Give me a break

On Give me a break this week, Harriet’s guest is the artist Tai Shani. Tai was born in London in 1976, and had an unconventional, hippyish childhood, including time spent in a psychedelic community in Goa, which offered her a liberal perspective, but as she puts it, a slightly mangled relationship with authority.  She always knew she’d be an artist, but it’s been a road filled with detours. From w...

If anyone on the London art scene needs no introduction, it’s probably Sadie Coles. Born in 1963, Sadie studied art history and film at Middlesex University before cutting her teeth in the press office at the National Theatre and Bristol's Arnolfini. She learnt the "value of art" with a training from dealer Anthony d’Offay, and later managed Jeff Koons’ studio in New York – all befor...

For the next episode of GMAB, we’re with one of the most insightful and dedicated arts critics around: Ben Luke. If you’re in the art world orbit, you will have heard his voice, you’ve maybe even preordered his new book, possibly begged to go on his podcast. Ben is a contributing editor at  The Art Newspaper , and hosts of two of its podcasts,  The Week in Art and  A Brush With , exploring the cul...

We’re out of the studio this week, and right in the belly of the beast (Tate Modern) for this special episode to track down Monster Chetwynd. Though she was born Alalia Chetwynd in 1973, the Turner Prize-nominated artist is best known by her previous stage names, which have included Spartacus Chetwynd and Marvin Gaye Chetwynd. Monster is celebrated for her wildly imaginative, carnivalesque perform...

Gary Card doesn’t really do things by halves. The set designer, artist, illustrator, and unapologetic maximalist was born in Bournemouth in 1981. Growing up, he hated the beach, and instead spent his childhood indoors, drawing monsters, cartoons, and grotesque horror scenes – a love affair that endures today.  Despite having never been to the theatre, Gary moved to London to study theatre design a...

When it comes to the spirit of Give me a break, no one channels it quite like The White Pube. Comprising of Gabrielle de la Puente and Zarina Muhammad, the critical duo has been giving us a break from the elitism, nepotism, and dryness of the art world since 2015. Then, while still at university, they launched their collaborative platform, publishing plucky criticism and essays that cemented their...

Harriet is joined by Joe Scotland, director of Clapham-based arts organisation, Studio Voltaire. Born in Coventry in 1978, Joe initially trained as an artist, studying textiles at Goldsmiths, but he soon became less interested in making art, and more interested in making space for it. Joe joined Studio Voltaire in 2003 and became director in 2010. Since then, the organisation has become one of the...

For the latest episode of Give me a break, Harriet is joined by Naomi Rea, the London-based Editor-in-Chief of  Artnet News . Naomi has spent the last decade untangling the knots of the global art world – from high-stakes auctions and blockbuster exhibitions to the stranger corners of contemporary culture. Naomi was born in Belfast in 1992 and grew up in Brussels. She studied english literature an...

For the third episode of Give me a break, Harriet is joined by Yorkshire-born artist and writer Harland Miller. Best known for his darkly comic reimaginings of vintage Penguin book covers, he blends sardonic humour with sharp social commentary. His debut novel  Slow Down Arthur, Stick to Thirty,  a poignant story about a boy travelling around the North of England with a David Bowie impersonator, l...

For the second episode of Give me a break, Harriet is joined by Bengi Ünsal, director of London’s ICA. Bengi grew up in Turkey, and began her career in music programming. Coming up, she was a self-proclaimed “shy person” with no degree or ‘ins’ in the arts, but eventually proved a knack for finding new talent as an early champion of acts like Muse, St Vincent and Nils Frahm.  In 2016, she moved to...

Getting work in the art industry can be a rough ride, filled with mystery, elitism and BS. Our new podcast, 'Give me a break' hears from those who've made it work their way, often against the odds. Hosted by Harriet Lloyd-Smith, managing editor at  Plaster , Give Me A Break is not a career how-to guide; it's a series of honest stories about different paths to success (however that&...