What was the initial philosophy behind Project Studio, why workspaces and not interviews for example?
We wanted to come up with something different. As far as I can remember, I’ve always wondered where and in which conditions my favorite artists were creating their pieces. We tend to idealize and fantasize the studio, when most of the times, it’s not that spacious and really messy. But that’s where it gets interesting: the use of space, the posters and drawings in progress on the walls, the paint, the brushes, the pencils and spray cans, in a few words, the world of the artist. All the artists participating to the Project S2DIO spend literally their life in their studio, so it’s a nice picture in time. The artists are the one taking the pictures and sending them over to us, so they decide what they want to show to the world and in which way. It’s not an invasion, but much more a voyeuristic invitation.
Why do you think you were able to pursue so many great artists and designers to be a part of the project?
It probably sounds cliché but this project really comes from the heart. We’re fans of absolutely every artists we contacted and I think they could feel that when we first got in touch with them. When they write back to us, we are sincerely psyched! We own books, prints or vinyl toys made by some of the artists, so being able to have a little chat with them is a great opportunity. Then we got lucky right from the start with a handful of incredible artists who trusted in our project when nothing was online yet. There was some kind of snowball effect and we received many positive answers. When studios are online, artists really like the way it looks and most of them link the page in their own website. It’s a real honor for us, we’re really proud of that.
Initially this project was supposed to run for one month right? But it’s still going?
When we started last March, we didn’t have any idea how long the project would last. We had a few workspaces ready but we never thought we could showcase that many (there are now 76 studios online as of today). Feedbacks have all been very positive and we know people really enjoy being able to “push the door” and visit the intimacy of the artists: check which books are on the shelf, what’s on the desk… lots of small details and a big curiosity. We still have studios for the project and we’re waiting for pictures from many more great artists, it’s going to be great, trust us!
What do you think makes a good workspace/studio?
I think each studio has its own creative vibe. Some are huge spaces with great interiors and professional furniture, while others are bedrooms or as we’ve seen it, a bathroom! I believe the environment you work in each day will end up inspiring you to some extent. Some artists need to have their workspace in a mess while others need to keep everything white and clean, but at the end, all of them find inspiration, create and make a living out of their art. We received emails of artists thanking us for the pictures of some studios that inspired them to modify their own studio’s interior.
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