Creative Workspaces Public Forum (online)
Thursday 12 November, 5-6.30PM
Online, via Zoom
Event overview: What does Birmingham need to ensure that artists can continue to find and sustain affordable, accessible and appropriate workspace across the city?
We will share emerging findings from Creative Workspaces: A Research Project & Action-led Report for Birmingham, exploring the current landscape of visual arts workspace across the city, the challenges and pressures facing artists and spaces, and opportunities to create a more sustainable and resilient creative workspace ecology.
A full event agenda, including breaks will follow.
Event aims: The aim is to develop a shared set if ‘How might we?’ questions to help identify potential solutions and recommendations. Together we will build a fuller picture of what is needed to support a more sustainable, affordable and accessible visual arts workspace ecosystem in Birmingham and begin to explore what different stakeholders can do to help make that possible.
Who is this event for? The forum is intended to bring a range of perspectives into the conversation. We particularly welcome:
- artists and workspace providers
- representatives from Birmingham City Council and West Midlands Combined Authority
- developers and property stakeholders/owners
- funders
- local councillors
- representatives from higher education, galleries and independent arts organisations
- anyone with an interest in Birmingham’s creative infrastructure.
- You do not need to have been involved in the research so far to take part.
Creative Workspace events: You can attend this forum alongside the Creative Workspace Providers Roundtable. The two events have different purposes: the public forums bring together a broad range of perspectives to explore the future of visual arts workspace in Birmingham, while the separate workspace provider roundtable will focus specifically on the current needs and experiences of existing workspace providers. Contact anne@dasharts.org if you would like to join the Creative Workspace Providers Roundtable.
About the research: Affordable, accessible and sustainable creative workspace is becoming increasingly difficult to find and maintain.
Creative Workspaces: A Research Project & Action-led Report for Birmingham is an 18-month project led by Contemporary Visual Arts Network West Midlands (CVAN WM) and hosted by DASH, examining the current landscape of creative workspace across the city and identifying practical actions to support its future.
The research brings together data, lived experience and sector knowledge to identify gaps, challenges and opportunities. Its findings will inform an action-led report, with recommendations intended to support future policy, investment, planning and provision, helping to protect existing spaces and support a more resilient creative infrastructure for Birmingham.
The project is supported by Arts Council England through public funding from the National Lottery, with additional support from Birmingham City Council and the West Midlands Combined Authority. Research is being delivered by Meaningfully Ltd (Ellen O’Hara and Deepa Naik).
Event access:
This event will take place via Zoom. Closed captions will be available throughout along with a running transcript.
Documentation:
The online session will be recorded (apart from breakout room content). The recording will be used by the project researchers and shared only with attendees and those who booked, but were unable to attend, ensuring they can still feed into the work.
Please contact Project Manager Anne Forgan at anne@dasharts.org with questions about the event or access requests.