Millfield Creative Residency
The project
In brief: Peterborough Presents is looking for a Lead Artist/Creative (individual or company) to work with people in Millfield & Gladstone, Peterborough, undertaking a year-long residency, culminating in a high-quality output. The project will begin in July/Aug 2024 and culminate by October 2025.
The commission is open to all artforms, and we have no set outcomes of what is created. It could be a mural, sculpture, performance, celebration day, trail, or anything in-between.
Deadline: 9 June 2024
An overview of the commission is offered below but please do access the full artists brief for all of the details. This is available as a word document or audio files. Please scroll down to find the relevant download buttons.
Some background information
Millfield is a vibrant, diverse part of the city in which over 120 languages are spoken. It is often peoples’ first home when they arrive in the city. There are 2 primary schools, many play parks and green spaces, many community centres, and on Lincoln Road you can buy food and items from all over the world, all on one street.
Peterborough Presents have been working in Millfield since 2017. In that time, we have created and restored murals, held exhibitions, audio tours, film making clubs, carnival performances, and supported loads more.
For the last five years we have run Millfield Festival. It was a small-scale, family-friendly festival, which welcomed 3000 people every year to make, play, and watch amateur and professional creativity. This year we are pausing Millfield Festival to instead explore how a residency can offer more opportunities for people to participate in creative activity throughout the year.
The overall aim for this commission is to co-create something or a series of things with our many wonderful community partners and residents in the Millfield & Gladstone area.
In February 2024 we held a dinner with our friends in the area to find out about what they want the aims of this project to be. They told us that they are interested in:
– Something intergenerational that adults and kids can do together (perhaps with a focus on traditions and cultural heritage)
– Celebrate or educate on people’s cultural and ethnic identity
– Different communities / backgrounds coming together and feeling connected to each other
– To build a positive reputation of the neighbourhood
– Something that allows for drop-in or pop-up engagement for people who have busy lives
The job role (creative brief)
This commission is open: there are no set outcomes or artforms and the timeline is flexible. You can apply with a specific idea, theme, or area of focus if you want to, or you can apply without a set outcome in mind. The most important thing is that you show how the community will develop your idea and shape the residency with you.
The Lead Creative will spend time in the neighbourhood engaging with local people along the way, to create something or a series of things that contribute to the cultural offer of the area. Our community partners want something that allows different generations and cultures to come together and learn about each other’s traditions through creativity.
A community panel made up of local people will choose which projects happen and support the overall delivery of the events. The Lead Creative will be responsible for the creative vision and content of the project, working with the communities across Millfield & Gladstone to co-create the work.
Artists’ requirements:
– To work with the Peterborough Presents team and members of the community to further develop your ideas.
– To create and deliver creative accessible activity that allows local people to create or shape the final event / artworks.
– To work closely with the Peterborough Presents team to identify the locations and logistics for the final output.
– To work alongside the Peterborough Presents team to produce and deliver the final outputs. This includes identifying different ways that the community can get involved in its delivery.
– To ensure that the project is delivered in line with our safeguarding and health and safety policies.
– To work with Peterborough Presents Access Coordinator to make sure the event is accessible to everyone especially those who are disabled, Deaf and/or neurodivergent.
Our artist briefs below are hosted on a google drive. When you click on the buttons to access the brief, you can download them by clicking “File” on the top left on the screen, and clicking download.
Selection Criteria
Who we are looking for:
– Artists or Creatives who specialise in building relationships with people through their work
– Artists or Creatives with at least 5 years’ experience of working with communities
– Artists or Creatives with experience of producing work for a variety of audiences
– Artists or Creatives who are confident to be on the ground meeting people and running activity
– Artists or Creatives with some experience of Project Management / Creative Producing
– We particularly welcome applications from artists who have a personal connection to the area / region.
– Artists or Creatives who are passionate about helping people to tell their stories or express opinions.
– Artists or Creatives with experience of delivering high quality engagement as well as high quality artistic outputs.
Peterborough Presents is committed to championing diversity in all its forms, particularly those who are underrepresented in the arts. We welcome the unique contributions that artists from all walks of life can bring in terms of their education, culture, ethnicity, race, sex, gender identity and expression, nation of origin, age, languages spoken, religion, disability, sexual orientation, pregnancy status, and personal beliefs and opinions.
Payment
Artists payment and expenses:
£8000 payable in monthly instalments
– An expenses budget (including travel and accommodation) of up to £1500
Production costs:
An engagement budget of up to £4000: this must include any workshops or engagement activity that helps shape or influence the final output
A production budget of up to £5000: this is for the production and/or installation of the final piece(s)
– Peterborough Presents will make any purchases outright where possible, rather than expecting the artist to front the costs, as well as supporting the expenditure budgeting
Notes:
– We are open to the budget being divided up differently but this is the total budget available.
– We anticipate that Lead Artists/Creatives will spend approx. 40-50 days working on the project over 12 months.
– Fees are inclusive of any costs associated with creating the work.
– We have a separate budget for marketing and access support for audience / participants.
– Artists must have their own Public Liability Insurance and be registered as self-employed.
– Artists must also be available to take part in reflective and evaluative discussions about their work, during and at the end of the project.
Timescale
Closing Date for Applications: Sunday 9 June 2024
Artists Selected: by the week of 17 June, notified by end of June
Project runs July 2024 – October 2025
Launch: July / August 2024
Evaluation: Interim evaluation in March 2025, final evaluation in October / November 2025
The following dates are also opportunities for the Lead Creative to engage with local communities as part of the residency:
– Millfield Makers (craft event and family fun day): Saturday 24 August 2024
– Millfield Creative Activity Fund (local events funded by PP): ongoing throughout 2024
– Platforma (regional gathering / conference by Counterpoint Arts, focus on refugee and asylum seekers): October 2025
Many national independence days and religious/cultural festivals and celebrations are also held throughout the year such as Diwali, Lithuanian Independence Day, Durga Puja, Refugee Week, Black History Month, International Roma Day, and Eid.
How To Apply
Please submit:
– A CV or biography
– 3 – 4 examples of your work
– Answer the questions below
– Complete a quick demographics survey (see link below)
We will accept applications using the following formats:
– A written application (e.g. word document or pdf)
– An audio application in mp3 or wav format
– A video application in mp4 format
Applications should be sent to: peterboroughpresents@neneparktrust.org.uk
The deadline for applications is Sunday 9 June 2024.
If you have any questions or would like to know more about this programme, please call/text us and we will arrange a chat.
Contact: Charley on 07435 985935 / charley.genever@neneparktrust.org.uk
Questions to answer in your application:
- Tell us about your recent experience as an artist. This can include any professional experience or paid work. (500 words or 5 minutes maximum)
- Tell us about a time where you have worked directly with communities to inform the work you were making. (300 words or 3 minutes max)
- Tell us about any initial ideas you have had and how you will approach this commission. (500 words or 5 minutes maximum)
- Why do you want to work on this young peoples project in Westwood / Ravensthorpe? (500 words or 5 minutes maximum)
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- Please send us 3 – 4 examples of your work & links to websites/social media