Open Studios in Baden-Württemberg – an exploration

Where in Baden-Württemberg are people with lived experience of psychiatric treatment and/or cognitive impairment creatively active? For the overview presented on this website, we researched supervised artistic workshop communities.

The selected studios differ in many ways. To learn more about their similarities and differences, we developed a questionnaire and analyzed the responses of 27 studio directors.

We were surprised by the number and variety of open studios we found. Despite our extensive experience in the field, we were not aware of most of them. Lack of visibility, publicity, and networking between institutions may explain this. It is certainly a challenge to become visible in today’s art scene. Some of the open studios also focus on their internal processes. But all of them would like to see more visibility and networking. That is what our project is about.

The Foundation and Development of Open Studios in Baden-Württemberg

The history of open studios in Baden-Württemberg begins with the pioneering work of the artist Anne Dore Spellenberg, who in 1966 founded the Creative Workshop of the Remstal Werkstätten in Stetten, which still exists today. The other open studios in the county are also primarily the result of the initiative of committed individuals, be they artists, art educators, art therapists, or simply people interested in art. It is striking that most of these studios were founded between 2010 and 2020. Only four started in the 1980s.

Often the goals have changed over time, either because utopian visions have come to fruition, or because the studio has lost its status as a counterspace, or because it has become a catch-all. For example, a studio that was initially minimally regulated in its rules of access was transformed into a therapeutically creative space for patients with limited access. Elsewhere, the opposite occurred: the art therapy orientation was abandoned in favor of a “purely” artistic orientation. Self-organized groups seem to maintain their spaces more consistently as “free spaces for creativity”; similarly, art and craft workshops consistently see art and craft as work.

The groups in the open studios were formed in a variety of ways. In some cases, existing groups were taken over. Participants were recruited through involved parents, general and individual invitations, including to people working in the studio area, word of mouth, newspaper advertisements, and flyers. In some places, low-threshold access facilitated participation. In one studio, a common interest in coming to terms with Nazi mass murder served as a unifying element and generated new ideas. In the arts and crafts workshops, the questions “Who can do what?” and “Who wants to learn?” played a group-forming role. Today, the prevailing rule is: everyone who is interested is welcome.

Most of the art workshops receive a lot of support and positive feedback from their sponsors, especially since larger sponsors understand that promoting artistic creativity contributes to their positive public image in a special way. Sometimes it is the senior staff of the sponsoring institutions who have initiated the creation of such workshops. The sponsoring organizations provide good support. However, in spite of this appreciation, lack of space or lack of staff in some cases severely limits the operation of the studios. The right of some studios to exist is even questioned due to competition with other offerings or considerations of economic viability. Whether support is given out of self-interest or as a generous social gesture ultimately makes no difference. What counts is the support itself. Openness and an affinity for art on the part of the supporters are helpful in any case.

The Organism of the Studios

The sponsors of the open studios are diverse. Most of them are supported either by the Protestant (Diakonie) or Catholic (Caritas) churches, by foundations under civil law, by charitable foundations or larger non-profit associations, or they are themselves institutions under public law. Only a few open studios are supported by their own smaller non-profit associations. For all sponsors, the promotion of the participating personalities is in the foreground, which is underlined by the financing of the workplaces with the help of funds for professional reintegration or the individual budgets. Even with larger sponsors, there is always support in the form of monetary and in-kind donations.

The management of open studios is usually done by one or two people, and it is rare to have more than five directors (often called art assistants). There are volunteers as well as people who work on a fee or contract basis or in a permanent position. Sometimes only the actual painting and labor time is paid, and sometimes time for additional tasks is also paid. In most cases, there are other volunteers and/or students and interns working in the studios. The directors are often trained in art therapy or art education, and many consider themselves artists. Rarely does the management have no professional connection to the arts.

The number of participants usually does not exceed 10 or 12. Only rarely has the number grown to 45 or 50 over the years. In most cases, groups are formed that meet at different times; sometimes there is even individual supervision. The frequency of these meetings can vary, ranging from biweekly sessions of two to three hours to daily studio sessions, though sometimes with different offerings. The fixed studio space is often used by other groups as well. Studios with fixed workstations, where participants can leave their work in progress until the next session, are rare, accounting for around 30% of all studios.

Most open studios are set up exclusively for people with lived experience of psychiatric treatment or cognitive impairment, reflecting the dominant sponsorship by larger institutions. Only a few initiatives are willing to open the studio to people without disabilities. They see it as a place for people to meet, access art and culture, and have an impact on society.

Talent is not the main thing that decides who can take part in open studios. Most important is whether someone is interested in visual or craft work. Still, some studios have trial or internship periods of up to three months before they accept someone as a permanent participant.

