Full Circle Arts Young Artists Development Programme May 2011 to August 2012
A Reflective Story‌
Introducing YAD Monthly Workshops PDP Mentoring Arts Award Training and Development Participants Partners and supporting artists Two years on Conclusion
Introducing YAD
The Young Artist Development Programme was a twelve-month artist development opportunity, offered to 18 to 30 year olds with a keen interest in pursuing further arts participation, education, training, or a career in the arts. ʻTo offer an inclusive and alternative arts development opportunity which would build on the competence of young people and emerging artists, to encourage a real and sustainable future for their involvement within the arts at all levels; as informed participants, art students, young leaders or emerging practitionersʼ The service aims to increase young peopleʼs knowledge and activity in the arts, support skill development, self-management and encourage new networks and experiences within the creative sector. The programme began in May 2011 and completed in late May 2012.
The Programme offered
Monthly Workshops Professional Development Planning Sessions Mentoring Arts Award Training and Development
Monthly Workshops Once a month YAD workshops took place for all participants. Monthly sessions would play an important part of peer support, group development and reflection on learning. Activity was programmed throughout the year and would support generic training and development needs and often lead to continued learning and additional training activity during participant始s spare time. Blank Media were a supporting partner and hosted six sessions throughout the year, the remaining workshops were facilitated by Full Circle Arts, external artists, trainers, and peer learning activity led by participants. Information on all sessions can be found on the Young Artist Development Blog, which was kept throughout 2011/2012 and updated after all workshops.
Image taken during a compelling futures exercise during session 3 July 2011 YAD workshop. Professional Development and Idea Generation, facilitated by Rivca Rubin
Professional Development Planning Based on coaching practices and principles, sessions encourage self-reflection, future planning and continued self-directed learning. All members were entitled to eight hours during the year, including a final PDP on exit.
Throughout the year YAD Participants were welcome to sign up for one-to-one Professional Development Planning Sessions. PDP is a facilitated space that assists thinking around Goals, Reality, Options, Will/Way Forward.
Mentoring Participants could access mentoring support throughout the year from professional arts practitioners. Mentoring would take place on a one off basis during sessions, where invited artists or facilitators would share information, advice and guidance or work with participants around an immediate learning and development need. Mentoring also naturally occurred during arts award sessions and if participants requested they could access longer term mentoring support from an artist working in a similar field.
Image taken during session 9, March 2012 驶Artists Presents and Networking始 hosted as part of the Blank Media series. Artists were invited to deliver short presentations about their journey into the industry, network with participants and offer one-to-one support.
Mentoring provided additional support to YAD members around specific goals. Working with an established practitioner in a similar industry encouraged YAD members the opportunity to gain further insight, increase knowledge and understanding, develop learning and share experiences in a focussed and supportive environment.
Arts Award
Those participants under the age of 25 were offered the opportunity to gain Silver Arts Award qualification alongside the overall Young Artist Development programme. The Arts Award is a nationally recognised qualification accredited by Trinity College London. The Silver Arts Award is recognised as level 2 on the QCF framework. Arts Awards are initially assessed by the Arts Award Adviser who worked with the student, followed by an official moderation at Trinity. The Silver Arts Award provides a framework for the student to develop and explore their arts interest, gaining new skills, knowledge and experiences throughout.
Training and Development
YAD Sessions
The year programme offered informal training and development during monthly YAD sessions.
Introduction to YAD. Reflection on individual journeys and ideas for the future
Introduction to Blank Media and future sessions
Professional Development - Idea Generation
Blogging
Building and Artist Profile
Critique
Six month review of work and peer led learning
December Informal; Participants Present
Networking; Preparing to Network
Network with Artists event
Peer review, reflection and preparing to evaluate
Final group meeting; Arts Award Leadership task; Peer led documentation
Blank Media Collective worked as a supporting partner, hosting and facilitating six of the twelve sessions throughout the year. Participants were also entitled to an individual training and development budget. YAD members who had committed six months or more to the programme were encouraged to research external opportunities to support their learning, training and development needs. Bursaries were made available after application and could be used to access classes, workshops, training and development sessions and courses. Training and Development played a significant part in this years programme. A variety of classes and courses were researched and attended.
For a look back in time on all YAD sessions, visit http://young-artist-development-blog-fca.posterous.com/?page=1
External Training and Development activity Classes/Courses/Workshops attended
Dance Classes at Sunshine Studios, Arts Award Adviser Training – Arts Award Trinity College, Digital Film School Open University, Artswork – Facilitating With A Creative Flair, Elite Acting Training, Craft workshops at Bead Shop Academy, Acting School DNA, Day Workshop - Building Confidence in Facilitating and Presenting, Acting Intensive – Jo Foxall, Screen Printing - Islington Mill, Etching Hot bed Press, Performance Coaching, Week Writing Residential – Arvon, Blogging – Cornerhouse, Making Twitter Work For You, Jewellery Making and Work Shadowing – Selina Campbell, Auditioning , Funding for Beginners
Participants The programme aimed to work intensively with up to ten young people between the ages of 18 and 30. Over the year we saw a total of thirteen young people access elements of the programme at various levels of engagement. From one off sessions, short term PDP and mentoring, work experience, training and development, those attending a short series of workshops most appropriate to their individual learning needs, to finally, the group who committed to the entire year and all areas of the programme. We learnt quickly that the full programme offer was most suited to those who had little or no professional experience in the arts, those wanting to increase knowledge of the arts and participation, learn new skill and develop a better understanding of the arts in a professional context or those who considered themselves at the very beginning of forging a career in the creative industries. Those young people who felt all elements of the programme were suited to their level of learning and progression committed to the full year on the Young Artist Development. This document will present the stories from full term participants.
