Name: SHAPESLewisham Talks
Date: 2020
Location: Lewisham, London, UK
Client: SHAPESLewisham & Lewisham Council
Collaborators: Iris Athanasiadi, Nathalie Boobis, Shereener Browne, Cal Byrne, Hannah Cushion, Oggie Ekaragha, Laura Hepworth, Andrew Kerr, Rob Key, Kat Lopez, Levi LVTS, Kayleigh Marshall, Francesca Mcgourty, Yusuf Osman, Jason Page, Joost Pasman, Zoe Powell, Brenda Rattray, Alex Stone, Martina Trlik, Abbie Vickress.
Date: 2020
Location: Lewisham, London, UK
Client: SHAPESLewisham & Lewisham Council
Collaborators: Iris Athanasiadi, Nathalie Boobis, Shereener Browne, Cal Byrne, Hannah Cushion, Oggie Ekaragha, Laura Hepworth, Andrew Kerr, Rob Key, Kat Lopez, Levi LVTS, Kayleigh Marshall, Francesca Mcgourty, Yusuf Osman, Jason Page, Joost Pasman, Zoe Powell, Brenda Rattray, Alex Stone, Martina Trlik, Abbie Vickress.
SHAPESLewisham talks was a programme of conversations amongst the creative community of Lewisham devised in response to the coronavirus outbreak. In a series of conversations throughout April, creatives from Lewisham came together via video conferencing to explore the themes of uncertainty, restriction, resilience and reflection within creative practices.
The project evolved from my role as the ‘SHAPESLewisham Creative Enterprise Zone engagement coordinator’ and was conceived following more than a year of immersive engagement across the Borough. The conversations built upon a meaningful, pre-existing dialogue and aimed to continue to create and sustain supportive connections from within the creative community during a time of isolation and disconnect. The conversations were devised to explore the intersection of different creative disciplines and practices during the shared experience of the coronavirus outbreak.
Each conversation touched upon the nature of the programmed themes: resilience; uncertainty; restriction and reflection within creative practices, to explore what could be learnt through and from creative processes, about approaching and responding to the challenges we currently face. We heard from practitioners, projects and businesses in the fields of curation, photography, pattern cutting, conceptual art, music, leather design, choreography, architecture and many more. In each conversation, spontaneous and unexpected connections and collaborations were made as those traditionally separated by discipline are aligned in other ways, through their process, perspectives and experience of the coronavirus crisis.
I co-ordinated and facilitated the four conversations over a period of a month and since the project, members of the community have continued to arrange conversations amongst themselves, maintaining their connection and strengthening their bond.
The project evolved from my role as the ‘SHAPESLewisham Creative Enterprise Zone engagement coordinator’ and was conceived following more than a year of immersive engagement across the Borough. The conversations built upon a meaningful, pre-existing dialogue and aimed to continue to create and sustain supportive connections from within the creative community during a time of isolation and disconnect. The conversations were devised to explore the intersection of different creative disciplines and practices during the shared experience of the coronavirus outbreak.
Each conversation touched upon the nature of the programmed themes: resilience; uncertainty; restriction and reflection within creative practices, to explore what could be learnt through and from creative processes, about approaching and responding to the challenges we currently face. We heard from practitioners, projects and businesses in the fields of curation, photography, pattern cutting, conceptual art, music, leather design, choreography, architecture and many more. In each conversation, spontaneous and unexpected connections and collaborations were made as those traditionally separated by discipline are aligned in other ways, through their process, perspectives and experience of the coronavirus crisis.
I co-ordinated and facilitated the four conversations over a period of a month and since the project, members of the community have continued to arrange conversations amongst themselves, maintaining their connection and strengthening their bond.