From Passion to Profession: My Journey into the Arts

1. Can you tell us a bit about your journey to becoming the Artist Lead for Artist Together? What inspired you to take on this role?

A cohort of artists had been working alongside Mark Storor as part of Artists Together and their planned final project, an exciting collaborative exhibition in April 2020, was understandably cancelled due to lockdowns. I was invited to take on the role of lead artist for Artists Together in November 2020 and we began to meet online and plan activities and programmes that would support the existing artists who were involved and to build connections with other artists.

I've been part of a peer network of artists in St Helens since 2011. I was part of a group of artists who formed Platform Art St Helens who established artist studios, organised exhibitions, workshops and different ways for artists to work together. I'm a big believer in artists working together to make things happen and in creating opportunities outside of big cities for artists who live in towns like St Helens to develop their work. Being the lead for Artists Together was a development of this work with the support of Arts in Libraries behind it.


2. As Artist Lead, how do you support artists in their creative journeys? Can you share some specific initiatives or programmes you've implemented?

Sometimes a creative practice can be a lonely activity - you've got an idea, maybe you go and make it, but if you're outside of a formal method of sharing and creating your work like an organised group, a degree or college course, it can feel like no one wants to see your work or to help you to share it with an audience. Lots of the work of Artists Together is exactly its description - bringing artists together with each other and with people in arts and community organisations so that they have the support to make the work they want to make.

The Reside* programme that we ran during 2023 had a whole range of activities to do this - a day working with Short Supply to share and develop small ideas into bigger ones, portfolio reviews with staff from arts organisations across the North West region, creative workshops led by artists from the cohort to enable them to develop their practice and be supported financially by it, and a group exhibition and publication of a map that documents the work 65 of the artists within St Helens. These initiatives have developed into the activities that we're running during 2024/25; Conversations about..., Collaborate, 1-2-1 support sessions and the Seasonal Socials.


3. What do you find most rewarding about working with artists in this capacity? Are there any success stories that stand out to you?

I love meeting other artists, hearing about what they are making and why that is important to them. I love seeing an artist's confidence develop as they build connections with others. And it's so great to hear about a project when it's a germinating idea and then see it come to life.

Christine Alexandra Beckett took part in a 1-2-1 support session with Open Eye Gallery in 2023 and from that meeting Christine decided to begin releasing collections of her photographs in publications that she is distributing around independent bookshops and retailers. The first, Drag Kings of Manchester, also led to an exhibition of the photographs alongside Chester University, and copies of that book and Pride in the North West can both be found on the shelves of St Helens Libraries. I think this is a great example of an artist making the work they want to make, and through being connected to other artists and organisations and really following an opportunity are then able to get that work in front of an audience.
 

4. You also recently had the role as a Creative Producer for the Arts In Libraries Carnival of Creativity, how did you come to take on this position? What drew you to this project?

As someone who works freelance in the arts I've been involved in putting on lots of events, exhibitions, artist residencies and community events in St Helens and beyond. The Carnival of Creativity was a great event that brought together and celebrated the creativity of artists and community groups in St Helens alongside fabulous artists from across the country. I really believe that we should make the most of all the opportunities we have to see and share people's creativity. The Arts in Libraries team had a great plan outlined for the Carnival and I applied for the role as I felt it would be a challenge to bring all those different activities together into one fun filled day using the skills in arts production that I've developed over the 20 years I've been working in the arts.

Although I'm creative and make work as an artist I think part of my brain works in quite a logical way - you know how sometimes you get to the end of a jigsaw puzzle and you just need to try every piece until one fits and it's really satisfying when it does - I find that the arts production roles that I take on give me that experience. For the Carnival we had many different events, artists and activities and I think the bit I found most satisfying was putting all of those into the different spaces, venues and times across the day so that the audiences and the artists could have the best experience of the Carnival possible.

5. Every role comes with its challenges. What challenges have you faced in your positions, and how have you overcome them?

I've worked freelance in the arts for over 20 years and there's always the concern about where the next bit of paid work or funding for a project is coming from. I've been really privileged to be able to continue working like this, but there are always periods of time when you get a load of "no"'s. During 2023/24 I applied for and was turned down three times for some major project funding that would enable me to develop different parts of my creative practice. I know how hard it is to get support to make work, and sometimes I have to try and find other ways of making the work happen - I try to combine it with my work as an artist in education and with smaller pots of funding or small commissions with arts organisations.

Sometimes it's hard to find the right space to put your artwork into - I've had challenges where work can't go into a venue for political reasons, finding suitable temporary space to make bigger works for exhibitions and finding affordable studio space. I think this is where the people that you're connected to, other artists and organisations, the community you live and work in and the support from family help you to find a way to keep making work, keep knocking on doors and keep telling people what you want to do.


6. What advice would you give to emerging artists or those looking to get involved in creative production?

I wonder if sometimes you just have to get on and do things that nobody has asked you to do. I think that opportunities often happen because you've been doing a thing anyway and somebody notices that you can help them with their thing. And that leads to something new - lots of my funded or commissioned projects have started out as an idea that I write down in a notebook, or a drawing that works a bit like a model for a larger installation. Find the people who will spur you on to make a windbreak out of paper and then film you while you sit inside it drawing in the middle of Church Street in Liverpool (this is one of the first things I made in 2004 just out of university). They can also be the people who will help you load up a car, or paint the walls in an empty shop and deliver postcards to promote an exhibition you've put on and those experiences of making an event happen out of a good idea and lots of good will have definitely shaped my ability to work as a Creative Producer.

We've had some great events during the Autumn for Artists Together, with more events like that happening in the first three months of 2025. The aim for the Carnival of Creativity is for it to happen again in 2026, so I look forward to seeing how the Arts in Libraries team develops that.

In early 2025 I'm also going to be delivering some activity alongside Gee Collins for St Helens Arts Service that will research the needs of artists in St Helens in terms of equipment, resources and studios as well as putting on some events and exhibitions and this will definitely continue some of the possibilities that have come from my previous work in St Helens.


8. Finally, how do you stay inspired and maintain your own creativity amidst your busy schedule? Any tips for fellow creatives?

It's hard, sometimes it does feel that projects and ideas sit on a shelf or in a notebook and it's hard to get them to where you need to. Or at other times that you're all out of ideas. I find a few things useful when this happens - trying to make small bits of progress, just showing up and making something, putting the time in my diary when I've promised myself I'll create something (this works a bit like a gym membership, I do it regularly for a bit, but then find I get out of the habit).

One of the ongoing things that I've found works for me is being part of a collective of artists. I was part of Markmakers in Halton from just before I graduated until after I had my second child, collaborated with friends from my degree course on exhibitions and projects and was part of a collective in Liverpool who organised international exchanges with Capital of Culture cities. The responsibility that comes from working with others and the energy that exists there is really useful to keep you moving an idea along. I've currently got the same by being part of (m)other collective, a group of artist mothers and we're slowly but determinedly working on an outdoor exhibition to take place in Spring 2025 where I hope to create an installation based on my 'Finding Solitude' series of drawings which were begun on a woodland residency we took part in in 2023.