In 2022, Dr Yosha Wijngaarden won the Boekman Dissertation Prize for her dissertation titled ‘Spaces of co-working: situating innovation in the creative industries’. Now, her prized dissertation forms the inspiration for the December edition of the Boekman magazine. Her opening article for the magazine builds upon her previous research on creative breeding spaces by exploring different working forms and motivations. What factors influence decisions of working with others? Might it be the ability of learning from colleagues or even the ‘coolness’ of a working scene?
A mosaic of collaboration
Individualism seems to be a recurring theme in the creative industry. Not only do creatives often see autonomy and self-expression as a core aspect of their work, this group is also set in a working environment of high competition and irregular work. However, as Yosha explains, it can be presumptuous to immediately ascribe the starving artists trope to this group. There actually is a mosaic of collaborative forms for creatives to survive. These collaborative initiatives all have a clear goal: spreading risk, increasing power and reducing overall precarity.
Working together or as Yosha notes “working in the vicinity of others” is an example of artists showcasing a strong sense of communality. Many of us might be familiar with the different forms that working together has manifested itself in, from the well-known co-working spaces to scenes and creative circles.
Surrogate collegiality, inspiration & coolness
In her dissertation Yosha researched de knowledge exchange between makers in these creative breeding spaces. From more than 60 interviews with creative makers she found that working together was not only considered an efficient manner to reduce costs, it as well allowed for a feeling of surrogate collegiality. In this environment creatives found the ability to exchange strategic and practical knowledge with like-minded people.
Finding inspiration, Yosha explains, could as well be one of the benefits of working together. She found that seeing creatives passionately at work could entice similar feelings of passion in other creative workers, which might then lead to more inspiration.
Working together near others can even offer symbolic value in the form of reputation. Yosha found that when choosing a place to work, creatives often look at how they can profit from interacting with others and the measured ‘coolness’ of the space.
The various possibilities, Yosha argues, within collaborating and working together– either in cooperations, breading places, Breadfunds or informal networks – is not only an individual coping mechanism, but in addition has potential for broader transformations within the creative industries.
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Curious to learn more? Read the full article here.
Together with ESHCC colleagues Dr Ellen Loots and Dr Carolina Dalla Chiesa, Yosha wrote an additional article on collaborating in the financing of arts and culture, in which they reflect on the mixing of financing forms. This article can be found as well in the newest Boekman Magazine issue.
