Show notes
In today’s episode of Extraordinary Creatives, I’m joined by Jenn Ellis, founder of APSARA Studio and a curator whose work moves between institutions, vineyards, churches, theatres, and digital space with remarkable fluidity.
Jenn grew up in a family of theoretical particle physicists, studied law, and then pivoted into art history. That background shows. Her approach to art feels investigative, architectural, and deeply relational. She thinks about time not as something measured by clocks, but as something lived, layered, and tested.
In this conversation, we talk about long-term commitment to artists, the power of positive disagreement inside collaboration, and why site matters as much as concept. We explore Terra, her exhibition across UNESCO heritage vineyards in Burgundy. We unpack AORA, the digital sensory world she built during lockdown. And we speak candidly about contracts, rate cards, negotiation, ego, Instagram performance, and what it really means to care for artists inside complex systems.
Jenn is rigorous, warm, and clear-eyed. She understands budgets as well as beauty. She believes in boundaries. And she asks one of the most important questions a creative can ask: how is this bigger than you?
If you are building a practice that needs both imagination and structure, I hope this episode will land with you.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
To curate is to care - sometimes care means challenging, tweaking. Testing. Pushing for something stronger. The absence of disagreement doesn’t mean the work is good. It might mean no one felt safe enough to question it.
In a culture that rewards visibility over substance, the real work is shifting our focus from credit to contribution. When we stop performing for the headline and start caring about what’s genuinely built between people, the work gets deeper and is far more likely to outlive the moment.
BEST MOMENTS
“You might like the work, but if it's not a personality match, then it's going to be a very long upward hill…. Ask, can I make it sing? And can I make it sing with you?”
“Long standing relationships often have healthy friction. Action where two people are trying to get to the best outcome.”
“Professionalism is not the enemy of creativity. Contracts protect care. Rate cards protect energy. Boundaries protect longevity. These are not cold tools. They are scaffolding.”
EPISODE RESOURCES
https://apsarastudio.co.uk
https://www.instagram.com/jenncellis
https://www.instagram.com/apsara.studio
HOST BIO
With over 35 years in the art world, Ceri has worked closely with leading artists and arts professionals, managed public and private galleries and charities, and curated more than 250 exhibitions and events. She has sold artworks to major museums and private collectors and commissioned thousands of works across diverse media, from renowned artists such as John Akomfrah, Pipilotti Rist, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer and Vito Acconci. Now, she wants to share her extensive knowledge with you, so you can excel and achieve your goals.
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This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/