While the future of Jankura Artspace remains uncertain, I hope that doesn’t stop anyone from getting out and making art. Covid threw a big wrench into any hopes of getting a new studio up and running as quickly as I’d hoped. I had originally expected to be able to regroup and launch something new (on a smaller scale perhaps) within six months or a year of the Itaewon location closing. With Covid and a number of other personal hurdles, that plan had to be put aside.

Sadly, it will definitely take a bit longer before we see a studio rise again. I have not been as active artistically as I would have liked as well. Occasional outdoor sketch outings and a few online figure drawing sessions have been far too infrequent to keep my artistic juices flowing, and at this point, I’ll need a massive push to find the energy again to bring an artistic space like Jankura back. I go through periods of doubt and then periods of hope, but I know it will be a great challenge to do it, both financially and emotionally.

And is there an audience for it anymore?

——– Has the community changed too dramatically for a place like Jankura Artspace to be of interest? With the closing of Yongsan military base, and with it the commercial demise of the Itaewon area, the studio saw dropping numbers even before Covid hit. Luckily I had closed the art space before that happened, but where would a new studio survive?

Where have all our “easel-jockies” gone?

——- Are the expats in Korea still the type who enjoy figure drawing and traditional art lessons? Has the demographic changed too much? And what of the Koreans? Would they be interested still?

If I build it, will they come?

Mike Stewart

I’ll try to process these questions and consider the future of Jankura carefully. In the meantime, you can keep up with what I’m doing art wise by following me on instagram. As mentioned, I’m not as active as I used to be, but I’m there.

https://www.instagram.com/mstewartseoul