Kaylem Levene-White
Kaylem began the YAD programme after being involved in IYACT – Immerse Young Actors where he worked towards performing a monologue in a short documentary called ʻ Untitled Youthʼ http://vimeo.com/32596171 Whilst studying other academic subjects, Kaylem, as much as possible, tried to continue his involvement in acting, dance and modelling and has gained experience of tv and film extra work. Kaylem applied to be part of YAD as he felt studying acting at college wasnʼt a path he wanted to take, yet still wanted to embark on long term learning and develop his confidence, skills, knowledge and experience in the industry as well as Increase participation, opportunities and gain one-to-one mentoring to support him to achieve his goals and develop a pathway towards reaching them.
Kaylem also chose to take the Silver Arts Award as part of the programme. Over the last twelve months Kaylem committed to all YAD services. Particular achievements as a result of YAD workshops, have included; developing an artist statement which has also benefited his acting CV, setting up and managing a blogsite, working along side an arts adviser to achieve all sections of the arts award including planning and delivering a leadership task where he facilitated a dance workshop to a group of young people, and, the work he has researched independently and been involved with outside the programme. This year Kaylem was also taken on by a reputable casting agent in Manchester, has played numerous tv extra parts in TV dramas and short independent films (Mount Pleasant, Leaving Waterloo Road, Blood Brothers, Burnside) Kaylem was also cast as an extra in a new film, Spike Island, due for release later in the year and would consider this to be his biggest achievement so far. Kaylem discovered new arts organisations and opportunities in Manchester after speaking with artists throughout the year, meeting artists at the Networking session hosted by Blank Media and dedicating time for further research and development at home. He has a profile on IdeasTap and has connected with organisations through his individual training and development budget whilst continuing to work on skill development, he was able to access classes at Sunshine Studio, a Networking day at Surviving Actors, he auditioned for the National Youth Film Academy and signed up for a six week course with Elite Acting Training which led to Kaylem being selected to join the website directory
Kaylem feels if he had not participated in the Young Artist Development Programme he would not have achieved so much or had the opportunity to develop his creative skills as an artist. Through accessing several courses and classes he has formed connections, achieved further opportunities and developed his skills as a performer. He believes his confidence to network would not have improved and he may not have spent time researching further opportunities and learning how to promote himself through social media. (image on Kaylem during group discussion at the Blooging workshop hosted at Blank Media)
Casting Networks始. Kaylem has also recently started an Acting for Screen class with DNA Performance Resource.
Kaylem will continue to be an active participant in the arts, research further opportunities, continue to network and attend more auditions in dance and drama to gain more professional experience in television, film and theatre.
Lucy Jackson Lucy began the YAD programme after having completed Access to Music始s Music Educator programme where she received a Diploma in Music Education with distinction (Rockschool) and a certificate in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector (City and Guilds) As an emerging performer with roots in folk and traditional music, jazz, gospel and contemporary, Lucy wanted to develop her confidence, focus and artist profile, skill in performance, writing and music facilitation. She had looked into other artist development programmes to support her continued development into the world of freelancing; most opportunities Lucy discovered were unaffordable and short term. Lucy felt YAD offered the right mixture of services to support her development; the programme was free, long term and worked across art forms.
Lucy has developed her artist profile and branding over the year. Going by the name of Lucy LeClaire she has dedicated time to her online profile as well as created an artist statement that has been used on her blogsite and when applying for external opportunities.
When asked to reflect on some of her biggest achievements this year, Lucy commented she was now registered as Self Employed, a goal she had identified at he beginning of the programme. Other goals that have been achieved are; running a youth choir and gaining further experience of working with young people as a mentor and group facilitator, completing her first ever paid workshops, setting up a website and increasing her digital profile. Lucy has also continued her studies in music, and this year achieved a grade 8 in her singing exam achieving distinction. Networks and collaborations were formed, continuing her involvement with Contact Theatre, this year she was delighted to be offered the opportunity to take part in 24 Hour Arty People. Gaining further experience of stage performance Lucy says she feels much more confident about her ability as a performer and writer. She has also volunteered with Brighter Sounds/GMMAZ as a facilitator/mentor and has developed collaborations with local artists. Through ongoing support during PDP and Mentoring, as well as having the opportunity to access a variety of monthly workshops and external training and development events, Lucy believes YAD not only supported skill and knowledge development but also supported her focus and the momentum of opportunities. From having to research training and development opportunities, Lucy often stumbled across further opportunities that she would sign up to. Through concentrating on developing poetry and creative writing as well as having further performance opportunities she has realised she has a strong voice in her unique and observational poetry. A week long residential for writers at Arvon and being part of Young Identity at Contact theatre both played a significant contribution to an increase in her confidence. Lucy was matched with a mentor during the year, Caro Snatch; vocalist, experimental music producer and recording engineer mentored Lucy for five months.
