Posts by sfletcher

Professor Jackie Kay CBE, University Chancellor and Scots Makar, is sharing a series of poems with colleagues, students and members of the public, reflecting on the current period of uncertainty that we are in.

Jackie’s third poem ‘New Era’ reflects on the difficulty of being away from our families and loved ones for an extended period of time. 
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NEW ERA

I am missing my boy, my handsome son,
like Carol Ann’s pining for Ella
like Maura’s longing to hug Imelda
like Suzanne’s desperate to see Marissa
like Dionne dreams of James and Luca
or Denise would love to put her arms round Finlay
who misses his mum who died the year before last;
or Adjoa’d be over the moon to see

Liam and Jessie who’re stranded in the past.
I am missing my boy, my wise, considerate Matt.
I’ve taken to wearing his baseball caps
round the house like a lost soul, like a woman
getting ready for going grey: today’s – a snazzy
black and red, NEW ERA, Atlanta, 59/50.
There’s a whole collection, lucky for me,
in his old room, like a museum,
even though he’s over thirty!
Now we FaceTime or houseparty

with a can of Guinness, a glass of wine,
doing our best, cheerzing the screen.
We’re lucky all of us who love so
over the distance of the land and the sea.
Love is a matter of belief, of hope, of trust.
A wave, another wave; holding your nerve –
who’ll press the red phone icon first?
Love is keeping our distance.
Love is a long-distance dance.

Copyright Jackie Kay. Reprinted with kind permission from the author.

Jackie Kay, Manchester.
April 4th 2020

The Art Collection team are working remotely, developing both short term and long term plans for our work.

We remain committed to supporting artists and building a Collection that tells a story of now through three collecting strands:

· Chinese Contemporary Art;
· About the Digital;
· From the North.

We are continuing to work with all our partner organisations, to commission new work by artists at all stages of their careers.

More details will be announced shortly, however we would welcome any feedback, comments or suggestions in the meantime.

Please contact us by email: l.a.taylor@salford.ac.uk or s.fletcher@salford.ac.uk

Please stay safe and stay at home!

Lindsay Taylor, Curator and Stephanie Fletcher, Assistant Curator

UPDATE:

Virtual support sessions offered for artists in Salford applying for ACE Emergency Funding Streams

Following our sessions ahead of the first ACE deadline (16th April) we are offering further bookable slots with the team before the final ACE deadline (30th April). 

• Monday 27th April between 1-4pm
• Tuesday 28th April between 1-4pm
• Contact: artcollection@salford.ac.uk

Whilst we can’t offer ‘official’ advice, we have a range of fundraising experience, and can help proof, edit, and talk through ideas – or just lend an ear! Get in touch to book a slot or chat with us.

As outlined in Suprema Lex, the new strategy for Culture, Salford is city of makers. As a University, we work with so many artists and creatives and will continue to serve the arts community in this really challenging time.

It’s hard to imagine what life will be like on the other side, but right now, we can all continue to connect, lend an ear and support each other the best we can to make sure Salford remains a thriving city of culture- with music, art and performance to look forward to in the future.

The University of Salford Art Collection Team, School of Arts and Media and Alumni Engagement and Development teams are working together to develop a programme of activity to support the creative community in Salford who have been affected by COVID-19.

In response to the Arts Council England’s Emergency Funding Streams announcement, we are offering support sessions in April. Whilst we are not officially affiliated with the ACE funding team, we are committed to supporting the Salford community and its artists- advising where we can. We have a range of fundraising experience, and can help proof, edit or talk through ideas.

The Emergency Funding Streams open on 9^th April and are available for individuals and organisations facing financial hardship.

If you are a creative practitioner and would like to book a timeslot with a member of the team, please get in touch: artcollection@salford.ac.uk

Please make sure you are registered on Grantium, the Arts Council England portal, and have read the available guidance on the ACE website.

For additional news and guidance for artists, visit the A-N website
For further advice for Salford residents, visit the Salford City Council website

Professor Jackie Kay CBE, University Chancellor and Scots Makar, is sharing a series of poems with colleagues, students and members of the public, reflecting on the current period of uncertainty that we are in.

Jackie’s second poem ‘Clap the Carers’ is about saying thanks and showing our appreciation for those who are working tirelessly on the frontline during this pandemic to care for others. 

