Art Me Up: Birth of Studio Headspace
By Celio Barreto
Greetings, art lovers! This month I've taken some time to chat with Briton Jamie Goodenough, who has recently opened Kansai's newest gallery/studio, near Saidaiji Station in Nara, with business partner Lee Walton. Studio HeadSpace offers fresh opportunities for creative expression, and is the latest fire to be lit under The Establishment's ass. Alright, let's get to it!
Celio Barreto: Thanks for chatting with us, Jamie. Please tell us a bit about yourself.
Jamie Goodenough: I'm the director of Studio HeadSpace, an artist, VJ, and Creative Director of Headfull Productions, a design company working in the realms of the web, CG animation, film, and print. I'm originally from a sheep-infested hilltop near Edinburgh in the UK, and am now based permanently in Nara. I studied sculpture at Brighton University and the Royal College of Art, London, then moved to Japan in search of a culture-shocking, head-refreshing experience.
CB: Why on earth would you want to start up a risky venture like an art gallery?
JG: The concept sprung from a friendship and a desire to do things differently. Lee Walton and I decided to renovate the second floor of his bar (his then living quarters), subsequently making me penniless and Lee homeless.
CB: Perfectly logical if you ask me. What surprised you about the Japanese art scene?
JG: Coming from the London art scene, where there is a wealth of support and funding for artists, it was quite a shock to see the deal some galleries offer artists here. "What? I have to hire the gallery, you take 70% of my sales, and you won't even help with promotions?!" Back home we have funding available for all sorts of creative endeavors, but that funding just doesn't exist here at the grassroots level (if it does, please point me in the right direction!). While I understand that a commercial gallery is by nature trying to make money, I was surprised at the extent to which some galleries try to extract money from the one group of people who traditionally don't have any; the artists.
CB: What do you want to do with HeadSpace?
JG: We want to establish a model of how we'd like things to work. I'm not saying we can solve all the problems facing the Japanese art scene through our little gallery, but each step leads in unexpected directions. Hopefully our attempts will inspire others to work outside the accepted norm, help artists realize their worth, and have them demand more from the galleries they work with.
CB: That's pretty ambitious man, how are you going about it?
JG: We are doing two main things: supporting local artists, and an international artists' residency program. Our mission is to bring artists and writers of a wide range of creative disciplines and cultural backgrounds together for the mutual benefit of all involved. We offer artists the opportunity to create new connections, collaborate in unexpected ways, and become part of our growing artists' network. Artists can display their artwork at the Studio and on our website free of charge, allowing them to disseminate their work to our Japanese and international audience, both here in Japan and across the world. Being an artist in Japan can be challenging at times. We support artists by providing the network, advice, and space needed to help them realize their goals. We hope that this focus on artist support will help to change the established norms of the Japanese art community.
CB: That's great news for many of our readers - there aren't many places providing meaningful support to artists. Tell us more about the residency program for artists... it sounds awesome!
JG: We'll bring three foreign artists to Japan annually. The residency will be packed with opportunities to experience Japanese culture on many levels. Along with exhibiting in both the Studio and other venues, residency artists will be able to tap into the rich underground arts and music scene of Kansai through our established contacts, collaborate with local artists, and get involved with our music and club night events.
CB: What are you cooking up right now?
JG: On April 17th we'll be hosting a mini arts festival in conjunction with CODA productions at Café Absinthe in Osaka. We want to fuse creative genres into a one-night rollercoaster experience, with audience participation and performer interaction. There's a wealth of performance and interactive art, headlined by our first artist-in-residence David Shillinglaw (from the UK), cross-genre live bands, and the infamous CODA DJ crew, who've built a reputation holding cutting-edge underground electronic parties in Osaka.
It's going to be a great party and we've got a lot of really interesting artists and musicians involved. If anyone else out there wants to be involved, please get in touch.
CB: And how can people contact you?
JG: The best place to find out about our projects or to get in touch is through our website at www.headspace.jp - we are working hard to make our website a focal point for the creative people involved with HeadSpace. We are also inviting writers to submit written work to the website. We want the site to be a rich archive of creative work and a helpful resource for artists working in Japan.
CB: Great, thanks for making this new space a reality!
art pick ups
"Garden of Painting - Japanese Art of the 00s" @ The National Museum of Modern Art, Osaka
(Until April 4th, 2010)
Commemorating the fifth anniversary of its relocation to Nakanoshima, the National Museum of Art, Osaka presents a special exhibition titled "Garden of Painting - Japanese Art of the 00s". The exhibition focuses on new figurative painting from the last decade to showcase the vibrant activities of a younger generation of Japanese artists.
Nakanoshima 4-2-55, Kita Ku, Osaka
Tel.: 06-6447-4680
www.nmao.go.jp/english/b3_exhi_beginning_garden.html
Simon Everington: "Innermost Visions" @ Gallery Kaede
(March 30th to April 4th, 2010; Tue-Sat 12:00-19:00, Sun 12:00-17:00)
Simon Everington's new solo exhibition exploring the discovery of authentic rhythms of line, color and form that originate from within. Everington's sculpture works are born out of random lines from which buoyant forms emerge and lead into further explorations with colour and in three dimensions. Simon Everington was a featured artist in last year's Japanzine Art Issue.
Uehonmachi 4 Chome 1-4-20, Chuo-ku, Osaka
Tel.: 06-6761-0388
Morgane Tschimber: "Folding Space" @ Superwindow Project
(March 26th to May 16th, 2010; Fri/Sat/Sun 14:00-19:00 or by appointment)
Morgane Tschimber is an international artist currently based in Paris. Her metal sculpture has been exhibited throughout Europe to great acclaim.
Motoyama Kamigamo 385-10, Kita Ku, Kyoto
Tel.: 075-204-4098
To download a PDF of this story as it appears in the magazine, click here
Latest Forum Threads
Ladies Lounge #3 @ Bar Gari Gari - February 19, 2012Website Of The Week: T Enami: Enigmatic Photographer of the Meiji and Taisho Eras
Shiho and Miharu's Bday Party / Safari @ Gen's 2nd - February 4th, 2012
Kagero and Adas Mexico @ Club Upset - February 4, 2012
Face Slimmer (AKA the weird lips the Japanese woman had in her mouth!)
Face Slimmer (AKA that thing the Japanese woman had in her mouth)
KFC Double Down Touches Down in Nippon
The Film Freak February 2012
Ask Kazuhide: Special Varentines Romance Edition!!
Irie Night @ Tracks Bar - January 28, 2012
Yoshi's Blend: A Short Film by Mackenzie Sheppard
Safari @ Gen's 2nd - January 27, 2012
Violent Immigration Surprise Housecall Startles (Legal) Resident
Mogambo turns 20!
After School Lessons for Tohoku Children
Would You Eat Wendy's Foie Gras Burger?
The Film Freak - January, 2012
Narita Airport's Secret Prisons
Website Of The Week: Bento.com
Geronimo 18th Anniversary - January 21, 2012