Lucy reflected on this time as invaluable. Having the experience to meet and discuss goals, difficulties and explore possible options with an experienced female artist had a huge impact on continued self-directed learning and confidence. Lucy has connected with a variety of artists throughout the year. The Networking event hosted by Blank Media brought Lucy into contact with Music educators and facilitator as well as those connected to Manchester始s arts scene. Lucy has remained in contact with many artists she met at some of the training sessions she attended, and has increased her reach through the use of twitter as a networking tool. The training and development budget was used to access several courses including performance coaching from an established Performance counsellor. Here Lucy worked on stage presence and performance anxiety.
Lucy brushed up her skills and knowledge in facilitating when she attended, Facilitating With A Creative Flair, run by Artswork and a day workshop on Increasing Confidence in Presenting and Facilitating, facilitated by Jo Foxall. Lucy also trained and achieved an accredited certificate as an Arts Award Adviser. This training will support other young people Lucy works with to develop their skill and interest in the arts. Lucy believes she has achieved her goals this year, the biggest changes she says have been her self confidence, the amount of opportunities, and having a clear plan and structure of her continued professional development. She believes she has begun to establish herself as an emerging professional. Several other young people have benefited from her practice as a mentor and facilitator. “ I am much more connected and have more people who believe in me and what I do, I have gained a huge amount of experience this year for my CVʼ On exit, Lucy wanted to use her Professional Development Planning time to create a five-year plan for her future. Some of Lucyʼs goals include Studying an MA in Performance, Completing a diploma in Singing, Developing connections and work in London, Designing a one woman show, and producing an EP. Lucyʼs Blogsite http://lucyleclaire.com/
Charlotte Little Charlotte joined the YAD programme as she wanted to achieve the Silver Arts Award, increase her knowledge of the arts, increase confidence and participation. Charlotte is a member of So Many Words Theatre Company and has also worked with DanceSyndrome She has a particular interest in drama and working with community groups and wanted to develop her skills and confidence in leadership, facilitation and providing peer support. Wanting to challenge herself by working amongst a new team she feels she developed confidence in teamwork and communicating her ideas to others. Charlotte committed to all monthly sessions, and used her learning from sessions to create a personal statement about her interest and involvement in the arts. Charlotte felt on application to the Young Artist Development programme she had little to say about
her skills and experiences. She lacked confidence in celebrating her past achievement. Charlotte believed the session on Building an Artist Statement run by Blank Media has helped her feel confident to produce a written document that she can use again when applying for further arts projects and programmes.
Whilst blogging wasn始t something Charlotte felt she would continue, she felt she had overcome some fears around learning how to use new platforms, and felt proud she learnt how to set up a blogsite and twitter account and understand it始s purpose if she chooses to return to it social media at some point in the future. The Critique sessions supported Charlotte to reflect on work, and consider different ways of looking at her work and the work of others. This supported her in writing a review of an arts event for her arts award. Charlotte agreed she had developed skills in discussing her work during group meetings and one-to-one conversations. Charlotte picked up tips from artists during the networking event hosted by blank Media, several artists were programmed to deliver presentations to the group about their journey into the industry and offered specific advice and guidance to young people from similar fields. Charlotte had the opportunity to meet with a couple of the artists on the day and talk about her interest in Drama participation and performance, she was offered information about new drama groups and organisations that she then researched further as part of her arts award. Later in the year Charlotte began attending a new drama group, one of her goals at the beginning of the year was to work with new groups and increase her participation. She has also been able to provide peer support to other young people working at So Many Words around the arts award, as well as practice leading group sessions. Throughout the year Charlotte met with her arts award adviser Jo Foxall, to discuss her silver arts award, agree actions, feedback on progression and receive encouragement and guidance. Charlotte considers completing her Silver Arts Awards her biggest achievement during the year; in particular the
Leadership challenge where she planned and prepared to deliver an hour drama workshop to her peers. Charlotte facilitated a workshop during one of the final YAD sessions. She has documented the event and was able to evaluate her work. Charlotte mentioned she enjoyed working with a new team of people from different art interests and different ages as well as connecting with arts professionals throughout the year. She feels she has grown as a person, developed in confidence, increased skill and technique in performance and facilitation and demonstrated commitment and enthusiasm throughout the entire year and during all activity. Charlotte explored possible training and learning activity from her individual training and development budget. A two day workshops was designed with and for Charlotte, day one would explore building confidence in presenting and facilitating, working with a professional practitioner in a small group, day two offered an intensive one-to-one acting class that developed Charlotte始s skill in physical and vocal techniques, as well as characterisation and creating
(image of Charlotte始s arts award portfolio)
characters. Charlotte has also worked on two performances this year and independently submitted a monologue to the BBC after reading an advert asking for young people to design a character for a popular BBC programme. Something Charlotte say始s she would not have looked for or signed up to before the YAD programme.
