Tag: creativity

Case Study: Community Producer

Posted on by Alice Cramer

This case study is part of our project evaluation for Phase 2

We worked with two local residents, one from Fenland and one from Forest Heath, to support them as Community Producers in 2021. They brought local knowledge and contacts to commissions and events, developed their skills and made creative things happen in their places with their communities.

Read the full Community Producer case study here.

Read the full Phase 2 evaluation report here.

An excerpt from the case study:

Developing local people in cultural opportunities helps upskill and raise the ambition of art appetites by creating ownership over the activities. The community producers operate as advocates and a trusted source for local people and businesses to engage and activity partner. This has become an organic evolution from the Creative Collective, and Creative Forum structures the team has created. They identify development opportunities for each member.

Identifying talent, creating opportunities and the space to step into learning and leading happens through a subtle approach on a project-by-project basis. First, local people are engaged through an invitation and a reassurance of their skills and abilities.

Newmarket resident and Creative Collective member Louise Eatock has a passion and interest in the music scene and organising pop-up activities in local venues, but has big ideas for Newmarket’s needs for local people. Louise met Creative Agent Ali at a local authority community network meeting during the first phase of the activity, and Ali supported Louise in delivering the workshop activity. When the Creative Collective formed in Phase 2, Year 2, Ali invited her to join the group.

Louise helped commission ideas for the new Creative Conversations In Lockdown model as part of the Creative Collective. This process identified a commission that Louise could support and co-deliver with the artists as a local community representative. In addition, working on the More than Music project with Matt Cooper and Leanne Moden enabled Louise to take on a different role as a community producer on the project.

“It’s been a good experience working with MarketPlace. Ali (Creative Agent) is super supportive; she has helped me understand what my role could be in the community. Because before I met Ali, I was sort of thinking that I kind of had to not only organise everything but do everything myself as well. And she’s introduced me to other artists.

I’ve got a much clearer idea of programming arts in the community through working with Ali, so it’s been a good experience.” – Louise Eatock, Community Producer

Hilary Cox Condron, Louise Eatock and Colin Stevens at Newmarket Earth Arts Festival 2021.

Read the full Community Producer case study here.

Read the full Phase 2 evaluation report here.

Case Study: Brandon Creative Forum

Posted on by Alice Cramer

This case study is part of our project evaluation for Phase 2

Brandon Creative Forum is a community group established in the first phase of MarketPlace, delivering their first event in 2016. With MarketPlace support they have organised 4 local festivals with Tales and Trails 2019 their largest to date. We have supported them to continue local activities as far as possible through the pandemic, with all its challenges, and they are still growing from strength to strength.

Read the full Brandon Creative Forum case study here.

Read the full Phase 2 evaluation report here.

An excerpt from the case study:

In 2019 the group had no ambitions or desire to become a constituted group: they aspired to develop a central hub for cultural activity, enable the community to think about Brandon positively and organise events for everyone to access. At this stage, the group of 4 core leaders universally identified a desire to develop skills in commissioning and to consolidate their learning to date.

Throughout the pandemic, MarketPlace supported the forum and their wider community interest groups to remain connected, develop digital skills, and participate in shortlisting, commissioning, and testing new projects ideas.

Two members of the forum are also members of the Creative Collective. This enabled the group to identify learning from other towns and recognise their skills and achievements whilst participating in commissioning, shortlisting, and interviewing commissions.

“We still need youngsters to come in with us on the forum. And we are working on that, but it’s such a strange town. But having talked to Wisbech as part of the Creative Collective we can see that their problems are the same as our problems and then we could work out a solution together from that.” – Jill, Blanchard Brandon Creative Forum

Through remote working and digital connectivity with MarketPlace, the forum became more embedded in the team’s processes. It started to identify the community’s needs in the face of the pandemic, beyond activities and events for enjoyment.

By August 2020, the group took steps to become constituted and, in 2021, challenged what their perceptions of a central hub could and should look like by taking on a market stall to begin to reach wider communities.

Pictured: Left: Brandon Creative Forum member Jill Blanchard chatting to Brandon residents at the ‘See You Soon’ stall at the market. Right: Members of Brandon Creative Forum meet at Brandon Country Park to assess the area for the Walking Companions podcast project.

Read the full Brandon Creative Forum case study here.

Read the full Phase 2 evaluation report here.

Case Study: Objects and Stories

Posted on by Alice Cramer

This case study is part of our project evaluation for Phase 2.

