‘The terms of creative activity have shifted so significantly, that we are accepting of the artist acting as their own publicist, running workshops in schools, building their own websites, and organising events aimed at local, national and international audiences. During an era of advanced and accessible technology and a DIY culture, methods for artist and non-artist exchange are snowballing.’                          - Nato Thompson, Head Curator at Creative Time


When I found the video that contains this quote a few months ago, it was a real relief. I must’ve watched it fifteen times. I was at a stage of struggling to place my work in a wider context, find others doing the same and examples of good practice. At one point, I was in doubt as to whether what I was doing even made me an artist. Hearing this was the start of owning what I do. Since then, I have been acting as my own publicist, running workshops, building a website and organising events, and not worrying about whether it’s the right thing to be doing has left me free to relish it.

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I went from being an artist who makes things to being an artist who makes things happen - Jeremy Deller
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Though the projects I’m currently involved with differ vastly in their aims and processes, they are connected in terms of their basis as interdisciplinary collaborations. The results may accumulate in an event, a show, an object, a performance, documentation or even just remain a purposeful conversation. There are so many things going on, perhaps a quick list would help:
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1. Re-Creative Live: A project in conjunction with Yorkshire Sculpture Park aiming to create further opportunities for 16-25 year olds to engage with the park, particularly those who aren’t usually involved with the arts. After many hours of this…

























 

 

…we’ve come up with this


​http://www.recreativeuk.com/projectarticle/dream-machine-yorkshire-sculpture-park
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Come down and see us in Wakefield!
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2. Grief Series: I was invited by performance maker and artist, Ellie Harrison, to assist as she and her two collaborators, Bethany Wells and Paula Chambers, began plans for stage four of ‘Grief Series’; a sequence of seven projects using a seven stage Grief Model from popular psychology as a starting point. Stage four is concerned with ‘anger’, meaning I witnessed punch bag whacking, angry playlist-building and joined the group in being overly aware of the things that grated on me. The results of this collaboration will feature in Transform Festival. Make a visit to the Rage Receptacle! 
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http://www.wyp.org.uk/what's-on/2013/transform-my-leeds-my-city
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3. Northern Arts Prize: A few weeks ago, there was a call for female participants to activate a structure created by artist, Emily Speed. As the first live piece to appear in Leeds Art Gallery, and as an opportunity to work alongside the artist and a team of participants, I couldn’t let it pass. A couple of days ago, we all met to chat, play and plan, and now I’ll be part of the work 10th April from 12pm. It’s genuinely been fascinating.
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http://www.northernartprize.org.uk/2013-prize/shortlist
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4. Divided We Fall: Alongside being part of the organisational team, I also have work in an affiliated show, ‘Our House’, based at Basement Arts on Beeston. The show addresses ideas of home, space and community within the city. In collaboration with final year Graphics student, Alice Withers, and photographer, Ollie Honeywood, existing objects have been assigned new functions that may prove useful in the awkward situations posed to us by the public. Though the images have a sense of uniformity and seriousness, the accompanying captions are intended to be flippant and humorous.














    
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5. Degree Show
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“My projects are processes, not everything is an art object. Sometimes some of this process has to be solidified in order for it to be able to be discussed again, but that can be an object, a book, a conference, a film, a guided tour or a theatre piece. These things can have quality in themselves, but they are solidifications of a moment in a process.” - Jeanne Van Heeswijk
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The planning, negotiation and organisation of my interventions are for me as much art and aesthetically interesting as the events themselves. Like Van Heeswijk, I recognise that a collective process is as important to my practice as a collective engagement with the finished work.
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The idea of making people part of something, a community who have shared an experience, and facilitating an environment for exchange, has led me to start organising a symposium as the basis for my assessment. The project takes its lead from Van Heeswijk’s idea of ‘a collaboration of experts’ and borrows some of the formal structures of conferencing. However, the intention is the exploration of the artistic merit in collaborating across disciplines, and my hope is that the day may provide the basis for new collaborations to form. It’s a task, but if now isn’t the time to be adventurous, when is?