Genevieve Pritchard Genevieve applied to be part of the YAD programme to gain clarity and focus around goals and direction. She had an interest and experience in various art forms including performance, comedy, writing, film and visual art, but felt her energies were divided amongst these interests to the point of not being in a position to concentrate on the development of one particular practice. She wanted to explore some of her interests and ideas through PDP and development work, identify goals and actions to move forward and increase her knowledge of what would be needed to achieve her goals. Genevieve wanted to work amongst a small and focussed programme that supported her skill development in a particular area, increase contacts and awareness to enable her to end the year with a greater sense of identity and clarity of what she wanted to work towards and thus be in a position where she was working towards something specific with the skills and awareness to do so. When asked about her biggest achievements this year Genevieve highlighted she felt she had prioritised her time better and the areas of work that interested her the most. Film and Writing. Having realised these areas and learning new skills through training and development, increasing her contacts amongst artists working in this area, she was able to begin developing new ideas with an increased awareness of her potential and the journey towards reaching her goals. She felt glad that other interests have taken a back seat and feels less time is now wasted pursuing areas that have no fixed outcome.
Another achievement is the amount of people Genevieve feels she has connected with and spoken to over the year, resulting in more confidence with networking and explaining her work and interests. Genevieve has explored new arts venues in and across Manchester, such as the Anthony Burgess Centre, BLANKSPACE, The Black Lion, The Met and The Edge; whilst maintaining contacts and attending workshops with Bury Script Writers, Shooting People and Jump. Genevieve has also researched and made contact with 24/7 Theatre Festival and PANDA and believes these networks might support her development in the future.
(image of Genevieve providing peer support during Blank Media session)
The early workshops on YAD supported Genevieve to prepare and consider her artist profile and use of digital platforms for networking, research and promotion.
consider ways of using her blogsite as she continues with a project idea and has already begun to use twitter to research links and opportunities in the arts.
Genevieve feels she will be able to use these platforms to their fullest potential having realised her art form and direction for the future. Genevieve will
Genevieve has also found sharing her work and seeking advice and constructive criticism from online platforms to be extremely useful in developing work and ideas.
The course encourages an online community, Genevieve again could view, comment and learn from other peoples work and share her ideas. It was during her course that Genevieve began to make use of Vimeo. Vimeo is video sharing platform, a site that hosts high quality videos, encourages a community and provides tips and online learning around filmmaking.
Genevieve considered her training and development allowance and decided on a loner term course run by the Open University – Digital Film School, a ten-week distance learning opportunity that encourages self directed learning. Guidance and information was available around key topics such as Copyright, Health and Safety, Stages of Production and practical tasks were set once a week.
Having explored writing further and developed skill and knowledge of film, Genevieve has been able to complete her course at the Open University, support in the planning and post production of a film to document the Young Artists Development Programme, and has highlighted a goal for the future that she has started working towards. Genevieve will adapt a short story into a short film. She has started this process by planning promotion material, auditions, rehearsals, and a schedule for development. She has considered her needs and resources. In the next 8 weeks she will finalise location details and begin casting two performers.
Greta Davies Greta was studying an Art Foundation when she applied to the YAD programme. She applied to support her studies and interest in pursuing the arts. Greta had not accessed many art projects or programmes before applying to YAD, she wanted to work with a new group of people, come into contact with artists, develop confidence and skill in her art form and achieve the Silver Arts Award. When asked to reflect on the programme and her achievements throughout the year, Greta highlighted all session offered to her during the year had helped her confidence, knowledge and skill as an artist. Greta highlighted the blogging session as being particularly useful in developing her artist statement onto an online platform, she set up a blog and used it throughout the year, she would like to dedicate time to keeping it up to date in the future. During the Critique session, Greta found it useful to consider how she viewed her work and how she
(image taken during YAD session at Full Circle Arts, Greta presented her blog to peers)
wanted others to view it. Greta felt she developed a better understanding of the importance of showing your work, promoting self and having the confidence to do so.
Greta enjoyed working with others and getting to know about and understand their work. Having attended several sessions before the Networking event helped Greta present her artist profile and portfolio. She found it useful to hear the stories of the professional artists who presented on the day, the paths they had taken and how they achieved their goals. She met with some of the artists in the afternoon to talk about her work in more depth, Greta found their comments and advice reassuring and welcomed the opportunity to talk to artists from a visual arts background. She left the session with new information about art organisations, artists and galleries. This helped her research new artists and exhibitions, as well as encouraged her to learn about new workshops and classes that could support her training and development. This research also supported her practice and pathways section of the Silver Arts Award. Greta would meet with Nerissa Cargill Thompson, her arts adviser, who had also studied an Art Foundation. As the year progressed Greta worked exceptionally hard completing her Arts Foundation and began to apply to University. Greta had achieved several sections of the Arts Award and had learnt a lot from the process, however, towards the end of the programme she believed the arts award was too much to take on with her priorities of University and committing to the rest of the Young Artist Development Programme. Nerissa became a natural mentor to Greta, in their final meetings they explored artists and workshops Greta could sign up to as part of her training and development budget. Greta took part in two weekend workshops during the year to support her learning and her desire to experiment with new techniques. Her first class tool place at Islington Mill, a weekend class in Screen Printing, that presented steps of screen-printing and gave students the opportunity to create their own print. Greta used her blog to record a step-by-step guide.
