NATURE

Glossop Creates wishes to appoint an artist / creative practitioner to undertake a creative research residency with a focus on connecting to the natural environment.

   Deadline for applications: Wednesday 20 October.  

About Glossop Creates

   Glossop Creates is a new campaign aimed to empower Glossop's creative community, including local artists, writers, designers and makers to lead the change it wants to see. Led by the Glossop Creative Trust, we aim to create an action-led manifesto to test ideas, provide skills and mentoring and develop a new commissioning programme to sustain local employment and build new audiences.  

‍

Glossop is a market town, situated in between Manchester and Sheffield, which has a mixed population of new and long-term communities. In August 2020 the Trust conducted a survey for the local creative community which demonstrated a wealth of creative talent, from both professional and amateur artists, musicians, writers and designers as well as curators, producers and directors. As a result of the survey findings, we have designed a programme of activity which aims to:  

1. To develop a deeper engagement with the town through a series of small-scale artistic interventions responding to themes of heritage, environment and material
2. To identify and celebrate the town's distinctive characteristics through a product-based commission - postcards, colour ranges, recipes, songs
3. To inspire people to connect with the town through intergenerational narratives including audio and film based media interventions - podcasts, sound bytes, film clips, 
4. To nurture and empower the towns creative community and help build capacity

About the residency   The Glossop Creates commissioning programme takes an action-research approach, inviting artists to develop ideas and creative methodologies whilst creating high quality, locally relevant work that increases local engagement with culture and the local environment. As part of the first phase of the Pairings programme, we will commission 3 local artists/creative practitioners to research and develop a theme* and create temporary responses to the research, which may provoke imaginations and respond to the current situation, and support our own research for how the town can recover socially and economically.

‍

‍*The residency themes for phase 1 of the programme include Pairing with Architectural Heritage, Pairing with Textile Heritage and Pairing with Nature.  

Our research questions / curiosities / lines of inquiry include:  

• How communities can use creativity to better connect with Glossop; it's heritage, environment, communities etc
• How art can play a role in connecting people to place
• How we encourage curiosity in place and dialogue amongst people and groups
• How art and creativity can support the creation of healthy places, ensuring residents and visitors feel happy and healthy
• How art and creativity can support inclusivity in decision making processes

   The Pairings residencies will be encouraged to participate in the Living Room concept:  

A LIVING ROOM

‍The aim of the Living Room is to create a dedicated space in the town to embed a creative engagement, research and evaluation approach through the creation of a 'Living Archive', a (physical and/or virtual) space to learn, create and document our work, creating a legacy for future storytelling and accessing new audiences.

‍

Our vision is to create an adaptable space that can house multifarious artifacts over time, as well as accommodate individual or small group activity. Inspired by the Happy Museum Project, we want to explore how we can connect with the heritage of Glossop and create a contemporary and sustainable approach to preserving ‚Äúartifacts‚Äù and stories for future generations. We will partner with Derbyshire CC Archives and the local Heritage Trust, and seek to provide training and resources for local volunteers, and encourage communities to learn together through action and co-creation.   Glossop Creates is in the process of establishing a Living Room at KIN.DER, our new creative studio space in Glossop town centre.  

‍

‍PAIRING with NATURE  

Creative ways of seeing and making connections in the natural world.  

The Pairings with Nature commission has been supported by The Bureau, Glossop's Community Wellbeing Charity to help local communities to connect with nature, particularly those who feel isolated by the pandemic. There is an opportunity to offer this project as a Social Prescribing Destination to the Bureau.  

‍

We invite a local artist / creative practitioner to create temporary, ephemeral interventions which provoke imaginations and respond to the current pandemic and support our research for how the town can recover socially and economically. We will inspire different generations to connect with the town and our natural environments ‚Äì these might be parks, rivers, local woodlands, and gardens.  

‍

Through a series of focussed activities and workshops, we hope the artist / creative practitioner will encourage conversation through creativity about nature, health, wellbeing, place and social connection.   You will be supported by Glossop Creates Community Producer, Steven Dexter and Curator / Director Claire Tymon.  

‍

‍Please submit a proposal in response to the brief to include: 

‍

Research methodologies- How do you identify, select and analyse your research? How does it support your overall aim?

‍Engagement activities and workshops - Who will be involved in the activities? What will they look like? Where will the activities be based? When will they happen? How will it be done in a covid, H&S way? Which other organisations will you work with/speak to.  

‍Connection to living room concept - This project must feed into and complement the Living Room concept for Glossop, outlined above.  

‍Documentation - How will you document and share your process? Online, social media, GC website? Artworks, prints, other creative ways. Local Press, blog.

‍Timescales - ideally research and development should be completed by the end of January, earlier if possible. Other outcomes can be realised with future commissions if open ended.  

‍Budget   We have broken the budget down under the following headings however, we welcome applicants to suggest a different approach which better suits your needs and proposal.  

‍Artist fee - 15 days @ ¬£200 a day OR 15 sessions @ ¬£150 per session and 3.5 days for prep and debrief - Total fee - ¬£3000  

‍Artist Materials / expenses - ¬£200  

‍Volunteer expenses and subsidiaries (refreshments, transport) - 3x¬£10 per session (15 sessions) - ¬£450  

‍

‍Application   Please submit your application to hello@glossopcreates.com   Your application must include the following:  

• Cover letter (no more than 1 page) or a 2 minute video outlining why you are interested in the residency and how it will benefit your practice
• Outline proposal of how you will approach this residency (no more than 2 pages)
• Examples of your work

Should you wish to have an informal discussion about the opportunity, please email hello@glossopcreates.com