CLOSED: Peer-to-Peer 2023/4 Open Call

Metroland Culture’s signature artist development programme for creatives who live, work or learn in Brent.

Full information about the Peer-to-Peer Open Call for artists 2023/4. You are welcome to read the info below, or download the application pack.

What is Peer-to-Peer?

Peer-to-Peer (P2P) is an artist development programme led by Metroland Cultures. We offer studio time and a bursary, and you will be supported by taking part in a focussed peer-learning programme.

This opportunity is for artists and creative thinkers with a connection to Brent and who work with communities.

P2P enables artists. It provides resources to those working with questions of people, time, and place. We hope that artists on this programme will build confidence in developing and realising ideas. Also, that over the course of the programme they develop kinship systems and feel empowered.

Participation in the supported peer-learning sessions is central to the programme. The programme is designed to generate critical discussion, exchange and practice around co-operative behaviours, interdependence, and grassroots inclusion.

We will use coaching as a tool to underpin our time together. We will spend time with leading practitioners in the field to unpack and further our collective and individual understanding of:

What it means to be working collaboratively with communities

How to form a deeper understanding of social practice and engagement

Ways to imagine new forms of collective living and working and how to introduce them to groups

The offer

Selected artists will receive:

A £1500 bursary, allocated to each artist. To be used as non-restricted funds.
Pastoral support and access support.
Opportunities for networking and exchange with wider MC community and staff.
Embodied workshops / sessions.
A reflection session / roundtable discussion in the onsite gallery.
Curatorial support in realising a group project.
Visibility through profiling on MC channels (website, social media).
A free studio residency at MC. (Note: This is a time limited contract of up to one year from beginning of March 2024. The studio spaces are subject to sharing. Further conditions apply.)

How does Peer-to-Peer work?

There will be 10 day-long sessions. They will take place every other week from Feb – April 2024, with a break at half-term. The days will run from 10am to 3pm with 1 hour for lunch.

Peer-to-Peer sessions will be facilitated in multiple ways, including:

artist and curatorial workshops
in-depth seminars
mentoring
round-table discussions
active listening sessions
peer learning situations

Sessions will be held in important community gathering spaces. We will practice what we learn. There will be moments of sharing throughout. We will work towards a public event to culminate the programme and showcase critical discourse.

Peer-to-Peer acknowledges the challenging circumstances artists in Brent face. It provides financial support, visibility and physical space to think and make. It also offers participants the opportunity to become part of the wider creative ecology of Metroland Cultures.

The free studio residency (up to 1 year), is available to participants who wish to take the opportunity up.

It is important that artists commit to using their space and being part of the studio community. This can be balanced around other commitments such as work or caring responsibilities. This includes the opportunity to use the on-site gallery to show your work.

Practical info

Artist criteria

Do you have a demonstrable connection to Brent?
Are you facing barriers to furthering your creative development?
Do you feel underrepresented the UK arts sector?
Are you keen to be part of a mutually supportive peer group?
Do you have a creative practice that facilitates engagement with community? Or which centres a people-led approach?
Are you interested in engaging with the creative ecology of Metroland Cultures and the borough of Brent?
Have you reached a stage in your career where you would value support in networking, collaboration and peer connections?

What do we mean by ‘artist’ or ‘practitioner’?

*Our definition of ‘practitioner’ is expansive. It includes artists working in different formats, disciplines and methodologies. For example, painters, sculptors, filmmakers, photographers, performance artists, artists working in installation, sound, textiles, ceramics, conceptual artists and digital artists. It also includes curators, thinkers, researchers, writers, and those working creatively in community contexts; such as museums, galleries, public space, online.

If your work/ practice/ play isn’t listed here – are you interested in creating projects with a visual aspect which could be shared with people in a space or online? If the answer is yes, and you have some examples of this kind of work that you could show us, then please do apply. If you are unsure if your practice qualifies, please get in touch to discuss further.

Accessibility and support

We encourage applications from people who have faced barriers to professional development/ are under-represented in the UK arts sector. This includes those who identify as D/deaf, disabled, neurodivergent and LGBTQIA+. Also, those with limited financial means, low or precarious incomes, and those who experience racism.

For anyone facing barriers to their practice and/or participation in the programme, every effort will be made to enable meaningful participation. This includes pastoral support. There is also a dedicated access fund which will cover specific access needs for selected artists. Access support can cover, but is not limited to: BSL interpretation, live captioning, assistive technology, additional travel/accessible travel, and support with care responsibilities.

The small print

Only apply if you meet these essential criteria. If you are unsure, get in touch.

Participants must have a connection to Brent. This means being from Brent (born or raised for a period of time), currently living in the area, or having a practice or research based in the borough.
Participants must be 18+. There is no upper age limit.
Participants must have a creative practice that can be evidenced by three to five examples of work in any format. We welcome images, video, text, audio, or other digitally shareable formats. These examples can be works in progress.
Participants must have an interest and willingness to be part of a mutually-supportive group, sharing their practice and ideas with others. Also to engage in the creative ecology of Metroland Cultures and the borough of Brent.
Participants must be able to commit to the time required from Feb – April. More info on specific dates will be released as soon as we can.

Peer-to-Peer selection process

All applications will be reviewed in December by a representative panel, including previous Peer-to-Peer artists. The panel will mark each application question from one to five, with reference to the criteria. They will give each applicant a score in order to produce a shortlist. This will be used to make the final selection, by consensus.

How to apply

To apply for the role, please send the following material via a single PDF file to team@metrolandcultures.com. Use the subject line ‘Peer-to-Peer’. Please also attach the Equal Opportunities form.

The PDF should include:

Your name and contact details

Three to five examples of work in any format (images, video, text, audio, or another format digitally shareable with us) – gathered together in a single PDF file. This can also be shared via a link to Google drive.

Answers to the following (in writing or as a single video/audio recording, up to ten minutes):

Tell us how you are connected to Brent (50-100 words)
Briefly tell us about your practice. What do you create or do? How and why do you do it? (150-300 words) How do your interests relate to the ideas mentioned in the programme content?
Please tell us about any challenges or barriers to developing your practice that you are facing. What do you need in order to develop your practice? (150-300 words)
Tell us why you are interested in participating in a mutually supportive cohort of Brent artists. How would you benefit from being part of a collective of artists developing practices together? (150-300 words)

The deadline for applications is:

Tuesday 28^th November 2023, 23:59 GMT

Another format?

If you would like this information in another format (large print / different colours / audio format) please contact marketing@metrolandcultures.com.

Questions?

To discuss the opportunity further, or for any access queries, please email team@metrolandcultures.com.

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