Social Vision are looking for a Community Artist to work with us in Selby, Sherburn and Tadcaster this Autumn, as part of an exciting new consultation project that asks local residents what they’d like to see happening in their towns to make them better places to live, work and play.

We would like an artist to join our team who can create interactive installations to capture, interpret and understand what activities local residents of all demographics would like to see in each town.

We believe that arts and creativity are the most effective and accessible ways of capturing information and giving voice to unheard communities.

Some ideas we would like to explore include:

1. Query Cube: a large scale installation that allows residents to share their thoughts in a graffiti / street art type setting.
2. Wishing Line: using luggage tags hung between two points, we’d like residents to share their ‘wishes’ for their town, displayed as a temporary art installation.
3. Love Letters: a letterbox type installation where residents can share their views and thoughts anonymously

But we are truly receptive to any ideas you might have, or any examples you’ve used in the past that might work.

What do we want from an artist?

We would like you to:

1. Guide us as to the most deliverable approaches, and work with us to design the best project
2. Engage the community in each town to make an interesting, high impact temporary art installation. We will work with you to find the right groups.
3. Interpret the findings into a basic report for each town

Who are we looking for?

You are a creative (or collective) who:

1. is able to engage all members of the community, including those from marginalised backgrounds
2. shares our ambitions for large scale, immersive and interactive art
3. understands the value of art in research
4. is excited to use your creativity to shape town and city regeneration
5. is based in, or has a good knowledge of, the Selby, Sherburn, Tadcaster areas

Experience

We want somebody who has the skills and confidence to hit the ground running, come up with amazing creative ideas, and can fit in well into our small team. Everybody has to start somewhere, so we will not dismiss applicants new to this type of work. Energy and drive are the key factors for us as an organisation, combined with a passion for social inclusion, tackling marginalisation, and providing voice to those unheard.

We like to take risks, be innovative and push the boundaries of what’s possible.

Check out our website – www.social-vision.org.uk – and if you feel a synergy, then apply!

Timescales

We would expect to offer 5 full days (1 x planning/design, 6 x half days delivery, 1 x findings). The work would need to be completed by end of November 2021.

We would expect your time commitment to look roughly like this:

• Day One – planning and design of the project with the Project Lead
• Half Day One – public engagement in Selby Town Centre
• Half Day Two – engagement with a community group in Selby
• Half Day Three – public engagement in Sherburn Town Centre
• Half Day Four – engagement with a community group in Sherburn
• Half Day Five – public engagement in Tadcaster Town Centre
• Half Day Six – engagement with a community group in Tadcaster
• Day 5 – collating all the findings from the artwork into a short report

Support

You will have the support of the Project Lead, Communications Lead, Landscape Architect and professional photographer.

Budget

There is a budget available for this work, which includes your time and materials. Please tell us in your application what your day rate is for this type of work, and your anticipated material costs for each installation (we appreciate you’ve not got full details, so just a rough guess would be great!)

How we’ll score

We will score in the following priority order

1. Ability to Connect with communities
2. Portfolio of similar works
3. Experience
4. Budget

How to apply

We’re going to keep this as simple as possible. Simply email joe@social-vision.org.uk with examples of your past work, experience and/or ambitions, why you think you’d be a good fit for this role, how much you would charge for this project, and your availability in October / November 2021.

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS – Wednesday 13th October, 12pm

Bigger picture

This is our second Yorkshire town regeneration project, and we’re keen to keep doing more, so we’re looking for a long-term relationship with a local artist or collective who understands and shares our ethos, likes our organisation and it’s people, and wants to use their skills to transform Northern towns and cities into creative, interactive and experimental places to live and visit.

About Social Vision

Social Vision is a social enterprise, based in York. We are a not for profit organisation, and reinvest all of our surplus funds into community projects. This has included creative projects like The Malthouse, donations to local charities, coaching and mentoring social entrepreneurs, and financial investments in start-up social impact businesses. Everything we do is rooted in equality of opportunity, based on our own lived experiences. www.social-vision.org.uk