone, to go to Art School any time you wanted to? Without the huge fees?
I believe a new type of centre that combined the positives of both Hackerspace and Media Arts Lab could result in the fostering of a public that is hungry for learning and cultural activity. A centre that embraced and encouraged open culture and professional practice. Take the best bits of a library, an art school, a net cafe, and a hackerspace, and jam it all into one.
There are already some Art Labs and centres across Melbourne – Footscray Community Arts Centre serves the Inner-Western suburbs as a vital multi-disciplinary cultural centre, and has recently ungone an amazing new refurbishment, equipped with digital labs, visual art studios, a large multi-purpose physical studio and foyer gallery.
Likewise Signal (pictured right), which caters for youth between 13 and 20, is a fantastic facility offering young people the chance to experiment and engage in the Arts. And while the Melbourne Dorkbot seems to have dropped off the radar for some time, there is a Melbourne-based Hackspace, though its meetings are limited to once or twice per week.
In my research I also discovered a new enterprise called Hub Melbourne, which definitely seems to be an interesting mix of creatives, and various other professionals looking for a collaborative work environment. It’s focus seems a little broader than the “technology arts” model I envisage, but Hub Melbourne is definately worth checking out.
In the model I imagine, the Lab must undercut the affordability of a permanent Arts Studio. It’s ethos is “temporary”, not permanent. It’s like the model of a squash court, or a hireable jam room for bands, applied to fine artists.
As a member-based media arts library, members would have the ability to join via tiered membership plans, but also could simply just come in on the day, right off the street, for say, 15 bucks, if they wanted. Maybe even just drop in for a coffee. And since the broad spectrum of community is already covered by Hub & FCAC, and the younger generation covered by SIGNAL, a new space could provide a cutting edge facility and education to anyone interested in arts and technology, from 21 years old and upwards.
Not everyone uses a studio every day, and even when an emerging artist hires one, they struggle to make full use of it on a daily basis. A public access technology arts lab would provide a wide range of access to digital equipment, and enable the fostering of a modern arts community with events, courses, talks and residencies.
Hopefully it could reach the heights of international standing, alongside Eyebeam and STEIM, a respected Media Arts centre in Melbourne that attracted the attention and attendance of professional and highly respected artists, and worldwide particpants.
A dream for now, and a lofty goal. But hopefully one that becomes a reality.
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m. Leaf-tierney, Melbourne AU
March 2011
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If you want to find out more about Hackerspaces there’s a great article on Wired, and also, check out the Hackerpsaces Wiki, which has loads of information on where you can find a local meet-up. You can also support Electromagnate by donating at their Kickstarter page.