11 Oct 2012

3 Month Artists Residencies in Cyprus

3 Month Artists Residencies in Cyprus

In an interview with Ross Walker in 'This is Tomorrow' magazine last September British artist Marcus Cope said of the Cyprus College of Art (Cornaro Institute):


'The college here is absolutely brilliant, if what you want is what it is offering - like you say about the Turps School [a new indy art school Ross Walker has enrolled at in London]. What it offers are studios spaces that are very basic, and by that I mean more akin to the kind of studio one rents as an artist as opposed to the (unreal) situation of the UK educational institution (I'm talking about workshops and technicians, equipment hire and bookable spaces etc). Having said that there is a small gallery space here that students can use to put up shows of their own work.'

'The college is based in a small village, they offer free accommodation 100 metres down the hill, and a further five minutes away is the Mediterranean. They run a post-graduate diploma for eight months and then you can stay for a further four months I think and top it up to an MA.'

'One of the great things is the gang you mention, as there are usually around 10-15 post-grad students per year, living and working together so the bonds that are forged are very strong. Over the years they have attracted some very high profile artists to come over as visiting lecturers, and what is great about that is that these people usually stay for a couple of weeks (or more if they are undertaking a residency) so there is plenty of time for conversations about the work to develop long into the night. In fact time really is the best thing (and the climate of course!), because the days are long and warm and you feel a long way from the rest of the world and its related stresses.'

'The college was started by Stass Paraskos, an Anglo-Cypriot artist who was trained in England and taught there. He started the college (I think) because he was fed up with the bureaucratic nature of UK institutions and the direction they were taking art education in. Here it is all about the art, the making of, the problems with, etc.'

'The simple stuff that attracted most of us to this art thing in the first place. Developing studio practice without all that professional development crap. I also notice a kind of pushing towards a self reliance I think. Again more akin to the transition to how it is/can be as an artist after the babysitting experience one can get as an undergrad. Contextual references are few and far between, and when they are slotted in they tend to be very much from a different era. Fashion is not a concern (either because they don't know what is fashionable, or because they think that an artist should find his or her own mode of expression and develop their own language.'

'I initially came here ten years ago to do a four month residency and I can honestly say that it was the the most productive time of my life and the time when I felt most as though I was able to focus on the things that mattered, i.e. the pictures.'


Marcus Cope is now a professional practising artist in London and together with Stephanie Moran is the founder of the Marmite Prize for Painting.

If you are interested in spending 3 months in Cyprus on the Postgraduate Cornaro Residency, contact us at michael@artcyprus.org

As Marcus says, we are a simple place but you will learn to be self sufficient as an artist with us, and in that sense we are a useful 'halfway house' between the cotton wool that surrounds art students at university and the harsher realities of the real art world.

But we are also a good place for artists who have been out of college or university for a while to rediscover themselves in a liberal but supportive community.

You will come into contact with some fascinating people, including artists, writers, critics, historians, archaeologists and the like who tend to visit us during the year. And you will be able to discuss art with Stass, whom Marcus mentions, who has to be one of the great unsung heroes of the British art world. He has a following of thousands of former students who sing his praises.

The fee for a three month stay (15 February to 15 May 2013) is 1000 euro, which pays for basic single room youth hostel style accommodation (shared washing and cooking facilities), studio space and tutorial assistance (if you want it).

You can be based in either Lempa (Paphos) or Larnaca.

The next start date is 15 February 2013, which means you would be in Cyprus at the best time of year - spring.

Participants come from all over the world and have ranged in age from about 20 up to 70, and the main language of the College and Institute is English.

To apply email Michael at michael@artcyprus.org