Member Article

Coventry UK City of Culture updates on legacy activity

Coventry UK City of Culture Trust has announced its first creative commissions that form part of the legacy that build on the successful programmes delivered during the year of celebrations.

They include a new programme that responds to the cost-of-living crisis that will bring together more than 650 people in warm spaces to engage in creative activities from sewing to visual art, a new commission with young people in the city and a programme that brings creative activity to Coventry’s parks and green spaces.

Since entering its legacy phase in June 2022, the Trust has continued its exciting programme of activity into the summer at Assembly Festival Garden and supported a variety of events including Generate Festival, Theatre Next Door, the Ukrainian Solidarity Festival and Rewards for Tribe. The Trust continues to operate the UK’s first permanent digital art gallery, The Reel Store, which has already welcomed over 27,000 visitors.

The Trust has also been meeting with cultural and voluntary organisations, anchor institutions, artists, communities, and young people to collaboratively develop a Commissioning Model that supports the creation of new arts and culture projects that contribute to a better, greener, fairer future for Coventry.

The commissions will range from capacity building opportunities for local community organisations and creatives, developing and upskilling young people and artists, and strengthening strategic collaborations; to large-scale spectacles that create collective joy, demonstrating the role of arts and culture in finding solutions to tackle the climate crisis. The legacy ambition is that the resulting partnerships and creative innovation can continue beyond the existence of the Trust.

The first commission is Cosy Creative which has been developed in response to the cost-of-living crisis. The project will build on established relationships with faith based and community spaces as well as cultural organisations to run sustainable and creative activities throughout January 2023. Providing a warm space to create and connect, the sessions aim to engage over 650 people in creative activity ranging from upcycling and sewing to visual art and craft.

With Central Methodist Hall as lead partner and the main creative hub, artists and makers will take up residencies in venues both there and across the city to deliver four weeks of creative activity focusing on sustainable art making and upskilling. The sessions will offer invited groups and visiting participants the opportunity to also connect with rights and advice-based organisations in the city such as Feeding Coventry, Grapevine and Central England Law Centre in an informal, friendly and creative environment.

Learning from Coventry UK City of Culture activity to date, the commission involves a new partnership with Clothing Coventry, which will build on its targeted clothing distribution services and introduce new upcycling workshops. This develops the work from the Haus Of Kraft project which ran throughout the City of Culture year and focused on intergenerational skills sharing and the re-design of old clothes into wearable art pieces.

Cosy Creative demonstrates several of the key outcomes of the new legacy commissioning model, nurturing and growing the cultural sector, supporting new partnerships and collaborations, introducing the city’s pathways to sustainability in a creative way and commissioning high quality creative activity.

This commission has been supported by funding from Spirit of 2012 and Paul Hamlyn Foundation. Opportunities for artists and makers to deliver Cosy Creative sessions will be announced in the coming weeks.

The second commission to be announced is the Youth Advisory Leadership Programme. This is the first of several commissions led by Positive Youth Foundation (PYF) on behalf of Coventry Youth Partnership and Coventry City of Culture Trust that will give young people the space to collaborate and build positive social change through creative community engagement.

The programme will engage up to 15 young people in creative learning and youth-led campaign activity that explores the climate crisis and the role that arts and culture have in finding solutions. Positive Youth Foundation and the Trust will commission a local organisation to lead and deliver this programme.

This commission, developed in collaboration with Coventry Youth Partnership’s Creative Subgroup has been supported by Arts Council England on behalf of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

The full programme will run until Autumn 2023 and engage more than 200 young people across Coventry, as well as welcoming over 1,000 people to events as audience members.

Several of the commissions within this programme will be in collaboration with Coventry City Council’s Go Parks project, bringing creative activity to parks and green spaces across the city during spring and summer next year.

The Trust has committed £200,000 to support the Youth Commissions programme, supported by Arts Council England on behalf of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committed to developing and sustaining the successful international programmes delivered during the UK City of Culture year, the Trust has been awarded £98,000 by the British Council to support international collaborations as part of their commissioning activity.

As a direct result of work with the British Council to date, the Trust has connected with artists and partners from 41 countries, over 400 new international connections have been made by local artists and 45 young people from across the globe have developed new skills and collaborated internationally.

Given the environmental impact of international travel, collaboration will take place online and explore how new forms of digital technology can continue to evolve international partnerships. Further details of commissions will be announced in the coming weeks. The Trust will continue to announce commissioning opportunities over the next 12 months, with the next round launching later this year. Anyone interested in finding out more is encouraged to sign up to the Trust’s newsletter and follow its social media channels to be the first to hear about the plans and ways to get involved.

The commissioning team will also be holding monthly Commissioners in the Café events to support artists and organisations to develop their project ideas. Details of these sessions can be found on the Coventry UK City of Culture website. Josie Bamford, Commissioning Director of Coventry UK City of Culture, said: “We are delighted to announce the first commissions of our legacy period, building on the projects and learnings which took place during Coventry UK City of Culture. We’re grateful for the commitment and investment of our partners which enables us to continue to support the city’s exceptional artists and organisations to build a better, greener future.”

Ruth Hollis, CEO, Spirit of 2012, said:
“Cosy Creative is the latest in a long line of outstanding projects delivered by Coventry City of Culture Trust, which includes the Reform the Norm, the Story of Us, Little Amal, Cardboard Citizens and the Ruff Tuff Community Choir. We’re proud to have awarded the Trust with a grant to ensure the legacy of their City of Culture year because we know the positive impact which inclusive cultural projects like these can have in communities like Coventry and wish to see it continue sustainably for years to come.”

Peter Knott, Area Director for Arts Council England, said: “Opportunities for young people to take part in the arts are key to developing the next generation of creative talent, and we’re pleased to be supporting Coventry Youth Partnership Creative Commissions.

“City of Culture demonstrated how creativity can transform places and make people and communities happier. We look forward to seeing the commissions build on this legacy and bring together more young people across the city.” Rashid Bhayat, Chief Executive of Positive Youth Foundation, said: “Our engagement with the Trust during the bidding process always had one eye on the future and how, if we won, being UK City of Culture would leave a lasting and meaningful legacy for young people and youth work organisations in our city. This continued partnership and new funding to support projects is a great example of this.”

Councillor Kamran Caan, Cabinet Member for public health and sport at Coventry City Council, said: “We’re delighted to work in partnership with the City of Culture Trust throughout its legacy period to deliver our Sport England funded Commonwealth Active Communities programme, with the aim of encouraging more people to be active in our parks and open spaces.

“Partners from across the city came together this year to deliver a brilliant Go Parks programme for hundreds of young people to be more physically active. The opportunity to connect next year’s Go Parks programme with cultural activity will enhance the offer for our local partners and young people to enjoy.”

James Hampson, Director UK & External Relations, British Council said: “We think international collaboration through arts and culture creates great connections for the UK. Coventry has put its arms around the world, building global relationships and collaboration which will ensure a strong long-term legacy for the city, its creatives and citizens.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Matt Joyce .