http://gretajoydavies.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/step-bystep-instructions-to-screen.html produced during each stage and the use you can get from one etching plate. Greta would like to improve her skills in this area as she very much enjoyed the process. Greta applied to five universities during this years programme and was interviewed at four, she has gained and accepted a place at MMU on a BA in Fine Art and has also completed her Art Foundation. Greta is particularly proud of completing her study, preparing for university at the same time of committing to the Young Artist Development Programme. Greta始s second workshop took place at Hot Bed Press Studios, a two-day workshop in Etching. Greta learnt different techniques and ways of etching, starting with the simplest to the more complicated, the time required and the effects that are
The programme has encourage Greta to continue to explore new opportunities that can support her learning, keep in contact with new peers and artists and continue to dedicate more time on promoting her work.
Monique Jarrett On application to the programme, Monique had several years of experience in the arts as a participant, a creative teams member and volunteer. Monique had a varied interest in the arts and had found working around digital and film particularly exciting and interesting. She had been involved with projects at Full Circle Arts, The Cornerhouse and had volunteered at AND festival. Monique had considered her own art interest and the area she wanted to pursue for some time, she liked to design and make things, had some ideas but did not know the area she wanted to pursue. Her initial goal as a YAD member was to explore her skills, her interests and influences, discuss her ideas and to identify an area she would pursue for reasons more than enjoyment and interest. In the first month of YAD after one-to-one PDP, Monique experienced a light bulb moment, and began to embark on her love and interest for Jewellery design and making.
Monique committed and benefited from all YADsessions, she already had experience of social networking and blogging, but found the Artist Statement, Blogging and Critique sessions particularly useful in reaffirming her knowledge, looking at further training and development needs in these areas and to encourage a strong artists profile that could be used across all platforms. The sessions throughout the year that included elements of sharing and critique supported Monique to think about the way she wanted others to view her work. She appreciated hearing other people始s stories and sharing her own progression with the group, learning from their suggestions and feedback. She very quickly began to learn, design and make, creating a catalogue of products. Monique set up a facebook group, twitter account, website and blog to profile her work, and over the year has managed to use all platforms to their fullest potential. The Compelling Futures exercise that Rivca Rubin facilitated during her session on Professional Development and Idea Generation was a turning point for Monique. This exercise encouraged participants to identify a point in the future, a place the participant wanted to reach. Rivca assisted the group to identify a space in the room and visualise their goal. Gradually participants moved towards that space, when they arrived they were encouraged to be in the moment, the goal became the present, they thought about what was happening there, how they felt, who was there with them and what they had. Monique thought about something she really wanted to achieve, something she found scary, and by being in the moment, experiencing the place through imagination alone, this goal began less scary. Monique felt prepared for it, she始d not only been there but had also considered the road towards getting there and the work and resources she would require.
A few months later and Monique, (in reality) achieved that goal by attending a conference and managing a stall where she displayed her products and sold some of her pieces. Monique has attended a few craft fairs since, an experience she describes as a positive one, despite not always making sales she believes it has taught her valuable lessons in knowing where your market is and where best to invest her time. Monique taught herself about new materials and techniques at home but felt she wanted to use her training and development budget to attend one off classes that could introduce her to new materials and approaches. She has been able to invest in a piece of equipment that has allowed her to make more jewellery that has proved popular amongst her market. She signed up to classes at The Bead Shop Academy where she learnt to work with new materials and approaches but also brought her into contact with makers who could offer advice and guidance around wholesalers and pricing her work. During the Networking event in March, Monique heard Selina Campbell, a designer jeweller and silversmith present her story of her own professional development. In the afternoon Monique had the opportunity to ask questions, gain further advice and guidance from Selina. Selina continued to be a positive and useful connection for Monique and towards the end of the programme Monique used the remainder of her individual training and development budget to access a one-to-one workshop with Selina at her studio. Monique learnt how to shape and saw new materials and produced her own pieces of jewellery. Selina has since offered Monique several tips around making, pricing and profiling and Monique has also been fortunate to receive a work experience opportunity with her. Monique feels particular proud that a year ago she didn始t know what she was going to do, she wanted to identify
A career goal and make it happen. One year on, increased skill and knowledge, a whole catalogue of products, followers through all platforms, Monique始s biggest achievement has been setting up as a jewellery maker and selling 50 pieces. She has learnt how to deal with customers, merchandise, labelling, profiling, knowing the demands of her market and working social media and online platforms to her advantage. Monique feels if she had not take part in the Young Artist Development Programme she would still be enjoying herself at a variety of art projects, wondering what path to take, she feels she would not have had the opportunity to identify her strengths, goals and actually made them happen. You can find out more and view Monique始s work at the following links. http://www.jadiorable.tk/ http://www.facebook.com/Jadiorable http://jadiorable.wordpress.com/ Twitter @roidmj
(image of a necklace designed and made by Monique after her workshop at The Bead Academy)
Partners and Supporting Artists We wanted to ensure all participants had the opportunity to meet and work with a range of professional artists throughout the year during core activity. This list acknowledges the partners, trainers, presenters, workshop leaders, mentors and arts award adviser who supported this years programme. With special thanks to Blank Media Collective John Leyland Mark Devereux Chris Leyland Michael Taylor Nerissa Cargill Thompson Adam Lee Joanna Foxall Caroline Churchill Rivca Rubin Selina Campbell Rosanne Robertson Miz DeShannon Debbie Sharp Andrew Smith and Tom Northey John Franklin Rachel Gibson Rebekka Platt Kathryn Worthington and David Slack
Blank Media Collective
networking and finally culminating in a networking event for the participants to consolidate the skills they had learnt from the sessions in a "real world" experience. Having recently secured the excellent space at 43, Hulme Street, it was important for BMC to make valid use of it beyond exhibitions and live shows; the development of young creatives is at the centre of what we do as an organisation. It was felt that the team had the skills and dedication necessary to make something really impacting for the participants and we wanted to share our skills and experiences with a group of young artists in a focused and structured way.
