Social Mini: a Symposium Exploring Socially-Engaged Practice in the East
Socially-Engaged Art Practice in the East: Ports, Portals and New Possibilities
Thursday 6 November, Harvest House, Felixstowe
Initiated by Pier Projects, co-convened by Take a Part, in partnership with Fine Art at University of Suffolk and with support from Essex Cultural Diversity Project.
This symposium was supported using public funding by Arts Council England, East Suffolk District Council, Suffolk County Council and Felixstowe Town Council
This symposium brought together over sixty socially-engaged artists, arts practitioners, community members and representatives from local authority universities and interested stakeholders to map social arts practice in the region, share knowledge, ignite new conversations and foster new collaborations.
During the day, attendees;
Reflected on highs and lows of past projects - ‘tops’ and ‘pants’ of socially-engaged practice
Scoped the landscape of socially engaged practice in the East
Discussed strengths and sticky spots - current needs, challenges and opportunities of working in the East
Participated in a panel discussion focused on future needs and desires
Were part of knowledge exchange learning clusters led by locally-based practitioners / leaders/ researchers that explore themes such as creative health, place-making, community engagement, working with young people
Shared practice and built new relationships
Developed a Manifesto for creating positive change, based on shared ambitions
This is our Manifesto: A Collective Call to Action. We invite you to share this widely.
In a bid to 'leave well' by fostering new connections and building momentum in this area of practice, we are:
* Collecting feedback and hearing from attendees and partners to understand their experience and appetite for future work
* Collating maps of practice in the region to share with everyone who came, signposting people to another. This information will be shared with Norfolk and Suffolk Culture Board and kindly held by Suffolk ArtLink.
Visual Documentation by Leo Dodd.
Photography: Jacqueline Mellor
