Conversation with Silvana Lagos
Studio Manager, Carsten Höller
What advice would you give to women starting in the art world?
I think that one of the things that as a woman working within the arts I’ve learnt, is to not be afraid to speak up, or to take up space. Sometimes when you are in a boardroom, and you are the youngest, and only female, not to mention the only person of colour its important to remember to feel that you can take up space and not have that taken away from you. It is also really important to be honest, and to support one another, we often forget that we are all working towards similar goals, and have similar struggles professionally and therefore we have to be there to support and prep each other up. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, and don’t be afraid to share.
What leads you to look at art, visiting a specific museum or do you go out to see certain artists?
This of course changes, but I like when Museums take risks and invite artist from a wide spectrum of ages and contexts. Often times because of having to travel for work, I end up seeing the same artists, the same art works, but in a different museums, and this can get tiresome, and boring. I understand of course the beauty in travelling shows, but I want to see more intersectionality. Visiting museums and shows is also very much about research for me, I need to be informed of what is going on, I want to see how spaces are being used, and how programmes are being informed.
Do you feel lucky to do what you do?
There is definately an element of feeling extremely fortunate to do what I absolutely love everyday. I am extremely lucky to be able to balance, all the things that I do, be it writing, curating or managing Carsten Höller’s studio. To wake up and feel energised to be working with the artists I work with, and to be able to have that honest dialogue with my work, sometimes it feels like magic. But what has afforded me to be able to do what I love, has been hard work and alot of effort and certainly a few sleepless nights. Especially whilst studying, I moved to Sweden to do my MA, and I knew that I needed this, and wanted to do this, but it was really tough writing a thesis, doing the final major project, and simultaneously working a part-time job. However I made a conscious choice, that I had to give myself that space to be able think, and allow my voice to contextualize, and to also not be afraid.