![]() ![]() “We lecture at universities about entrepreneurship, getting started, building your career path, how to use social media for marketing. Near the end he told us, I’m so tired, guys! But he was able to do hundreds of hours of work with nothing else to worry about.” Residents also have access to printmaking equipment they may not have seen outside of university, that they couldn’t afford to buy or even access.Īs well as space and time, Chrissy and Kyle deal in information and advice. Our resident artist from Spain this summer worked seven weeks straight, putting in 14 hours a day drawing. ![]() At Spark Box they have no responsibilities, other than to cook for themselves, so they can wake up, make coffee and work uninterrupted for as long as they want. #Sparkbox art full#“A lot of artists work full time jobs, or several part time jobs that might not even be in their field. Our mandate is to provide live and work space – and it’s cheaper than camping at Sandbanks!”Ī residency gives artists time to focus on their practice. We take every kind of artist: musicians, writers, drawers, painters, printers – we are flexible. “They get a bedroom, 150 square feet of studio space and access to our print shop and equipment. People who come internationally generally stay one or two months, people from Toronto or around Ontario average two or three weeks,” explains Kyle. “We have three rooms we rent to artists short term, from a weekend to two months. Spark Box Studio is a print studio but also an artist residency. Not only is she passionate about her artists, she will support and encourage someone she believes in, and she is invested in propelling them.” “Because she encouraged me so much, then I left. Maybe Carlyn kicks herself now,” she laughs. “It’s like the most difficult part, and in fine art studies you focus on creating things, not getting them out there and making a living. She is interested in mentorship, she really cares, and she’d take time out of her day to talk to me about marketing and promotion, the back end of running an arts business,” says Chrissy. “Carlyn Moulton, the owner of Oeno, was fantastic. I’d gone through a grueling interview process and I thought, wow, if it’s that hard to get an unpaid position what will it be like finding a real job?” She was delighted to work so close to Kingston where Kyle was still finishing his undergrad studies, and to return to Prince Edward County where she was raised. “I had fought for half a year just to get an unpaid internship in Toronto. “It was amazing for a BFA grad to get employed in their field, at a competitive rate in what is a difficult industry,” she says. Really we are more aligned with a not-for-profit model, but we do like being in control! Having no board or anybody to answer to makes it quicker and easier to take decisions and actions.”Ĭhrissy graduated from Queen’s University in 2008 and was thrilled to land a gallery assistant job at Oeno Gallery right from university. “We don’t have government funding, we live on what we make, we’re a for-profit business that gives a lot back through awards and bursaries. “Being self employed and running an arts business takes a lot of energy,” says Chrissy. “We saw a need there, and it was our inspiration for a business.” The concept has changed over time, and, yes, they subsidized their income with a couple of years teaching at Loyalist College, but today they focus full time on Spark Box and their art. “In university, we didn’t learn much about marketing, finances or generally how to make a living,” says Chrissy. Their original concept for Spark Box Studio was to provide support and resources to help artists make it in the real world. ![]() #Sparkbox art professional#That’s right, a thriving artist-run business that to date has worked with more than 350 professional and aspiring artists Chrissy Poitras and Kyle Topping are visual artists celebrating their eighth year in business in Prince Edward County. ![]()
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