In 2020 Michelle Brace was commissioned by MarketPlace and the Creative Collective to pilot an objects-inspired oral storytelling project, ‘Mantlepiece’ to connect and celebrate communities. This project has since tested and developed it’s distance engagement methods as an intergenerational project between a school and a care home. In this latest testing phase the model trials democratised delivery and archiving potential within community organisations and by community advocates.

Read the full Objects and Stories case study here.

Read the full Phase 2 evaluation report here.

An excerpt from the case study:

The first iteration of the project tested the model of remote recording and artwork production with groups during lockdown over Zoom. The first iteration saw the collective share objects and stories over Zoom and send their content to Michelle to create a SoundCloud library of their stories and a group portrait of objects to represent the group.

The sharing and intergenerational potential of the project, due to the nostalgia of items shared by people, resulted in a second commission testing a distance delivery model between a care home and a school group. This enabled sharing of heritage and learning about past generations whilst increasing the wellbeing and feelings of value felt by care home residents. This delivery model provided resources and instructions to staff to deliver the activity to safeguard against COVID-19 transmission. This resulted in an exhibition of the stories and objects including the responses of the children to the experience.

When MarketPlace was approached by Suffolk Libraries to partner on their Let’s Get Creative programme and platform development, Michelle’s project was a natural fit for working across multiple locations to create a sense of ownership and belonging of libraries with its existing users and new audiences. Objects and Stories is the latest iteration of this concept, testing a new devolved delivery approach.

MarketPlace has a specified geographical area for delivery and so Michelle delivered the project in Brandon, and Community Producer Louise led delivery in Newmarket, with mentoring from Michelle. A training day was held in order to reach the wider West Suffolk Libraries to support the staff through the experience and to explore the potential for delivering activity directly with their service users.

“When we did the CPD session with library staff I came away feeling overjoyed and convinced that this is a great idea and works with everyone. They all came with a story, some thought out, others grabbed on the go, but they each told a compelling story of who they are. The objects provide a lovely way to connect people and enable them to be vulnerable and share, as it’s an insight into who they are. They become not just a person in a library but a guy who had a fine art degree.’ – Michelle Brace, artist

Read the full Objects and Stories case study here.

Read the full Phase 2 evaluation report here.

#SeeYouSoon!

Posted on by Colin Stevens

Developed with support from public funding by Department of Culture, Media and Sport. We spent March, April and May 2021 exploring creative ways to address loneliness and social isolation resulting from the impact of Covid-19.

We threw the obvious title “The Loneliness Project” out the window. After a year of near-constant lockdown we felt it was important to offer people a more positive outlook. How could we help people break out of their ‘bubbles’ in a fun, colourful and positive manner?

After not been able to see or touch their families and friends for a year people needed a sense of real connection. What better way to make meaningful contact than with the simple forgotten Art of Writing? In a world of mobile phones, email, text and WhatsApp, how many of us take the time to put a pen to paper?

The #See You Soon pack of postcards was designed to encourage people to send creative messages and ideas to family members, friends and neighbours.

We took time to have our now familiar “creative conversations” with a diverse range of contacts who are working with families, seniors, young people and people who are experiencing isolation across Fenland and West Suffolk. We worked with community leaders and creative practitioners who understood how their localities and neighbourhoods had been affected by the pandemic.

Connecting is what #See You Soon  was all about – making a move to do something positive. Smile, Reach Out & Say Hello! Our new See You Soon section of the website is coming soon!

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Evaluation Case Study: Tea and Tasters and Going Digital

Posted on by Alice Cramer

This case study is part of our project evaluation for 2019/2020.

We’ve worked with Shelby, owner of the lovely Barleycorn Cafe in Mildenhall on creative projects over the last few years. Before the pandemic, we were running a series of taster sessions with local Meet Up Mondays group and creative practitioners from the region. The group enjoyed the activities and the company, feeling less isolated and more connected.

The Covid-19 pandemic changed everything and we had to stop the live programme. To keep something going, we worked with The Barleycorn and artist Marian Savill during the first lockdown to create a series of ‘make along’ videos about Art Journaling.

Find out the difference this project has made and the challenges of delivering online as we all adjusted to doing more things digitally.

Download the full Tea and Tasters and Going Digital case study here.

Read the full 2019/20 evaluation report here.

An excerpt from the case study:

The Barleycorn Cafe in Mildenhall is only three years old, but has become a hub in the community. They decided to start a Meet-up Monday group, hoping to tackle loneliness and isolation by offering a free cuppa and a place to chat and meet people. Working with owner Shelby and a group of regular Meet Up Monday members a taster arts programme was established to reach new audiences, create new art opportunities locally and increase well-being.