Reflection from Blank Media. Blank Media Collective (BMC) hosted a series of workshop days for the FCAYAD participants at our gallery and creative hub, BLANKSPACE. We covered a range of creative development orientated topics including blogging, the artist's profile, critique,
We delivered 6 full day sessions on a variety of topics. The first was an introductory session run by Mark Devereux and Chris Leyland, the second was an introduction to blogging by infamous Manchester blogger Fat Roland, then followed The Artist's Profile (looking at personal "brand" and how artists present themselves online or on paper), Critique, Networking, and finally a Networking Event at Z-Arts in Hulme,
involving a series of speakers from the creative industries of relevance to the FCAYAD participants and then an opportunity for the participants to network with those speakers and those who had attended the day. There were challenges throughout the programme, the main one initially was negotiating the wide range of creative disciplines the participants were involved in, and also the differing levels of experience of the group. This was a challenge in the first instance because it was difficult to know exactly where to pitch the sessions. An interesting challenge was to plan a long term project like that; exploring what we felt was important for creative development and shaping that into the programme of sessions was a challenge, but a rewarding one. The initial challenge about where to pitch the sessions for such a diverse group was overcome through experience. The first session was a huge learning curve for Mark Devereux and Chris Leyland, and it required a re-evaluation of BMC's approach to the sessions. This was discussed openly and successfully with FCA and a plan was formulated to make the sessions work for everyone involved. For BMC every session was a highlight. Seeing the space being used in such a positive and productive way was extremely rewarding. The sessions on Critique and Networking felt particularly successful; there was a sense among the participants that myths were being debunked- that critique does not have to be destructive and that perhaps networking isn't as scary as the participants might have thought. The human element was emphasised in these sessions. Of course, the final Networking Event was a highlight, and indeed from BMC's perspective, a success. The participants were so full of confidence, they appeared to be able to utilise the skills they had been learning in the earlier sessions.
What aspects of the partnerships worked particularly well? Organisationally, every aspect worked well - BMC was able to focus on its strengths and using those in the most productive way for the participants. The personal relationship built up with Vicki was and remains pivotal; having one main person from both organisations leading this element of the FCAYAD worked best. What learning/progression did you notice from the group? Initially it was difficult to tell but towards the end of 2011 was when it started to become quite noticeable with several participants that they were really starting to understand the "get out what you put in" philosophy. Gaining confidence and asking the right kinds of questions. The final session, the networking event, was where the progression was most visible. Each participant who had set up their "stall" and had listened intently to the speakers, could be seen in the second part of the event to be confidently sharing ideas with those speakers who had come to be "networked" with.
(image of Artists Presents and Networking session, April 2012)
How were your sessions made relevant to the overall group and their artist development? The human element was extremely important in this area. Helping the whole group to understand that creative development is personal, but that every person in the industry goes through the same kind of process in their own way, seemed to be key. Also by covering general topics that could be transferred across the different creative disciplines and experience levels, we were able to make the sessions relevant to the group as a whole. Was there anything else you thought the programme could have included? BMC would have liked to see a rolling programme for young artists development, with revisiting previous groups for progress updates. Had we been able to do more sessions we could have covered more areas of creative development and perhaps revisited the areas covered earlier. Especially the blog; as this was intended to be a working document that the participants could take forward it would have been good to perhaps have a session on progress. What have you learnt? BMC learnt very quickly about workshop group dynamic, and also how to cater to more diverse groups, which is a very valuable thing to learn. Also we learnt how to use the space more interestingly for such activities, and learnt more about the dynamism of the space we work in and how to use that more. Would you enter into this type of programme again as a supporting partner? Certainly. We are sad it is not continuing and would love to continue to work with FCA. What advice would you give to others working in partnership on this type of programme? Harness the skills you naturally have as a group or individual and channel that into how you deliver your sessions. Treat the participants as peers at a different stage of the journey and don't be afraid to listen. Also treat every challenge as a learning experience.
