Bad news for art and culture in Bradford over the past few days. Last week it was announced that Bradford One gallery is moving from its central location in Centenary Square to Cartwright Hall to make way for the new library build (http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/10433704.print/). This means that the city centre no longer has a dedicated visual arts space. Then on Tuesday came reports that the National Media Museum, which attracts a huge number of visitors to Bradford, is being threatened with closure along with two other Northern museums in York and Manchester (http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greate…)
It feels weird that against this backdrop of losses and cuts, and the shock and angry reactions against them, that my own practice is thriving and growing. I feel grateful for this but also mindful that I need to make the most of the opportunities that are coming my way.
My first bit of good news is that a-n have kindly extended my Re:view bursary period on my request. As I reported in a post last week, I had underestimated in my application how much time I would need between sessions with my three designated artist peers ( Bradford/Leeds based practitioners Caroline Hick, Sarah Spanton and Andy Abbott). After my first sessions with each artist, I realised that my original proposal for a three month period in which to have two sessions with each artist was a unrealistic, and that I needed time to follow up on the questions, research and discussions offered within the first sessions, which have happened over the last 6 weeks. Luckily a-n have been very understanding and flexible about this and allowed me until September to have my second and final sessions. I am very grateful. Although I feel like I misjudged the timescale, and this was a fault on my part, a tweet from artist and a-n blogger Emily Speed (https://twitter.com/speedina) the other day, made me feel better
“that moment when you realise that you’re trying to do too much with too small a commission. Setting myself up for failure. Well done me”
There’s a generosity in sharing your (perceived) mistakes, and reading things like this makes me realise I’m not alone in underestimating or over extending myself. So thank you Emily!
Secondly, I met with Gideon Seymour from Fabric yesterday to discuss the possibility of an exhibition around family photography. The exhibition which I want to call WE ARE ALIVE AGAIN, would incorporate re-presented groups and pairings of photographs from my late Nana’s archive, spanning 100 years, elements of my own work in response to this archive, collaborations with family members, and a research aspect in terms of participation from members of the public.
Gideon was interested and felt it could work well within Fabric’s visual arts programme for this year and we agreed that it would be a good idea for me to apply for ACE funding for the project. Gideon offered to help me with the writing the application and also Fabric providing support in kind, in terms of offering an exhibition space, curatorial support, support with hanging the exhibition and marketing. He also suggested an application to Bradford Council Community Chest fund. I had applied for ACE funding for another project around 3 and a half years ago and was unsuccessful. I and my co-applicant found extremely time consuming and stressful, and I was so discouraged afterwards that I haven’t considered applying again. Now, with the prospect of support of Fabric with the application, and being embedded within their arts programme it seems much more do-able, with a greater chance of success. I now actually feel positive about the prospect. This is a big sea change for me. I think I have had a resistance to applying for public money (or “fear of funding” as we jokingly referred to it yesterday) for some time, which I may have justified to myself as a chosen political position (“I am a DIY artist” ) which I now realise has been self-limiting.
Reflecting on this I now realise that the shift in my perception and thinking has largely been due to the discussions I have had through the Re: view sessions. More details tomorrow.
