A new digital platform is promising to connect artists with the wider art world through customized digital studio visits.

StudioVisit, which launched on May 29, is hosting tailored events with artists, ranging from traditional studio walkthroughs, to seminars and performances⁠. To participate, artists create custom experiences for individuals or groups.

For one forthcoming iteration, the London-based duo Cooking Sections will present a performative lecture over a themed cocktail or meal, to be designed by the artists and made by attendees at home. In another event, YBA artist Adam Chodzko will host a tour of the British seaside town of Whitstable, while eating oysters and discussing an early performance work.

Participating artists range in career status, but all have had some institutional visibility. The growing list includes last year’s Turner Prize co-winners, Tai Shani and Zadie Xa, as well as installation artist Samara Scott, who is based in Dover, and Lydia Ourahmane, who is based in Algiers.

“The idea is that the group tour, which may have ten to 50 visitors, is more accessible to broader audiences, whereas a private tour will have much more opportunity for one-on-one conversation,” says Tyler Woolcott, the London-based curator who founded the initiative. “This platform aims to acknowledge the value of the artist’s time.”

Tickets to attend range from around £15 to £35 for group visits, and £120 to £250 for tailored events aimed at collectors and other patrons.

The idea came to Woolcott after he ran his own gallery in London, Rowing, for seven years, between 2011 and 2018. “Visiting artists’ studios was my favorite part,” he says. Once lockdown measures ease, he says he plans to continue StudioVisit with in-person events.