Two Years On As YAD 2011/2012 came to an end we caught up with Paul McDowell and Damien Hayward who took part in the previous Young Artist Development Programme that completed in 2009. Paul McDowell
I am Paul McDowell, though more commonly known as P.R. McDowell; a writer of poetry, fiction, and scripts. Iʼm also the founder of the arts organisation Light In The Dark. In 2008 I was made one of five people who would do the first 18 months long Source Young Artists (SYA) programme created by Vicki McCorkell at Full Circle Arts. During the time of the SYA programme I had poems published on the online gallery Sometimes When I Wake At Night; worked with DIY Theatre through a scheme done by PANDA; and earned a Silver Arts award. Since the end of the SYA programme Iʼve seen the Greenroom sadly close; performed when Freed Up! came to an end; become known as a Freed Up! veteran; performed at the 2011 Environlution Festival; wrote a collaborated poem titled “Twist the Knife” with the poet Graham Halsey, to be published in his book later this year; and Iʼve performed at events including Poets Get Mashed, Magical Animals, Stirred, Beatification, Bang Said The Gun:
Manchester, Guitar nʼ Verse, and Once More With Meaning (which I was a guest compére at). A milestone occurred in April 2011 when I was asked to help run an event called OpenMind; on the 11th of May 2011 I began working as OpenMindʼs organiser & co-host at its events. I felt the time was right to make my dream of running an arts organisation a reality, so at the end of August 2011 I left OpenMind to form Light In The Dark. Light In The Dark is an arts organisation unlike any other; run by artists for artists with the aim to get a venue of our own to run as a community-based hub providing a performance platform for artists; weʼre also a support development source for artists by providing them with promotional support & artist development (advice, guidance & PDPʼs), and we also hire out our services to everyone. We strive to engage the public into greater involvement in the arts & benefit the community via events; workshops; and to a greater extent, once in our own venue, by giving opportunities in part time & full time employment. To further help others, we will be doing a minimum of one charitable event per year where money raised is donated to a good cause. So far weʼve done ten events since the 22nd of October 2011, including one run in conjunction with MindJack Records, an independent record label based in Doncaster; and we have two more upcoming events already arranged. Programmes which support the journey of artists, such as the SYA/YAD programme, are wonderful things & can really make a difference. The help provided through them can mean the difference between someone aspiring to be an artist and them actually being an artist to the best of their ability. Recently there has been a decline in funding and support for arts; Manchester alone has seen the closing of several art venues. Now is a harder time for artists in general, and support is needed.
The SYA programme helped boost confidence in myself by teaching me valuable skills essential to running workshops; it was a real stepping stone having my own artistic journey recorded through a Personal Development Plan, as I learned how to run PDPʼs efficiently and now we at Light In The Dark are able to offer that support through our own personalised extensive PDPʼs. My plans for the future are performing more; putting a book out; getting more work published; and the casting & filming of my first film “True Colours” which Light In The Dark is producing alongside Clare Phoenix, a student who aspires to work in film upon finishing university. Light In The Darkʼs plans are more extensive as weʼre getting firmly established and seeking funding, with help from sources in our network including Samina Akhtar of United Through Dance; V.A. Oldham; and the many amazing artists weʼve connected with. Other plans include doing more events; producing two other films which I wrote the scripts for; and creating an unbiased poetry anthology for Northwest poets. And of course we at Light In The Dark also aim to light the way forward for many more artists. Links:Me: www.facebook.com/thepoeticrealist www.facebook.com/pages/The-Poetic-Realist-PR-McDowell/110772245606022 www.twitter.com/P_R_McDowell paul.r.mcdowell@gmail.com Light In The Dark: www.lightinthedarkents.org.uk www.facebook.com/official.lightinthedark.entertainment www.twitter.com/Official_LITD http://www.youtube.com/LightInTheDarkTV official.lightinthedark.org@gmail.com
(image of Light in the dark logo and recent flyer)
Damien Hayward I am a disabled Photographer with a professional and life passion in photographer based within Manchester. I have been spending years building up my skill and understanding of photography and the arts world, networking with many different artist and organisations that have enabled me to grow as an artist in one of the most demanding and competitive media in the world. One of the most defining moments and what has made me the artist today was getting involved with the Full Circle Arts group and their SYA (Source Yong Artist) programme in 2008/2009, through my continuing development on their PDP (Professional Development Programme) I did have an outline goal of becoming a well-established arts within the city and a very interest in holding workshops for young people like myself. When I was asked to join the SYA/Young Artist Development programme, I jumped at the chance of being able to learn the skills of hopefully becoming a workshop facilitator. It was a new programme by FCA that was managed by Vicki McCorkell, and with the guidance of her as a small team we all worked through many different tasks to design a set of workshops. It was an outstanding and very stressful journey but well worth it. Between 2010 - 2011 I carried on with my development both in my college career and networking skills, I was introduced to two (established painter & photographer) based in Liverpool called Nathan Pendlebury through my invovement with the YAD programme, and most recently another Liverpool photographer called Adam Lee. They have been both helped me think in more details about my own goals and through a very short period we began planning putting goals that would help me. It also made my goal of applying to university and becoming an established professional artist. Also work with organisations like DaDa (Disability and Deaf Arts) Liverpool, Eurocultured and Disability Support Stockport with documenting there street festivals. It all has been overwhelming experience and gave me very valuable experience and skills that has enabled to grow so far.