Some studios also allow people who don’t actively take part in the artistic activities, but just like to socialize and chat with others. These people are important in creating the atmosphere of the studio.

Most of the time, the studios provide space and materials for free because they are sponsored by big institutions. However, some sponsors have the right to own the art that is made in the open studios. In other studios, especially those run by smaller associations or municipal institutions (such as the adult education centers), participants have to pay a small fee (5 to 10 euros per month or event) to cover costs.

Many people say that it is good to get together, draw, paint, make pottery, engage with art, feel accepted, and work at eye level. They often emphasize the importance of being able to work freely. For quite a few studios, the focus is not on “making art.” Instead, they focus on creating freely under the guidance of an artist without pressure. This is probably in contrast to working in regular workshops. Some studios emphasize that studio work is not art therapy. However, some studios acknowledge that art therapy and free artistic approaches are intertwined in their studio work. Some studios also see their mission as developing the potential of the individual and working on the craft of drawing and painting, as well as professionalism in the use of visual techniques.

The studios aime at a positive view of mental illness or disability through art. The goal is to show the studio artists’ independence, potential, and resources.

The artists usually decide on the type of art work they will do, although some art assistants follow Arno Stern’s (b. 1924) idea of free or expressive painting. However, there are occasional thematic guidelines, especially before certain holidays, or collaborative works are developed. Most of the time, artists work on their own. However, most studios have a supply of magazines and art books “for inspiration,” and participants take advantage of the opportunity to research models or templates on the Internet. Many studios also offer occasional workshops. Some of these workshops are led by guest speakers who teach new techniques. The studios also take participants on trips to art exhibitions or cultural sites.

Exhibitions and Archives

Each studio thinks it is very important to organize exhibitions in galleries and art associations. They also work with art academies and collaborate in various ways. Many studios say that having a public presence is important to them. They see art as a way to connect with the world and as a place where creativity can thrive. But only a few studios can regularly organize exhibitions in different places (their own premises, art associations, or galleries). Often, the personnel situation does not allow for regular exhibitions. The money made from selling art at these exhibitions is often shared with the artists. But it also helps to pay for things like paper, paint, and materials.

However, very few open studios have storage space for paintings, frames, painting materials, or even an archive. Studios where 6-10 artists work over the years need some space to store the works created. Studio managers usually don’t have time to store and archive artworks the right way. So, it is common for open studios to discard some of the art.

Some studios photograph or scan the art, while others collect everything that is published about the studio (posters, flyers, etc.). Some artists take their work home with them. But they often live in small apartments or houses where there isn’t enough space for art and other things.

Collaborations, Websites, and Networking

Half of the open studios have worked with other studios in the same field in the surrounding area. However, many of these contacts have been lost due to the coronavirus pandemic and are difficult to reestablish. Some contacts extend throughout Germany, but only a few collaborations actually take place.

Studios located near national borders have international or cross-border collaborations with other studios. There is a networking platform called KulturGrenzenlos (https://kulturgrenzenlos.eu/) that is focused on the tri-border region (Germany, France, Switzerland). Hardly any studio is part of the European network of the European Outsider Art Association (EOA, https://outsiderartassociation.eu). However, almost all studios would like to have more contact with other open studios, especially on a regional level.

On the other hand, the list of collaborations with artistic, cultural, or social institutions is very long, although almost a third of the studios surveyed do not collaborate with other institutions outside the organization. Collaboration mainly takes place for exhibition purposes, but also in connection with workshops or projects. Some examples of these collaborations include: district savings banks, libraries/community libraries, cafés, charitable or other social institutions, festivals, galleries, hospices, day care centers, cultural offices, cultural centers, artists, art associations, district offices, museums, teacher training colleges, schools, and adult education centers.

Not many open studios have their own website. This means that the studio’s offerings are not usually available online. Organizers usually provide links to these studios on their websites, but these links are often only included in reports on larger events or projects. Since maintaining a website is usually considered difficult when working with larger organizations, there are more and more social media appearances on Instagram and sometimes even documentaries about projects on YouTube.

Mostly, the studios want visibility, exchange, and the opportunity to collaborate through our networking platform. The participants see our project as another opportunity for public relations and to present the studios to a wider audience.

They also want to enable artists from the studios to get to know each other and exchange ideas. One idea is to invite artists from the open studios to give workshops or teach in other open studios to learn new ways of working.

Artists’ assistants and studio managers often want to talk about their experiences, ask each other questions, and share ideas. They also have specific requests related to organizational issues, such as funding, legal aspects, studio organization, participation in competitions, and exhibition experiences. They will also discuss socio-political issues with relevant parties.

They are also looking for specific ideas on how to reach the art market and sell their work. Finally, they would like the networking platform to publish dates so that they can stay informed about events, exhibitions, projects, and competitions.

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