Belonging
Host a gathering
Studio nights, listening parties, critiques, suppers and workshops are hosted by members, not by us. Here is how to put one on, what to say about the door, and why twelve people beats sixty.
30 min
5 steps
The walk
5 steps
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Pick the kind and the room
A show, a studio night, a listening party, a critique, a supper, a workshop. Your studio, a friend's gallery, a back room. It does not have to be impressive; it has to have chairs. Hosting is open to members who came for gatherings — add it in your settings if you did not tick it. -
Set the seats honestly
Count the chairs, then subtract two. The club holds the room to the number you set: once it is full, nobody else can say they are coming. -
Say who may come
Members only, or up to three guests each. Add a dress code if there is one. A show can point at your storefront, so members can find the work after the night. -
Say the door, if there is one
Enough to cover the wine and the chairs is normal. Write it in the description and collect it on the night — Phyrne takes nothing from a door, and handles none of it. -
Put it up, then run it
Host the gathering and it is listed to members straight away, with you as its host, and you can change it whenever you need to. Members say whether they are coming, and you can see how many seats are taken.
Good to know
- Count the chairs, then subtract two. A room that is slightly too full is a good night; one that is half empty is not.
- Put the next date in the room before people leave. Hosts who do that fill the second one on the night.
What hosts learn
Four things nobody tells you before the first one
Mix the crafts
A room of only ceramicists talks about glaze. A room of six crafts talks about work. The second one produces the collaborations.
Start with the thing
Show the work in the first twenty minutes, before the wine wins. Everything after that goes better for it.
Say the rules for a critique
What kind of criticism, in what order, for how long. Written down and read out. It is the whole difference.
Do it again in six weeks
The second one is easier than the first and better attended. Hosts who wait a year start from nothing.
Questions, answered
Do I have to have a big space?
No. The best gatherings are eight to sixteen people in somebody's studio or a back room. A room can take from two seats to two hundred.
Does Phyrne take a cut of the door?
No. The host names the price, if there is one, and collects and keeps it.
Can members bring a guest?
If you say so on the listing: up to three each. A guest comes as the responsibility of the member who brought them.
Pick a Tuesday and count the chairs
The club keeps the list and holds the room to the seats. You handle the wine.