( images taken by Damien at one of Light In the Darks events)
By 2011 I finished my college career with the completion of my NVQ Photography course, I then set my mind on taking some time out of education and work out what the next stage of my career was going to be. That was when through quite a few talks with my best friend Paul McDowell, we came up with an ambitious plan of taking the experience of the SYA programme along with his experience of running and attending events and my love of music, photography. We decided to from a small group and host events that would become Light In The Dark. We officially founded the group in August 2011 and since then we have hosted quite a large number of events across Manchester. The whole experience has now rekindled my goals and outlook of what I want and I will achieve in life, I finally got the courage to apply for university and I will be starting a BA (Hons) Photography in September. Even though I am involved in Light In The Dark as a poster designer, promoter and official photographer, I also have an interest and a long-time goal of forming my own photographic and media company dealing in many aspects of photography and film. Also one day of designing and hosting a long line of workshops for all youngsters on the team of photography, getting the next generation inspired and passionate or producing their own works of art. But time will hopefully tell. Damien Hayward Inspiring Freelance Photographer Personal links: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DamoPhotos Email: damos.photography@gmail.com Website: http://www.quote4photos.co.uk/
Conclusion The Young Artist Development Programme achieved its aims, providing an inclusive development opportunity for Young People who had a keen interest in pursuing the arts, to increase the competence of young people and emerging artists, to encourage a real and sustainable future for their involvement within the arts at all levels; as informed participants, art students, young leaders or emerging practitioners始 Throughout this reflective story we hear again and again how young people始s knowledge and activity in the arts has increased, we see evidence of goals being reached, examples of the skill development demonstrated in new ventures, tools and resources, and the self-management around their own learning throughout the year, and now, into the future. New relationships have been formed and networks sought, their experiences within the creative sector have grown. Programmes like this impact because, whilst they provide a platform, full of supporting blocks, essential offerings and the human factor, they are ultimately 驶led by the user始. The participant identifies their goals, and the path towards reaching them. The YAD programme assists their thinking along the way and throws in a great heap of useful aids, but ultimately the success really is down to the individual who directs their own learning, yet who has an openness to the things on offer to them and who thrives in the focussed, intensive and supportive environment that welcomes them. Yes, it is time intensive, and a cost like any other project attached. Yet we see a lasting impact here, a longevity that is very very real and a much wider reach than just those participants involved as they work and continue to work with other young people, artists and groups.
John Leyland "Developing Leaders in Creativity" A Personal Response from John Leyland, Director at Blank Media Collective Full Circle Arts Young Artists Development Programme Everybody has to start somewhere. This we know. So I will start with a question - bit of a long one - culturally, who is going to lead the way in the future if nobody even knows where to begin or how to develop further beyond their current state? That's not to say creative people should wait to be told a step-by-step plan towards achieving their goals, quite the opposite in fact. But how can we share our experiences with each other to aid development? Full Circle Arts' Young Artist Development Programme seems like a great place to start. There's an opportunity here to say something really important. To advocate for the process rather than than the product. Or in some parlance, turn the process into the product. Consumerist language, I know. This is the world we live in; conglomerated and convenient, where increasingly we are removed from the processes that create the things we hold so dear. Food, electronics, the internet. Who knows how all that works? I could probably wring the neck of a chicken if I needed to, but dismantle an iPhone? No idea. There's a part of me that wishes I'd had access to the Full Circle Arts Young Artists Development Programme when I started out - perhaps my own creative journey would be more successful because of it. Is that impatience talking? I have a lot of that. In fact, a lot of what you need to succeed in creative industry is perseverance, passion and patience. I think as young artists we waste time worrying about our talent (am I good enough?), so it's a strange realisation to come to; that talent in your chosen field might not be the most important factor in your creative success. At least initially anyway.
What a strange world. But it is a world full of human beings. When you are starting out, there's so much mystery in how to "make it" in the art world that it becomes easy to create myths around people, to be intimidated by them, when in fact they are just like us. Of course, some people cultivate that mystery, but once you understand that, the fear should start to subside. It's a life lesson, really. And that's not the only one here. It's hugely important to spend time trying to understand and accept yourself. This is starting to sound like therapy, and maybe it is. Or maybe that's just the cynical, modern way of framing it. But confidence is born out of self-acceptance. That has to be a fact. And confidence is a huge factor in development towards success in your chosen field. I mean real confidence, not the false or misplaced kind we so often see which masks insecurity. It's a long road, especially in such a subjective field as creativity. One major outcome that I feel proud to have played a small part in during the programme was the apparent increase in confidence of the participants. Them beginning to own their own creativity was hugely rewarding to see. Working through something like an artist's statement with them, supplying the tools and the support to help to write down who they are as creatives hopefully went some way towards some self belief. I always find writing something down helps to make it real. It certainly seemed to. It's clear that the cultural and creative economy is being increasingly recognised as a valuable and essential part of our modern society, and it seems to me that the Full Circle Arts Young Artists Development Programme is filling a gap not provided for in traditional educational or developmental channels. Perhaps there's a model there.
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