Women Artists Call
BERLIN (GERMANY)
Goldrausch Künstlerinnenprojekt is a comprehensive programme devoted to the professionalisation of women in the arts. A one-year postgraduate course conveys the specific professional skills and information that are needed to cope with the complex demands of independent artistic activity. The goal is for each participant to develop her own perspective as she goes about knowledgably and self-confidently shaping her career in the fine arts.
The objective of the Goldrausch project for women artists is to support participants in successful career activities. The point of departure, therefore, is the participants’ own artistic work, and the objective is pursued through a combination of acquiring specific knowledge, effectively presenting work to the public, and engaging in focused discussions and networking.
By passing on important career information, the Goldrausch Künstlerinnenprojekt seeks to open up the areas of activity available to women artists, starting from existing problem areas: women artists and their achievements are still underrepresented in the public sphere. Despite their disproportionately high numbers in educational programmes, women artists continue to be conspicuously in the minority when it comes to the leading exhibitions, prizes and academic appointments. Moreover, ongoing training in this evolving professional field is indispensable when it comes to the ability to earn a living from one’s artistic work.
An independent postgraduate programme
Goldrausch Künstlerinnenprojekt is designed for women artists who have completed their formal education and already have some degree of professional experience. Participants are expected to demonstrate artistic competence and be ready for intensive involvement in a subject of their choice. The assumption is that artist-participants want to acquire additional practical skills that will enable them to communicate effectively about their work (a task increasingly incumbent upon artists themselves) and to deal with traditional areas that freelancers are also responsible for, such as tax and copyright law, insurance, time management, and financial planning.
In a collaborative process with course participants, the Goldrausch project for women artists creates a reliable network that facilitates both practical mutual support and theoretical exchange, a network that often endures even after the course has ended. This shared self-determined forum structurally expands the artists’ individual fields of activity.