BLACK BRITISH ARTIST GRANTS
ARTIST GRANTS/
ACADEMIC FUNDING/
COMMUNITY RESOURCES/
OUR CAUSE AND THINKING.
LAST UPDATED 25/09/2023
HOLISTIC DESIGN FOR CHANGE — ITS MEANING
We’ve been thinking quite a bit.
Structural and considered change blooms from awareness, thought, strategic planning, deployment and then reformation.
We’ll always support reactive and rapid pain relief, though our objective is for long-term structured, consistent development within the arts, and for holistic Black British and wider POC experience to improve.
A layer of this starts by celebrating, showcasing and integrating exceptional talents from low visibility pathways.
Future leaders and voices that have both potential and evident skill warranting institutional, academic and cultural visibility; kick-starting a reformation of how the arts, design and fashion industries operate and move forward.
Our community has been in constant thought; how to not distil a single moment as a success, how not to equate trauma response to surface level redemption, how to generate constant reverbs of consistent quantitative and qualitative progress, and how to induce collective optimism through exposure.
By ‘playing-field’ we mean the landscape formed by the British creative sector, inclusive of the fine arts, design and fashion industries.
Fundamentally, the vanguard of Britain’s soft-power, on a global stage, is missing far too many Black, POC, non-linear voices on both the front and back end of operations.
We’re missing perspectives, contributions and creativity that level beyond commercial virtue placements, score sheets and influencer fees.
We’re missing the propensity, nuance and panache that have formed, and exist within our nation’s melting pot.
Already a reality amongst the marginalised, barely visible - often invisible - communities that form Britain’s modern society, it seems implausible to not embed a layer of structure and coordination to begin changing this reality, step by step, year on year.
For this idea to become a reality, the operations must come from within Black & POC communities.
Objective:
Our primary objective is to bridge community to industry by forming a layer of trust and connection.
We believe in developing the creative landscape through talent recognition, academic integration, advocacy, institutional support, long-term partnerships, and long form dialogues with leadership institutions who recognise that optimised change comes through infrastructure and design thinking.
And so, we’ve decided to do something.
Holding our beliefs accountable and tangible.
Actions:
We intend to commit to the above programme across the long-term and foreseeable future.
This will take shape through grant awardances, community funding, design problem solving, resource donations, seed capital and academic integration.
Collaborative academic and institutional board to identifyand bring awareness to exceptional talent.
Future consultancy meetings and think-tanks.
Industry integration programmes.
Advisory Board:
Our grant programme partners and councils.
The Princes Foundation.
Royal College of Art - Dr Paul Thompson FRSA, Vice Chancellor.
The Design Museum - Tim Marlow OBE, Chief Executive & Director.
British Fashion Council - Caroline Rush CBE, Chief Executive & Director.
The University of Westminster - Professor Andrew Groves.
Dr Gus Casely-Hayford, OBE - Art Historian, Broadcaster and Director of V&A East.
Grace Wales Bonner MBE - Founder & Artistic Director of Wales Bonner - 2022 Guest Advisor.
Yi Ng - A-COLD-WALL* & SR_A SR_A Co-founder & Partner.
Dr Samuel Ross - A-COLD-WALL* & SR_A SR_A Founder.
HOLISTIC DESIGN FOR CHANGE — ITS MEANING
We’ve been thinking quite a bit.
Structural and considered change blooms from awareness, thought, strategic planning, deployment and then reformation.
We’ll always support reactive and rapid pain relief, though our objective is for long-term structured, consistent development within the arts, and for holistic Black British and wider POC experience to improve.
A layer of this starts by celebrating, showcasing and integrating exceptional talents from low visibility pathways.
Future leaders and voices that have both potential and evident skill warranting institutional, academic and cultural visibility; kick-starting a reformation of how the arts, design and fashion industries operate and move forward.
Our community has been in constant thought; how to not distil a single moment as a success, how not to equate trauma response to surface level redemption, how to generate constant reverbs of consistent quantitative and qualitative progress, and how to induce collective optimism through exposure.
By ‘playing-field’ we mean the landscape formed by the British creative sector, inclusive of the fine arts, design and fashion industries.
Fundamentally, the vanguard of Britain’s soft-power, on a global stage, is missing far too many Black, POC, non-linear voices on both the front and back end of operations.
We’re missing perspectives, contributions and creativity that level beyond commercial virtue placements, score sheets and influencer fees.
We’re missing the propensity, nuance and panache that have formed, and exist within our nation’s melting pot.
Already a reality amongst the marginalised, barely visible - often invisible - communities that form Britain’s modern society, it seems implausible to not embed a layer of structure and coordination to begin changing this reality, step by step, year on year.
For this idea to become a reality, the operations must come from within Black & POC communities.
