I just bought what will eventually become an artists’ residency, and we will start renovating it later this month. It will probably take about two years to get it started. The plan is to have a few artists a year come for about a month each and make art under the influence of the crazy dramatic landscape there. It will not be a paid thing, I’m financing it myself. At first it’ll have to be informal but eventually I want to have some kind of foundation running it so I can assist artists with visas where necessary.
I find it very exciting to work on a big long-term project like this, though it’s also frustrating because I’m doing it from a significant distance. Self-inflicted frustration but still.
Also, I’m learning a new language and moving to a new country, slowly but surely. Well slowly anyway. The residency is in yet another country. Maybe my life is complicated.
I didn’t win any lottery, but with a little juggling I had enough for a year or two without a day job. I was originally going to concentrate on just making art (I’m an artist as well as a techie) and trying to get settled in the new country.
This has worked pretty well considering the state of the world, but with a limited runway I will start looking for something to do in the industry next year. Maybe an indie project, maybe a startup, maybe just contracting.
The art center was in the back of my mind for a few years, and now that it exists (as a piece of land with some concrete on it anyway) I am quite happy to have a specific project that should bear fruit on a longer time scale than just a painting or a gig, and it helps that it’s not my source of income (like a company would be) nor existentially important (like kids). I can do more, or less, with it as circumstances allow.
Anyway that’s what I’m up to. In the likely event some of the art is tech related I will do a Show HN about it some day.