Gallery owners, art collectors and patrons have begun setting up studios in the city, particularly for the upcoming, young artists, who can use the studio space as and when they wish and all for the price of a couple of paintings per year.

Such a move is considered critical for the development of talent before starting on a professional career.

Renowned artist Gulammohammed Sheikh, who lives in Vadodara, while lauding the concept, said that such spaces were not available in more commercially active cities like Mumbai and New Delhi, incidentally which are also known for their art market.

"Such concepts have not started in other cities, though they are important for young artists. Such spaces encourage debates between artists," said Sheikh, adding that artists usually have a time finding space for their work in the initial stages of their career.

Art centres or studio spaces for artists are not an entirely new concept in Vadodara. The legendary Raja Ravi Verma himself worked out of Vadodara in the first half of the 20th century as a guest of the royal Gaekwads.

In the last four years, the number of such spaces has now quadrupled. At present, the known studio spaces in Vadodara include, Space, AQ Priyashree and Art Home, which started just a month ago and another informal studio in Urmi Society. Such spaces work on a quid-pro-quo basis.

Nikita Parikh, an Ahmedabad-based artist, has made Vadodara her base for since February 2007, and works at the AQ Priyashree studio. She said: "Art spaces are a great idea for artists, primarily as it lets us work in a group. Most artists prefer working in a group it facilitates exchange of ideas. Also, even we need to take a break at times, which is so much better with friends." She added that for the unlimited use of studio space, she has to give the owner any two works.

AQ Priyashree studio owner and Mumbai-based curator and gallery owner, Priya Patodia, a graduate from the MSU Faculty of Fine Arts herself, agreed that such studios were a symbiotic relationship.

"Financial viability is a concern, but not the objective. For the artists, it's a great way to stay in touch with the art fraternity and established artists, while for me it does turn into earnings, but not at the artist's cost," Patodia said.

In her early thirties, she has made the studio very profitable, as several artists who worked in the studio actually ended up holding solo shows in her Mumbai gallery.

"In our younger days, we could never have dreamt of such opportunities. Studio space gives an artist that edge. Students who graduate nowadays can immediately begin working in these spaces and learn about the profession and get market exposure," said MSU FFA Painting Department teacher, B V Suresh.