Rubens Award: Reflections on Residency

During the Summer term of 2024, we welcomed our second Rubens Award holder, Anselme Long, to complete his residency with us. Based in North Carolina, Anselme’s background is largely self-taught but he has many influences. During his residency, Anselme assisted during classes and lectured on indirect painting. Now in its third year (the first award holder was Jill Hooper), our 2025 Rubens Award will be announced shortly.

The International Artist in Residence Rubens Award is an award established by London Fine Art Studios to promote and offer an open door to artists from across the world. Named the Rubens Award in honour of the revered master who traveled widely and spread his great knowledge and artistic influence, we hope this award will encourage our shared artistic journey in the pursuit of beauty and learning.

In June 2024, I finished my tenure as the Rubens scholar at London Fine Art Studios. When I arrived in London last April, I was slightly nervous about how I would fit into the school. My training as an artist is somewhat unusual having primarily studied by apprenticing in artist studios. I was worried that the amalgamous nature of my painting knowledge would be hard to translate when assisting and working with the tutors and students of London Fine Art Studios.

I had very little experience teaching and was curious to see how I’d gel in a classroom setting. I was certainly comfortable in the studio settling and working alongside other artists from life, but a classroom full of training artists was an experience I’d only had briefly as a teenager. I was so relieved and excited after my first week as I discovered Ann and Scott have assembled a talented, eclectic, and very welcoming group of staff and tutors.

Each class had a different dynamic – some were lecture based, others were teachers painting the model alongside students, giving critiques throughout. I gravitated towards classes dedicated to painting the figure and portrait. Any artist who has booked models and rented a studio space knows how quickly it can exhaust time and money. Truly, LFAS was heaven sent – I could join classes and paint from a model all day everyday of the week with a few poses lasting the entire term. The freedom, flexibility, and inclusiveness provided to the Rubens Scholar by LFAS makes for a uniquely productive and vibrant experience.

I’d be remiss not to mention the convenience of the well stocked and high quality art supply shop which is available to all staff and students. Everything a painter needs is in the office with knowledgeable staff to assist them – everything you need is there in the building.

Being a part of the community of staff, tutors and students at London Fine Art Studios is certainly the the most beneficial aspect of the Rubens award. Not only did I make meaningful friendships through this residency, but the experiencem also drove home the importance and utility of surrounding myself with like minded painters as often as possible. It’s easy to become a solitary artist working in the studio or en plein air. I think we learn so much more about ourselves as makers from the communal environment of learning and teaching. At LFAS I felt that I learned something about painting everyday just by being present and having my ears open. As painters, I think we all have little gaps to fill, and a wonderful way to constantly learn new ways of seeing and thinking is to work alongside peers.

London Fine Art Studios provided this opportunity everyday, and I can confidently say I grew as a painter and a member of a community. Initially I was worried I might lack the knowledge or ability to articulate and communicate what I’ve learned in my somewhat strange artistic education, I discovered, however, that it’s hard to know how much you know until you’re in a teaching situation. I was certainly relieved that I at least knew more than I thought I did. Encouraged by the tutors I was working with, I felt like I was adding to an energetic tapestry of craft and knowledge sharing.

I really had a criminal amount of fun working at London Fine Art Studios for the term and was so sad to leave. Ann Witheridge and Scott Pohlschmidt have put together a great team of tutors, created an effective workspace and I feel so fortunate to have had this experience and the connections made will far outlast the school term.