Throughout university I have encountered a mixture of practice based learning and critical analysis/research based learning. My experience with both of these forms of learning has allowed me to discover many artists, theorists, researchers and organisations that have influenced and developed the notion of the arts as social tool.
In relation to community arts specifically, as my experience has been practice based, I have discovered and researched practical organisations such as:
People Dancing:
https://www.communitydance.org.uk/
People Dancing is an organisation that specialises in creating opportunities for people to participate in dance. Through research into this organisation I have discovered that their aims and my work share the same ethos: a “firm belief that everyone has the right to dance” (People Dancing).
arts4dementia:
https://arts4dementia.org.uk/
Arts4dementia is an website in which art opportunities for people living with dementia across the nation are shared. Having being successful in giving Moving Minds a feature on this forum, I aim to have my own project’s advertised as a feature on this platform in the future.
One Dance UK:
https://www.danceinhealthandwellbeing.uk/
One Dance UK is an organisation that offers support for people working in the dance industry. I aim to connect with One Dance UK as a member and help them to achieve their aim of “securing dance’s prominence in the cultural landscape of the future” (One Dance UK).
It has been useful to research different organisations, such as the ones listed above, to gain a deeper understanding on how to market myself as an artist. Also, to recognise what work is already happening out there in the community, and to spot any gaps in this market and where I could potentially place myself. Finally, this research has allowed me to discover the techniques these companies have used to become successful and incorporate their learning and tips into setting up on my own.
Bibliography:
- People Dancing. ‘About Us’ Accessed 08/04/2020 https://www.communitydance.org.uk/about-people-dancing]
- One Dance UK. ‘About Us’ Accessed 08/04/2020 https://www.onedanceuk.org/about-us/]
Moving Minds
2017-2020
Moving Minds is a community arts project held at York St John University. The project invites people living with dementia and their friends and family into the dance studio for a creative movement session.
When I first came to university, I didn’t know what career path I wanted to take. I came to study something I loved in hope that it would springboard me forwards towards a career path I had not yet located. Moving Minds was this springboard.
I volunteered as a co facilitator for the project in my first year of university in hope to gain some volunteering experience that linked to my degree.
I then applied for the Moving Minds internship in my final year as I was very interested in broadening my knowledge in community arts and dementia care. Having by this point already having had 2+ years experience volunteering for the project, I wanted this new opportunity to deepen my engagement and investment in the project.
Due to my familiarity with the project, participants and facilitators already, I felt supported from the onset as I began my internship. I really cared, and still do, about the development and the success of the project and to say I was part of making that success possible has been extremely rewarding.
The internship consisted of mostly marketing and promotion. It was my role, alongside the Student Researcher, to produce promotional material and post this material to relevant organisations. I also had to contact as many local organisations, charities and other communities who may be interested in either joining the project, or helping us to promote it. With this marketing came taster sessions, in which it was my role to arrange and facilitate these tasters session to other community groups in York.
Being able to experience the project from both the physical sessions and the administrations has been really helpful in solidifying my knowledge and experience of a community arts project.
I have gained a greater insight into what components make up running and developing a community project and have learnt about how to net-work projects efficiently. I have also gained experience in logging and collecting data for a project and have had responsibility for the development of the project with promotions and increasing participant numbers.
Upon completion of the internship, I can say that the development and success of the Project has happened with the help of my hard work and care towards Moving Minds.
