Five local practitioners have now been chosen to begin Stage One of the Artist Accelerator scheme. The scheme will provide each of the 16 candidates selected over 3 years with a bursary of up to £1800 thanks to funding from Get Living, Foundation for FutureLondon and Rosetta Arts, as well as 12 months’ studio space and 12 hours of mentoring sessions with an experienced professional to help develop their socially engaged practice in the local community.
The scheme marks an exciting venture between Rosetta Arts, which has been embedded in the West Ham community for 26 years; Get Living, who provide affordable and accessible rental schemes in East London; and Foundation for FutureLondon, who connect East Bank with the local community and provide them with opportunities through creative placemaking.
The Artist Accelerator selects practitioners who already have experience working with communities, requiring them to draw on their creativity to generate engagement and commitment among those who have little contact with the arts. They will also receive:
- Access to the Rosetta Arts networks and team of advisors
- 3 masterclasses on topics related to the shared needs of selected practitioners
- Commission to design and deliver 2 workshops in the local community, coached and mentored by Rosetta Arts educators
Activities will take place through hubs in various locations in East London. The five practitioners selected for Stage One of the three-year Artist Accelerator scheme are profiled below.
Ada Jusic: Born in 1987 in Sarajevo, Ada came to the UK as a refugee in the early 90s. Very early on she was fascinated with image and storytelling, going on to study a master’s in illustration in London. Ada is a professional illustrator, animator and designer. She has been working freelance for over 6 years, specialising in projects tackling political and social issues.
Twitter/Instagram: @adajusic, @adajusic
Christopher Reyes: Christopher Reyes is a British-born Filipino hip-hop dance theatre artist, choreographer, and artistic curator. Born and raised in East London during the late 80s, Chris has delivered a series of powerful emotive dance works (Sean, KUYA and The people’s choice award, CARAVAN) that challenge his identity and reflect his life experiences growing up in the city. Inspired by his upbringing in Hip-hop culture and ongoing discovery of his Filipino roots, Chris seeks to bridge the cultural gap and reconnect modern Filipinos with their roots by educating the public on the history and presence of his race and culture within the UK.
Twitter/Instagram: @aliasldn, @aliasldn
Photographer credits: Camilla Greenwell
Instagram: @camillagreenwellphotography
Sylvia Morgado: Working initially with text, performance and installation to explore her interest in storytelling and human relationships, Sylvia’s works are minimal but multilayered. Much of them are characterized by an invitation to slow down and self-reflect. She uses a variety of materials – often found and upcycled – combining different mediums to make watercolour drawings, collage, artist books and sculpture. Recently, she felt the need to include the use of photography, video and sound, sometimes to register more historical facts and social concerns. Making use of thought-provoking techniques to engage the spectator, collaboration stands out in her works, which are often playful and poetic. This interest has led her to develop a more socially engaged practice. Inspired by her commitment to making arts accessible for all and by the power the arts have to connect people and promote wellbeing, in 2016, she created Interativos, a series of creative workshops in community spaces, care homes and social projects, that later expanded to community tours.
Instagram @symorgado, @interativos_exchange
Twitter/Facebook: @symorgado, @symorgado
LinkedIn: sylvia-morgado
Sylvie Ganachaud: Sylvie is a photographer who has lived in Newham for 20 years. Originally from Nantes in France, she became interested in photography as a teenager. At the age of 13, she joined her local photo-club to practise photography and learn how to process film. Inspired by humanist photographers such as Robert Doisneau and Cartier Bresson, she is most interested in portraits and capturing people’s unique stories. Living in Newham has enabled her to come into contact and befriend people from all over the world and she feels that the borough has a lot to offer in terms of talent, skills and stories. She enjoys street photography and often photographs protests as she believes art is a medium we can use to fight for what we believe in. A few years ago, she completed a diploma in photography at Rosetta Arts and became more interested in documenting the lives of people who live in the borough, starting a project called Stories from Newham. She hopes the project will demonstrate the value of diversity as something to be celebrated. She is hoping to continue this project and expand it by delivering workshops in the community with the help of the Artist Accelerator.
Instagram: @gbs10_portrait
Larissa De Filippo: Larissa De Filippo is a queer visual artist based in east London. Her work is a mix of photography, film and performance. Larissa’s main interest is “community-engaged art” focusing on interaction and dialogue with the community.
Larissa was one of the artists who led the consultations and creative workshops which helped shape the Mayor of London’s memorial to honour key workers and commemorate Londoners who have lost their lives to COVID-19. She is also a member of the Rosetta Photographers’ Collective.
Find out more about her work at www.larissadefilippo.com and by following her on Instagram @laridefilippo
Photograph: Graz Diez
