We’re delighted to introduce our first cohort of Creative Associates. This dynamic group of eight artists and practitioners join our team at a crucial stage in our story, as we begin to emerge from the pandemic and rebuild with a fresh new vision.
We’re firmly committed to putting artists at the heart of all that we do and to practising meaningful, resilient and democratic ways of working. Our Creative Associates will inform our vision and lead the conversation, while having the time and space to focus on developing their own practice.
In our call-out earlier this year we sought to find artists from across the creative industries, and we were delighted to receive an unprecedented number of applications of the highest quality, before shortlisting and selecting our group.
As an organisation we want to work in new ways with this first cohort. We’ll be getting to know them well over the next few weeks, so keep an eye on our social media and website for details.
Eight talented arts practitioners have joined Wales Millennium Centre as the first cohort in a long-term commitment to putting artists at the heart of the organisation’s work. Made possible by the Arts Council of Wales’ Cultural Recovery Fund, these roles are part of a new proposal for Wales Millennium Centre to build a new normal. It is, in part, a response to discussions that Wales Millennium Centre had with artists and freelancers throughout 2020 and the wider conversation happening across the sector about how we can build an arts sector that is fairer, more adventurous and inclusive.
Tafsila Khan, Tumi Williams, Jo Fong, Nerida Bradley, Ruslan Pilyarov, Ndidi John, Jaffrin Khan and Sita Thomas will join the organisation at a crucial stage in its story, as it emerges from the pandemic and rebuilds with a fresh new vision. Chosen from over two hundred and seventy applicants, the successful candidates come from a rich and eclectic mix of creative backgrounds from across the creative industries — from performance and music to storytelling and filmmaking.
‘This is a hugely exciting and important chapter for us — especially as it comes during a very challenging time for the arts sector,’ said Graeme Farrow, artistic director. ‘Artists and venues must do the often invisible and slow work together to develop, reimagine and change. I can’t wait to work with and learn from these eight amazing artists who are not just hired to produce work, but to be and become with us. They will have time and space to focus on their own practice and will inform our practice’.
This first cohort represents the beginning of a long-term commitment from the Centre, with a new group of associates announced every two years.