Last Tuesday was our first check in with this year’s cohort of graduate scholars. In this visit we tapped into a melting pot of diverse techniques, practices, and concepts. The day was a brilliant insight into what is informing the approaches of these artists in their early stages of artistic development. And it’s safe to say they did not disappoint!
Work by Charlie Currid spans across many mediums, with pieces constantly developing through means of photography, painting, video, writing and sculpture. In these early stages, and progressing on student work, Charlie is exploring ideas such as internal dialogues around technology, the expansiveness of landscapes, and the ‘exquisite corpse‘ technique. He is also writing poetry that touches on climate change and the anticipation associated with its advancement to inform his art practice.
Transformation and the reframing of experiences are the driving forces behind Andrea Lowe’s new works. She incorporates the idea of the domestic space into her pieces through choices in structure and material, while also exploring the fragmentation that comes with trauma, and the process of healing and repair that is required for recovery. Andrea is also a socially engaged practitioner and her work in local communities is also an important factor in the development of her work.
Anni Kay Wilkinson’s work documents the vibrant subcultures in her hometown Hulme. Her zines lovingly and sincerely depict punk, squat, queer and rave communities. She is constantly taking images and developing her practice, while also exploring avenues of community workshops, festival and gig photography. Anni is looking to create work that shows the effect of gentrification and the increasing cost of living on Hulme and Greater Manchester and is working on developing a documentary that has the voices of those affected at its core.
Henry Collier’s concepts at this stage are rooted in conflicting feelings around body image, masculinity, male vulnerability, and catholic ideologies. These concepts are beginning to take form in a sculptural piece, a new and ambitious development within Henry’s art practice. On top of this he is continuing his photographic work and exploring male vulnerability further through film photography and Instax prints of male bellies, this expansive project may take form in future as a photobook or exhibition.
Working across areas such as painting, print, photography and performance, Portia Wilkins is creating a variety of works in response to subjects such as Welsh folklore, nerd and gaming culture as well as women’s bodies and their association with the perceivedly threatening figure of the sphynx. They are also experimenting with the idea of spiritual connection and pride in post-industrial towns, specifically Stoke-On-Trent. Here Portia considers the former centre of pottery manufacturing as a place of pilgrimage.
Across the 12 months of this programme, which is delivered in partnership with Castlefield Gallery and co-ordinated by artist and writer Elliott Flanagan, our graduate scholars will develop their practice with support from mentoring, bursaries, research trips, studio spaces and Castlefield Gallery Associates membership.
You can find more information about the programme here, and more about our scholars here.
Keira Marchant, Team Assistant
December 2025