Tea and Tasters

A series of taster workshops were delivered with different artists for the group to choose one they would like to work with the longer term. 

These workshops included: 

  • creative journalling 
  • singing 
  • printmaking 
  • ceramics 
  • expressive drawing 
  • A photo from one of the taster workshops. For this workshop, the group were trying singing with singing teacher, Sally Rose. In this photo Sally is grinning while sat on a chair with a little guitar.
  • A photo from one of the taster workshops. For this workshop, the group were trying pottery. In this photo, Clare the artist is showing a member of the group how to throw a pot on a potters wheel.
  • A photo from one of the taster workshops. For this workshop, the group were trying screenprinting. The group are sitting and standing around a large long table, with rollers, paint and printing stamps scattered on the table.

Pictured: Three photos from the taster workshops. Left: For this workshop, the group were trying singing with singing teacher, Sally Rose. Sally is grinning while sat on a chair with a little guitar. Middle: The group were trying pottery. In this photo, Clare the artist is showing a member of the group how to throw a pot on a potters wheel. Right: The group were trying screenprinting. In the photo the group are sitting and standing around a large long table, with rollers, paint and printing stamps scattered on the table.

Graphic showing participation and audience numbers. Participants: 14, Engagements: 50, Artists: 5.

Graphic showing participation and audience numbers. Participants: 14, Engagements: 50, Artists: 5.

The group decided to pursue additional singing sessions alongside holding a longer creative journaling project using a democratic vote.

The plans for additional journaling workshops were curtailed by the pandemic. This resulted in a commission for mixed media artist Marian Savill to produce four online tutorials to journal from home, using resources you would find around the house.

Extending the commission in this way was a means of continuing to maintain the group’s connectivity. As well as to manage further isolation for this vulnerable group and transition activity into digital outputs in a meaningful way.

  • A photo from one of the taster workshops. For this workshop, the group were trying pastels. In this photo, a large piece of paper has been covered in drawings in pastel, including images of coffee cups, flowers and words like "sun" and "hope".
  • A photo from one of the taster workshops. For this workshop, the group were trying art journalling. In this photo, a table is covered in magazines and collages.

Pictured: Two photos from the taster workshops. Left: The group were trying pastels. In this photo, a large piece of paper has been covered in drawings in pastel, including images of coffee cups, flowers and words like “sun” and “hope”. Right: The group were trying art journaling. In this photo, a table is covered in magazines and collages.

Art Journaling with Marian Savill

Screenshot from Marian Savill's Art Journalling video workshops. Pictured is the opening image for Marian's workshop. It reads "Art Journaling with Marian Savill" in collaged letters.

Pictured: The opening image for Marian’s workshop. It reads “Art Journaling with Marian Savill” in collaged letters.

Initially the commission was developed as an experience for the Meet Up Mondays group to continue their journlling activity with Marian, during the first national lockdown through April – May 2020.

Marian was commissioned to make a series of four workshop tutorials and an introductory promo video. The tutorials cover how to make a book, creating backgrounds, adding text and embellishing your journal.

To mirror in-person experiences, the videos were launched weekly, on a Monday at 10am, within a Facebook event on the CPP MarketPlace account and the Barleycorn Facebook page.

Graphic showing participation and audience numbers. Event Attendees: 11, Views: 319, Videos: 5.

Pictured: Graphic showing participation and audience numbers. Event Attendees: 11, Views: 319, Videos: 5.

Pictured: Two screenshots from Marian Savill’s Art Journalling workshops. In the images Marian experiments on her desk with paint, wax crayons and collaging in colourful handmade books.

Download the full Tea and Tasters and Going Digital case study here.

Read more about one of the online taster sessions Art Journaling with Marian Savill and the Barleycorn cafe here.

A Spell for Understanding by Fenland Young Carers

Posted on by Alice Cramer
Watch the Spell for Understanding video presented by Centre 33.

A SPELL FOR STANDING IN ANOTHER’S SHOES

Stir with a spoon and drink in the first light of dawn.

Take the sight of an owl on a long-distance flight

The sound of Gorillas, chest-beating at night

The companionship of one hundred dogs

The patience of badgers who cross roads in the fog

Inside this spell is the shape of our days

All that we are, not all that we say,

This spell must include all that is true,

So stir in a unicorn’s miracle horn,

the noble heart of a lion, the smile of a snake

A giraffe’s dream of the stars

And make no mistake,

Most important of all, hidden away,

a spider’s web, broken, and mended again.

Drink our potion, hear our spell, look us in the eye

Put on our shoes and walk by our side.

These screenshots from the video show the young carers taking part in art activities during these Zoom sessions with the artists.

