Artists at Work

Viola Depcik – Autumn 2020

Engaging with and depicting artists at work

In the Autumn of 2020, photographer Viola Depcik took on Arts Lab’s first virtual residency as the Autumn Experimenter. Her focus – through her own experience as both mother and professional creative – was to explore further, ways to engage with and depict artists at work. This followed a successful project she did earlier in the Spring with the fantastic initiative Mothers Who Make.

Taking over our instagram a day a week, Viola shared with us her process and her own struggles with the juggles of a young, working family in lockdown. In December, Viola, her husband and two young children took the plunge in search of a more balanced life and moved to northern Sweden. 

‘I’ve always had the idea of working more closely with artists through my photography. The idea of capturing artists in ‘the zone’ – immersed in the creative process, in their own spaces – has always fascinated me. A recent commission for the Mothers Who Make initiative to work on the project ‘Motherhood and Making: Portaits in Lockdown’, provided an insight into this world. My time with Arts Lab, provided an opportunity to develop this theme in more depth, with the freedom to explore in a way that could lead anywhere. Because most of my projects until now have been restricted by predetermined briefs from clients, I’m excited to embark on a period of experimentation and enquiry into the unknown. Through this, I believe dormant, unexplored ideas and skills will be (re)awakened. I’ve always been shy and private with my practice and so using Arts Lab as a platform from which to celebrate and share what I do will be a big step in building my confidence as an artist.’

Viola Depcik, Devon

Images © Viola Depcik