CLAP THE CARERS

I want to say thank you to Janet
for keeping up my mum’s spirit

And thank you to Margaret Anne
Who always does the best she can

Who sorts out the medicine
Trolley meticulously and

Thank you, Marie,
Who last Sunday on Mother’s Day

Had a lone piper into play
And all the women and the men

Were wheeled out or walked into the garden
For ten minutes of fresh air while the Piper played

And When this Battle is Over
And thank you to Cherry for

Making my mum part of her family
And looking after her like she would her own mother

And thank you to Richard, who back that day, aeons away,
On March the 10th put the Home into lockdown

The first in the country –
Which at the time was outrageous to me

But now completely right retrospectively,
Ahead of the curve, and on the ball

And thank you to Clare, team manager of all
For her kind and calm demeanour

And to Monique with her shock of blonde hair
Who always makes my mum laugh

With a merry quip or a teasing joke
And thank you to kind-faced Reuben

Who cleans my mum’s room and puts a wee nip in her coffee
And to good-natured big John who checks regularly to see she’s OK,

And to everybody
Every single Carer in a Nursing Home, Care Home, or in someone’s home

Up and down the breadth of the country
Across the land and out to sea

To France and Spain and Italy
For treating all our mums and dads

Our daughters and sons, our brothers and sisters,
So kindly; for knocking your pan in

Gieing it laldy, going above and beyond.
I want to say merci beaucoup, gracias, grazie

You’re one in a million.
On the Sunday after Mother’s Day, I want to say

Tapadh leibh, thank ye, thank ye,
And in Sign, I do believe, it is like blowing a kiss, like this, like this.


Copyright Jackie Kay. Reprinted with kind permission of the author.

Professor Jackie Kay CBE, University Chancellor and Scots Makar has written a series of poems reflecting on the current period of uncertainty we find ourselves in.

During this unprecedented time, the arts may help to bring us some comfort and offer a welcome distraction from the news. The poems that Jackie has written and video recorded will be shared online over the course of the next few weeks.

“This is a testing time for us all and I think taking the opportunity to be as creative as you can be and doing things differently might have some lasting and positive consequences for our whole planet.
“I hope you can find some silver linings from it – like learning a new language or learning how to bake, write a poem, or make a short film. I will be writing a few poems during this crisis and I will be sharing some of these over the course of the next few weeks.”
– Professor Jackie Kay CBE

STILL

My 89-year-old mum is in a Care Home, like many of our mums and dads and grandparents and great grandparents. And like many of us, I found this Mother’s Day particularly poignant. I wrote this poem after a conversation with my mum on the phone when she was referring to the eerie stillness outside, like a zombie movie with no zombies in it, she said, one of those Sci Fi films. (I couldn’t find a way to get that line into the poem!) It’s frustrating communicating with the old and hard of hearing only by phone! I asked her if she wanted me to send up her own iPad and she said, ‘oh that would be soothing on my eyes.’ I said not that kind of eye pad! She said, oh that kind, well seeing you would be soothing on my eyes too!

So still, so still, still, still

My mother says down the line from Glasgow

As if, from her Care Home window,

She sees the eerie worry of the world; the chill,

The deserted squares, the empty streets,

The half-shut bars, sad theatres,

Packed hospitals, gold-dust ventilators

School kids in lockdown, no exams to meet…

The whole world is going down, she said,

And I’m not going to Hell. Well, still.

We’ll have to take each day, be grateful

Thankful for small mercies, the three crows on the wall.

See the silver linings till we meet again, she said,

Yes, I said, but she couldn’t hear a single thing I said,

Except when I shouted I love you. I love you, precious,

she said.  Then the line went dead.

Copyright Jackie Kay.

Reprinted with kind permission of the author

• Up to £1000 cash
• Studio space for up to 12 months
• Mentor support, coaching and guidance
• Professional development opportunities
• Opportunity to have work permanently acquired into the University of Salford Art Collection
  

The Graduate Scholarship Programme, now in its sixth year, is open for applications for the 2020/2021 cohort.

The 12 month scheme, managed by the University of Salford Art Collection in collaboration with Castlefield Gallery, supports artists in the crucial first year after graduation – providing time, space and resources to continue developing a professional contemporary practice.

The bespoke programme includes studio space in Salford with one of our partners: Hot Bed Press, Islington Mill, Paradise Works, Mirabel Studios support from Redeye The Photography Network – alongside mentoring and cash for materials, travel, or other costs.

Eligibility:
The scheme is only open to University of Salford final year undergraduates from the School of Arts and Media (who are due to graduate or complete their studies in July 2020) – plus this year we are piloting one space for an MA graduate (due to graduate or complete in September 2020).

*Please note: some details of the scheme are subject to the developing Coronavirus situation.

Full guidance is included on the application form (below).

For further information about the scheme, including updates from our previous scholars, visit: Graduate Scholarship Programme

APPLY NOW:
Deadline Midnight Sunday 3rd May 2020

[Click here to DOWNLOAD APPLICATION FORM]

Please note: details of the new scheme are subject to the developing Coronavirus situation. The latest guidance is included on the application form. (form last updated: 6th April 2020)

Gordon Cheung will be in conversation with Mark Rappolt, editor-in-chief of ArtReview.  Their discussion will focus on ideas raised in Cheung’s recent work in which he witnesses and interprets the emergence of China as a twenty first century global superpower, framing current events in the context of the “Century of Humiliation” and the opium wars.

Date: Wednesday 19 February 2020, 7 – 8pm
Venue: Edel Assanti, London
Admission: Free, space is limited.  Register at Eventbrite or email eve@edelassanti.com