🎙️ In this episode, I visited London-based artist Lydia Smith (@lydiasmithartist) at Kindred Studios in West London to discuss her artistic practice and the work she is doing as co-founder of FÉ Collective.
🎟️ Purchase tickets for FÉ's Gala (June 12th) here
🌿 FÉ is a female-led collective inspired by Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own and dedicated to creating time, space, and opportunities for the next generation of women artists. Through exhibitions, events, lectures, and its Freshers programme, the collective aims to foster critical dialogue and support artists at pivotal stages of their creative careers.
🎨 We discuss Lydia's multidisciplinary practice, which spans sculpture, works on paper, and digital media, drawing on themes of ancient history, technology, science, and spirituality.
🌱 We also cover the importance of arts education when navigating the contemporary art world; CIC's ("Community Interest Company"; building meaningful communities and support systems for women artists; and finding a balance between order and chaos when managing creative careers.
🥀 The conversation also explores FÉ's upcoming Freshers Gala on 12 June. Conceived as an alternative to the traditional art world summer party circuit, the event celebrates the artists, assistants, photographers, technicians, and cultural workers who are often working behind the scenes. This year's theme, Dark Rococo, invites guests to embrace rich textures, deep tones, ornate details, and unapologetic theatricality while raising funds for FÉ's end-of-year exhibition.
✨ Lydia Smith is a London-based multidisciplinary artist whose work has been exhibited at Christie’s, the Saatchi Gallery, Bowman Sculpture, and throughout London's contemporary art scene. Her work has been featured in publications including The Telegraph, The Guardian, Mayfair Times, and L'Officiel.
🎤 Hosted by Zoë Goetzmann (@byzoesera)
👉 Follow Lydia Smith andFÉ Collective below
Lydia Smith Website: lydiasmith.gallery
FÉ Collective Website: fe-collective.net
🔍 Resources:
FÉ's The Drop-Off Exhibition: As cited from fe-collective.net:
"The exhibition opens a space to consider the chasm between art school and the art world; a space where there is a drastic drop-off of female artists".
"According to the Freelands Foundation’s 2020 report, 73% of creative postgraduates in 2019-2020 were women, [2] yet 68% of artists represented in major London commercial galleries are men.[3] This exhibition explores the factors behind this disparity and the challenges women face when entering the art world".
