Tahney
Hey! My name is Tahney. I am an editor, arts writer & content specialist based between France & Australia.
- Grew up in Country South Australia
- Worked & studied in Melbourne, Victoria
- Currently living in France
“I write entirely to find out what I'm thinking, what I'm looking at, what I see, and what it means." - Joan Didion
The art world squeezes us like lemons.
You have so much to do without also needing to tick off website updates, an artist statement, and social media campaigns. Words that land with audiences (collectors, media, donors, et el.) require time and attention.
As an arts writer, I collaborate with you to...
- lift your art practice or creative organisation with industry appropriate but accessible language
- produce content that aligns with your identity, connects with audiences, and improves your visibility
- ease your communications workload so you can focus on other creative or operational tasks
Who do I work with? I support creative organisations and individuals including artists, writers, musicians, museums, galleries, studios, agencies and media/publishing groups. With a decade in the arts and heritage industries, I am adaptive to understanding, capturing and promoting the nuances of your niche project.
About me
Published by
ArtExplored, Archer Magazine, Art Almanac, Artling, Arts Review Australia, Artshub, Australian Book Review, Beat Magazine, Betches, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Jewish Telegraph Agency, Little White Lies, Mamamia, Metro Magazine, Peril Magazine, Plinth, Thailand Tatler and Zee Feed, among others.
Worked with
ArtEx, Radio France Internationale, Illuminate Adelaide, Melbourne Holocaust Museum, Arts Project Australia, Gorman, History Trust of South Australia, Chandralaya School of Dance, ANZAAB Melbourne Rare Book Fair, the Wandering Room, Leonard Joel Auctions, Melbourne Art Fair, 45 DownStairs, Spring1883, the Environmental Film Festival Australia, the Jewish International Film Festival & Art Aviso.
Education
Master in Arts Curatorship
University of Melbourne, First Class Honours
Diploma of Marketing
Swinburne University of Technology
Bachelors of Arts (history & anthropology)
The University of Adelaide & the University of Bristol
I am an arts writer, copywriter and editor.
I grew up by the Murray River near Pomberuk and baptised my arts career while living in Naarm/Melbourne, building up a background in curating, programming and arts communication.
These days, I engage with the arts on a global scale from my tiny Paris apartment. I go between:
- Content and copywriting - I produce communications for artists and cultural organisations, as well as non-profit and social impact orgs. This typically includes websites, social media, Wikipedia, EDMs, press packages and (my bread and butter) artist statements and bios <3
- Editorial and audiovisual production - I write criticism and non-fiction pieces focussed on the arts and beyond, with a loose focus on class and environment. Currently, I am Art Editor over at the Suburban Review and a journalist with Radio France Internationale. I also vlog my life and travels in Europe.
As an arts writer, I find words that fill the space between you, your creative project, and your audience. I can help you with:
Email marketing
Artist statements & bios
Press releases
Social media
Blogs
Scripts
UX/UI
Essays & articles
Proofreading
Alt-text
Wikipedia
Transcripts
Let's write the words behind your artistic ideas.
Talk to me about your project
PS, If you don’t think we’d be a good match, let me know, and I can recommend another arts writer from my contacts in Australia, UK and France.
Tahney is an extremely talented writer. Her interview process was fun, inspiring and she was genuinely committed to understanding and honouring my artwork. The result was an absolutely stunning artistic response. I look forward to working with Tahney again.
It’s been a pleasure to have [worked with] Tahney on a podcast episode. She is very knowledgeable about contemporary art and cares about people’s practices. She is professional and highly organized and her research into my practice was insightful and considerate.
I truly recommend working with Tahney. She has worked very deeply to understand and capture in words the essence of my work [in an artist statement]. Without a doubt, the process of working with her has helped me gain a clearer vision of how to present my work.
I never could have written with such objectivity about myself.
It's an absolute pleasure working with Tahney as a social media producer. As someone who has always wanted to work with a content specialist in the arts arena, Tahney has been a godsend. She's very professional and knows exactly how to approach the artistic world and cater to the audience. Tahney's attention to detail and delivery skills on the scope of work is commendable and I look forward to continuing to work with her in the future.
Tahney is definitely a word artist, a truly empathic and committed professional. Based on my idea and brief she moulded a beautiful description for my artwork to apply for multiple festivals. Highly recommended!!
Tahney has been working with myself and Neighbourhood Media on an ongoing basis. She is an extremely talented writer, and works very efficiently, often making herself available to help me create journalism content on very tight deadlines. I would recommend Tahney for a huge scope of work.
I just read your article again as I uploaded it, and have such a warm smile on my face. It's just masterful and I really mean that.
I am pleased and impressed by the beauty of Tahney’s writing style. The documents she worked on with me in the lead up to my EP release are incredible! I am very happy with the elements that she chose to include as well as with the way she chose to write about them. I love the rhythm and flow of the texts also: the narrative and dynamics within were stunning, and the way she crafted sentences really impressive. I feel lucky to have worked together!
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drop a line.
hello@tahney.com
pricing
“Writing is like sex. First you do it for love, then you do it for your friends, and then you do it for money." -Virginia Woolf
My fee is based on your project's scope, complexity and frequency with a fair adjustment for the creative industry (I don't charge corporate rates!). First off, we can chat to define your project and needs before finalising a brief and fee.
If it’s your first time engaging an arts writer or freelancer, let me know, so I can walk you through the process.
Industry standards:
subscribe to sticky teeth for arts reading lists.
Let's stay in touch (intellectually).
some recent writing
selection of articles, interviews, blogs et al.
April 25, 2024
Haneen Mahmood Martin talks about shared accountability and diverse perspectives in the arts industry, matching words with actions—i.e., more POC in leadership positions—and the use of clear, accessible, but impactful language.
April 25, 2024
Napoli 💓 I’ve spent much time fixated on this vlog about my five days in this city, which is more like a v pensive diary about reading Elena Ferrante and visiting Pompeii more than anything else.
April 25, 2024
I didn’t think I’d look at my footage taken during my six weeks in Australia last year… but finally (six months later) I’ve reflected on this trip home, and the time spent with loved ones.
March 18, 2024
Liv Collins has an infectious energy rare in an industry of pretension. I’m really excited to feature her in this sticky teeth micro-interview for her truths about writing education at art school and some hot insider arts reading suggestions.
March 18, 2024
I really fancy a winter getaway to warm up the body and stimulate the eyeballs etc.
Very rudely, I’ve discounted Germany since bordering the country for the last year and a half. But whyyy? It’s super cosy and fun. I drove from Paris to Bavaria for a cheap little cabin in the woods, and spent a cold Feb weekend at palaces and beer halls. Ate a lot, a lot. But all super wholesome meals. And ran into the Carnival by absolute accident (so, all my memories of Germans are them dressed in crappy $2 costumes).
February 20, 2024
Anna Kate Blair speaks on the intersection of art, writing, and time. She explains her major concerns for lack of enough resources for the writing process itself, and also touches on history, capitalism and imagining alternative futures for creativity.
February 20, 2024
I moved to France mid-2022, but finally gave into living in Paris to properly connect with communities for both work and pleasure. In these first weeks, so much happened everyday. Life can be so poetic, then bam. A number. A bad government website. Something you didn’t know you needed to look up. But also, these shapeless days between Christmas and New Year’s can be so quaint and expectant of nothing. I’m feeling good now, in my new home, looking forward to rhythms, new relationships, and Spring around the corner.
January 22, 2024
Brussels-based journalist Sarah Schug discusses the challenges of language in the art world, the need for accessibility, the diminishing value of art writing and her proud accomplishment—a self-published book on Iceland’s contemporary art scene.