1. part of ‘art’ conversations series for summer art, not-school http://small-workshop.info/sans2016/
being an artist and parent in a city of riches? w/Tim Devin
[photo courtesy of Darci Hanna]
[other photos from Tim Devin and Chris Berthelsen]
Once you have a kid, you might not be able to do
anything creative for a while, so are you still an
artist?

2. part of ‘art’ conversations series for summer art, not-school http://small-workshop.info/sans2016/
Tim Devin is a Boston-based artist, librarian, parent and more. His work supports the need
for information and feeling connected that are essential for people having a say in their
communities and the world at large. The discussion starts from three points coming out of
his project (co-organised with Greg Cook) "How to be an Artist and a Parent?":
 how to be a "good parent" and also do the other stuff you need to do,
 the question of what happens to a community life pressures slowly hinder people
from being creative, and
 the fact that both Boston and Auckland are going through huge transformations
right now.
This pamphlet of outtakes from the “How to be an Artist and a Parent” reports combines
with an audio recording of a discussion between Tim Devin (Sommerville, Boston) and Chris
Berthelsen (Mairangi Bay, Auckland) to form the basis of the summer art, not-school ‘art’
conversation.
This pamphlet, the audio discussion, and (later) a document of the ‘art’ conversation can
be downloaded at http://small-workshop.info/sans2016/

3. part of ‘art’ conversations series for summer art, not-school http://small-workshop.info/sans2016/
She could work from home after she had her children.
“It worked really well,” she said,
“until the kids started to walk and
to talk.”
You might not get to spend a lot of your energy
writing poems, but
you can always use
that energy to raise
your kid in a
Becoming a parent has
connected me w/ so many
people in my neighborhood i
never would've spoken to
otherwise
Being a parent can be a
lens for connecting
your creative works to
the local environment

4. part of ‘art’ conversations series for summer art, not-school http://small-workshop.info/sans2016/
thoughtful, creative
way
“Give up and accept that you won’t be as
productive.”
Being an artist is challenging—it’s difficult to make money as well as make art. Adding a child
to your life is both wonderful … and compounds the time squeeze we all face. Parenting
can not only reduce the time we have to make art—but also
the time to think about making art, time we need to develop ideas. The
There are rich creative resources in
our neighbourhoods that as a single
person I just didn’t notice…

5. part of ‘art’ conversations series for summer art, not-school http://small-workshop.info/sans2016/
demands of raising children can feel isolating—taking
up time we would have previously spent with friends. And becoming a parent often coincides with
moving to new communities to raise our kids—moving away from our friends and support networks.
identity is often tied to other people’s expectations. Two people talked about what a competitive
sport parenting has become, and how there’s pressure to spend more and more energy on your kid
to make sure they “succeed”
With shorter blocks of time to make art, Thomas-Vickory started working on large drawings that
would take weeks or months to finish.
a few people said their artist-parent friends understand that you
can’t make childhood all about future success—there has to be
lots of play.
raising a kid involves a lot of creativity, and
this is an important part of being a good parent
As a parent, I now have an ‘in’ to
working with groups that may have
viewed me with suspicion before…

6. part of ‘art’ conversations series for summer art, not-school http://small-workshop.info/sans2016/
goals and outcomes of being a parent. Like all parents, us creative
folks try to plan for our kids’ futures, and
worry about what’s going to happen.
Interestingly enough, no one discussed saving for college or preparing a kid for a well-paying
profession, which is something a lot of parents talk about when they discuss their kids’ future.
having to get rid of their home studio to make room for baby, which affected how much work they
can do, and what forms it can take. Jef’s solution is to keep all his stuff in a backpack, and
go to local libraries to work.
she began producing puppet shows for kids, since she now knew how much parents want kids
programming and it seemed like a good opportunity. She said this was a little hard for her at
first, since kids programming is generally looked down upon in the arts community—but that good
work is always good work, no matter what people’s biases are.
she began to spend more time producing other people’s work, since that’s still creative, but
is less of a time commitment
it can be hard to justify creative time to your partner, or even to
yourself. “It’s hard to say I need to think about
the stars now,”
His solution lies in the fact that he walks a lot with his son;
this gives Jef space to think about ideas.
Of course, one way to get more time for your creative work is to involve your kids
in whatever you’re doing. Jennifer talked about CWT’s kids programming, and how she and her
husband involve their son as much as they can.
Montford found work teaching at boarding schools because they offered a way to care for his kids
As my children get older, I worry less
and less about my ‘art’ being offensive
and weird… but I still do worry!

7. part of ‘art’ conversations series for summer art, not-school http://small-workshop.info/sans2016/
and give them a safe campus environment where they were free to roam.
Find a dedicated space for art making. Wallis notes that in her home
she now has a studio
“with a door that can
shut.”
“ It was always about food,” Montford said. To free up time from
preparing food for the family each day—and use
some of it instead for art-making—on Sundays he made meals
for the entire week and then froze them for eating later.
References
Creative parenting, Somerville style
https://howtobeanartistandaparent.wordpress.com/2015/06/01/creative-parenting-somerville-style/
10 Ideas For How To Be An Artist And Parent
http://gregcookland.com/wonderland/2015/05/22/artist-parent-talk-malden/
Resources
https://howtobeanartistandaparent.wordpress.com/resources/
I found that my ‘Creative Powers’ have been
heightened, along with my sense of urgency, and
responsibility by becoming a parent… even if my
time and money available have decreased.

8. part of ‘art’ conversations series for summer art, not-school http://small-workshop.info/sans2016/
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[part of summer art, not-school 2016 | small-workshop.info/sans2016]
[in collaboration with Mairangi Arts Centre, provided with support of Creative Communities Scheme]
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