We commissioned artist Hilary Cox Condron to collaborate with a group of young carers and Centre 33, Cambridgeshire charity supporting young people. Together they did creative activities and tried different artforms with guest artists Bel Greenwood, Dan Donovan and MarketPlace Creative Agent Colin Stevens. Their responses became a poem, expressive paintings and a short film that was shared as part of Young Carers Action Day on 16 March 2021.

Amanda at Centre 33 said about the project:

“The art project has been amazing and having the opportunity to work with some amazing talented people has been really inspiring for the Young Carers. We can’t thank Hilary, Colin, Bel and Dan enough for their great work in putting together the film clip for Young Carers Action Day. The reaction to the clip from parents and the Young Carers was “wonderful”. The clip has also been shown in school by some Young Carers Champions. Thank you to everyone involved.

The Young Carers wanted their voices heard about what it is like for them, what their life is like and what qualities they have which they carry forward into their day to day work.

The Young Carers produced some wonderful art work, drawing and painting. They got to look at animation, putting clips together with sound effects as well as working with a writer to put together a spell/poem to get their voices heard. Hilary, Colin, Bel and Dan were so good with the Young People, they engaged them, gave them confidence and really inspired them to continue with Art in its different forms. I am feeling so proud with what they have achieved, that they worked so hard and we’re really pleased with the end results – their engagement has been brilliant.

We have Young Carers that have grown in confidence thanks to everyone. Young Carers that at first wouldn’t have their cameras on as they were shy and then they completed sessions with the camera on and enjoyed showing their art pieces. We had a Young Carer that was so quiet she didn’t speak to them by the end of the sessions she was chatting most of the time in the session and putting across her views more in speech.

Excellent Project, amazing people I look forward to the next one.”

Thanks to Emily, Erin, Pheobe, Lennon, Paige, Kezia, Amber and Sophie

Supported by Centre 33 Amanda Cawthorne and Richard Cross

Creative Producer: Hilary Cox Condron

Film maker: Colin Stevens – Theatricx

Guest artists: Dan Donovan and Bel Greenwood

Evaluation Case Study: New Skills for New Ways of Working

Posted on by Alice Cramer

This case study is part of our project evaluation 2019/2020

In this case study we’re looking at the ways we responded to the pandemic as a team, how we reviewed and changed our ways of working. Unlike many arts organisations who had to close venues, the Creative People and Places national programme continued working with local communities throughout the lockdowns of 2020, but we had to approach things differently, change quickly and respond sensitively. This was a situation beyond all of our experience.  

The impact of Covid-19 and national lockdown restrictions on local communities, artists and organisations meant that new ways of working, supporting creative practitioners and communities was a priority.

This case study looks at the ways we changed our artist commission support and skills development and the difference this made from participant feedback.

Download the full New Skills for New Ways of Working case study here.

Read the full 2019/20 evaluation report here.

An excerpt from the case study:

Creative Conversations in Isolation Impact on Artists

The MarketPlace team amongst their CPP colleagues recognised a need to provide opportunities for local audiences to engage in creative and cultural opportunities during the first national lockdown. They also identified a need to be an integral part in supporting the local arts economy and freelance artists in a meaningful way for their communities whilst honouring their artistic ideas.

Marketplace developed the ‘Creative Conversation in Isolation‘ two-tiered commission. Artists were invited to submit ideas that could then be funded as an ‘Inkling’. These would be developed into a working project idea after an advice surgery session with the MarketPlace team.

This enabled artists to gain direct support and insight to make their ideas audience focused with their time being valued financially. Upon approval of their delivery plan submission, the project would be funded at the ‘Connect’ level to engage communities in the activity. 

Of the 19 projects commissioned this year, seven were commissioned directly at Connect level as their project plan was fully formed. Ten of the projects have moved from Inkling to Connect and two projects are still in the Inkling development phase.

Graphic showing participation and audience numbers. 
Arts Commissions: 19, Participants: 40, Training: 1

The commissioned artists reflected upon the impact of the commission on their current employment, stability and new ways of working. This commission, alongside a measuring digital impact training day enables the development of local capacity to grow at the same time as the audience appetite for this type of cultural content.

In this short video, Creative Agent Ali reflects on the Connect and Inkling projects commissioned by MarketPlace during lockdown.
In this short video, Creative Agent Colin reflects on the importance of creating during the pandemic in 2020.

Download the full New Skills for New Ways of Working case study here.

You can also read about our work and other Creative People and Places projects in the national programme’s case study ‘Working With Artists Through Lockdown’.

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