This case study is part of our project evaluation for 2019/2020
Writer Bel Greenwood was commissioned as part of our Creative Conversations in Isolation programme to bring together a group who were interested in creative writing with a landscape and environmental theme. Everyone had to get used to being on Zoom rather than meeting in person, but the group enjoyed getting to know each other and experimenting with their writing guided by Bel. People were finding new connections to their local environment and nature through lockdown, this group were no different, giving them lots to write about. They produced a blog to share their work and have continued to meet and write.
Recognising an increase in people’s connections to their local environment, this commission was a way to develop interest and community audiences connected to this theme.
Images reads “It’s about generating a sense of imaginative connection with the landscape – they have a very strong relationship with the landscape and I want them to generate a successful collection of work. I hope I’m building confidence in people in their own stories and starting them off on an adventure.” – Bel Greenwood, writer.
The group had mixed previous writing experience from academic papers and books to one creative writer. Their passion for the natural environment unified the group.
Each workshop consisted of a combination of surprising writing challenges and the opportunity to collaborate and share. As well as the experience of having a professional writer critique and support edits in work produced.
Key outcomes for the group were to improve their skills in writing creatively through their connection to the landscape. Also to support them to increase their confidence in sharing their work publicly.
Graphic showing participation and audience numbers. Facebook: 1191, Participants: 9, Twitter: 4417Pictured: A photo of a robin singing. Text on the image reads: “Dear Robin. If I’d only sat up and taken the time to smell the damp earth and appreciated the beauty of my garden instead of considering my work a trial to endure, things could have been different. By Jaqui Fairfax”.
This case study is part of our project evaluation for 2019/2020
We brought together a group of volunteers from communities in the local areas we work with. Known as the Creative Collective, they have worked with us over the last year to co-commission creative practitioners and plan arts activity in their towns and across the area. They got involved when we changed our programmes in response to Covid-19 helping us in decision-making for our micro-commission programme.
For one of the commissions, we wanted the group to have the chance to be participants too. They chose Mantelpiece by artist Michelle Brace. The project explored our connections with objects and their personal significance through recordings of each person telling the story of their object. Michelle encouraged the group to consider the meaning and memories behind their chosen objects and they worked together to learn and share digital skills needed for their recordings.
The Creative Collective directly builds on work developed in Phase 1 to give opportunities for local voice to feed into MarketPlace programming. The group had newly formed at the end of Phase 2 Year 1 and had begun joint planning a new programme of activity to roll out across the seven towns.
This year the Creative Collective has been integral in the commissioning process, user testing potential roll-out projects and matching artist ideas with relevant communities. The MarketPlace team identified a commission with the potential for cross-generational roll out across the towns. In discussion with the Creative Collective, they selected the commission as one they would participate in themselves.
Mantelpiece
Mantelpiece is a project in which groups share stories associated with objects to create a collective digital portrait of who they are to accompany their oral stories.
It has a very clear simple structure – set a group a brief to choose an object in their home and to share why it’s important, what it says about who you are, and a memory associated with it. In the sharing of the story, it gets recorded. Each object is photographed and composited into a group shot around mantelpiece, a place known for showing prized possessions.
Pictured: Left: The final image of the groups items in pride of place on the mantelpiece. Right: Screenshot of the audio files of the group telling the stories behind their chosen object.
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.
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
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.
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.
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
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.
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.
This case study is part of our project evaluation for 2019/2020.
Art in the Fens with artist Kaitlin Ferguson was one of the first Creative Conversations in Isolation commissions. With Kaitlin, we trialled new ways to use digital creative activity to encourage connection with the green spaces on our doorsteps.
We’ve worked with Kaitlin before on the Brandon Tales and Trails event so this was an opportunity to respond to the changes we all faced in the pandemic through different creative activity. People were finding connections or reconnecting with nature on their daily walks during lockdown and Kaitlin’s project showed simple art projects and interesting techniques to make a creative response to the Fenland landscape.
Kaitlin was commissioned to deliver four online ‘make along’ tutorials to be shared through IGTV on Instagram and promoted through new environmental partner networks that align with current strategic activity in Fenland.
The videos were shared through our social media channels over four weeks. The launch of the project coincided with ‘Celebrate the Fens‘ Day on 20th June 2020, which was hosted by @FascinatingFens.
Pictured above: Two screenshots of Kaitlin’s video workshops – On the left, drawing plant materials from observation, and on the right using felt to create a textural representation of the soft strata of the Fenland landscape.
This case study is part of our project evaluation for 2019/2020.
In this case study we’re looking at the Young Producers Programme developed in partnership with 20Twenty Productions C.I.C. 20Twenty use creativity and participation to build essential life skills in young people and provide mentoring and career opportunities for them within the creative sector.
Through this project, 20Twenty supported two young artists to develop skills as creative producers through co-designed activities for and with young people.
The Young Producer Programme has been established to build the skills of young artists into audience focussed art producers, whilst increasing the relevance of cultural opportunities for young people, particularly those based within March. 20Twenty Productions supported two young producers to develop and deliver programmes of activity whilst working towards the Gold Arts Award.
Right: Image from the Tagged & Filtered project [Description: A young girls photo is obscured by writing of negative words like “ugly” and “loner” across the image.] Left: Logo from the Viral project [Description: An image of a virus cell with the word “VIRAL” across a background of blue social media icons.]
Tagged and Filtered
Young producer Nicola Baxter was commissioned to develop her ongoing artistic themes into a co-produced series of workshops across Easter half term with a group of young people identifying as female. Tagged and Filtered was a series of workshops developing photography skills through the exploration of identity, selfies, online safety and engagement to inform a new interactive digital exhibition. This mentoring project was to develop Nicola’s work further through an audience focussed approach.
Young Producer Libby Ward was the second commission in this partnership. Libby has a BTEC in performing arts and had been a performer with the Connexions youth group in March. Libby’s proposal was a theatre in education offer exploring mental health issues in local schools. This project plan changed in response to the pandemic and through inspiration from a shift to digital productions.
![Right: Image from Tagged & Filtered project [Description: A young girls photo is obscured by writing of negative words like "ugly" and "loner" are scralled across the image.] Left: Logo from Viral project [Description: An image of a virus cell with the word "VIRAL" across a background of blue social media icons.]](https://www.cppmarketplace.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Case-Study_YPP-Viral-Tagged_Infographic.jpg)
