Divergent Open Studios

It occurred to me to wonder where the idea of Open Studios came from. I haven't really managed to find out, but I have discovered that the term doesn't always mean the same thing, even leaving aside open source software projects and plug-ins for graphics programs.

The article currently extant on Wikipedia suggests that the concept originated:

in the salons of 17th Century Paris, such as the Hôtel de Rambouillet and the gatherings of intellectuals and artists hosted by Madame de Scudéry.

and that the 20th century transmuted this to

the form of public poetry exchanges [...] the ‘happenings’ of Andy Warhol’s The Factory [...] and the experimental jamborees of the French literary group OuLiPo.

The article goes on to describe a 21st Century culmination consisting of an interactive multimedia experience that doesn't quite sound like the Open Studio I'm thinking of.

[...] the Open Studio (often taking the form of a virtual or internet location) focuses on the creative act of making and sharing, in a flexible space equipped with a range of contemporary media and multimedia. Artists and non-artists come together in a social act of collaboration, the only entry requirements being an inquisitive nature, a curiosity about new and traditional media, and a lack of inhibition about creating in a semi-public space.

Now, I'm pretty tech-savvy, but my studio isn't. It's a room in a building that was built in 1720. It doesn't have wifi. And I decided not to bother with a smart phone (I kept forgetting to charge it; I'd rather have a basic phone with a battery that stays charged for a week than a lump of fancy electronics with a flat battery).

Digital drawing of a not-very-smart mobile telephone