The Royal Over-Seas League (ROSL) is looking to commission an established London region based Artist-in-Residence, experienced in working with young people, to deliver an exciting new project funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, in partnership with Riverley Primary School in Leyton, East London.

Artist-in-Residence
Heritage and our communities, an Artist-in-Residence for ROSL and Riverley Primary School

Timeframe: 25 days between 1st May and 16th July 2021
Fee: £4500 (£180 per day)

The Royal Over-Seas League (ROSL) is looking to commission an established London region based Artist-in-Residence, experienced in working with young people, to deliver an exciting new project funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, in partnership with Riverley Primary School in Leyton, East London.

Over a 10-12 week period we will invite our Artist-in-Residence to explore the heritage of ROSL’s historic home, Overseas House, whilst also working with a diverse cohort of Year 5 pupils from Riverley Primary School in Leyton, East London (part of the Griffin Schools Trust), supporting them to reflect on their own differing community experiences of heritage alongside that of Overseas House. Many of the pupils have rarely left their own part of East London or discovered the exceptional heritage of Central London. They may not feel that buildings such as Overseas House have a connection to their own lives and we wish to share our heritage with the pupils to enable them to gain information on these buildings, increase confidence in their knowledge over the histories and purposes of these types of buildings, and to increase their skills in making creative responses to Overseas House and the purpose of ROSL in Central London.

Following visits by the pupils to Overseas House (either in person or virtually due to COVID), our Artist-in- Residence will devise and deliver art workshops based on developing their own creative practice, inspired by the themes of heritage, community and home. Throughout the project both the Artist-in-Residence and pupils will create artworks, which at the end of the project will be showcased at two launch events, one at ROSL and the other at Riverley Primary School as part of the annual Griffin Arts Festival.

On conclusion of the project we will install long-term exhibitions and webpages at both ROSL and Riverley to display the project outputs and outcomes and to acknowledge the generous support from National Lottery players through The National Lottery Heritage Fund

About the Royal Over-Seas League and ROSL ARTS

The Royal Over-Seas League is dedicated to championing international friendship and understanding throughout the Commonwealth and beyond. A not-for-profit members’ club, we’ve been bringing like-minded people together since our launch in 1910.

Overseas House is also home to our ROSL ARTS programme supporting young emerging talent in music and visual arts through various programmes including our renowned Annual Music Competition and international Visual Arts Residencies. We host regular concerts and public affairs and literature talks, most of which are open to the general public as well as to members. In 2017 we started an outreach programme in partnership with the Griffin Schools Trust as part of our commitment to opening access to the arts to all, regardless of background.

The ROSL building is formed from Rutland House, 1735-6, Vernon House, late C17 substantially rebuilt 1835, the former gatehouse to Rutland House, and extensions dating from 1937 which link these buildings. Many outstanding original features survive, including the grand stone staircase with one of the earliest wrought-iron balustrades in the country, topped by a glazed domed lantern; the large marble fireplace designed by John Rysbrack; wall panelling in Rococo Revival style, and the Ionic screen and fine mouldings in the Brabourne Room. To the rear of the main stair is an unusual 'Crinoline stair', its balusters bowed to make room for women in hoop dresses.

The buildings house bedrooms, social meeting spaces, event rooms and a well-equipped concert hall.~

About Riverley Primary School and Griffin Schools Trust

Riverley Primary School endeavours to provide the finest educational experience for every single child at our inspirational and thriving school. Our holistic and well-rounded approach towards education provides an exceptional foundation for life-long learning, and we ensure that each child has the opportunity to grow in self-confidence, academic success and artistic endeavours. We do this through providing a rigorous curriculum, opportunities for wide-ranging extracurricular provision and ensuring learner-centred lessons.

We are a proud member of the Griffin Schools Trust whose vision is Proud Traditions, Wide Horizons and High Achievement and which has created a family of happy, exciting and successful schools.

Life at Riverley is an engaging learning journey from Nursery through to Year 6; the experiences gained providing a lasting value. Children understand what it means to be a ‘Riverley child’ and how they are a part of the Trusts wider ‘Griffin family’. Riverley is a happy school where our pupils feel a sense of belonging and pride, show respect for all and always aim to be the very best they can be.

Key activities

• Research and take inspiration from the heritage of ROSL and its building, the Leyton area and the stories and experiences of the year 5 pupils at Riverley Primary School to plan and deliver a series of artistic workshops (to be agreed with ROSL/Riverley but minimum 8 sessions) based on your own creative practice (we are open to multiple mediums including digital art).
• With the ROSL ARTS team, lead on visits from Riverley Pupils to ROSL (either in person or online, COVID dependent) to explore the various heritage aspects of the ROSL building.
• Produce a body of work (to be agreed with ROSL) inspired by the ROSL buildings and the outlined themes, to be displayed long-term at ROSL and Riverley School after completion of the project.  
• Guide the Riverley pupils in producing their own works, all to form part of the final exhibition.
• Assist in curating launch exhibitions at both ROSL and Riverley Primary School (as part of Griffin Arts Festival) to showcase and celebrate the outcomes of the project.
• Contribute to the documentation and evaluation process, photography, dedicated web pages and social media, press releases and articles in ROSL’s Overseas Magazine.
• Assist the project in the public acknowledgement of funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund through the artist’s own media channels.

Experience

• The candidate ideally should have lived experience within an ethnic minority
• Experience of leading high-quality and engaging arts activity and workshops
• Experience of working with young people (ages 9/10 for this project)
• Arts degree or equivalent professional experience as a visual artist

Skills

• Ability to develop good relationships with all partners to ensure a successful project
• Excellent interpersonal, leadership and communications skills
• A strong commitment to your own creative practice and a desire to inspire others in it
• Ability to deliver inspiring activities and workshops for young people
• Strong organisational and planning skills 

Further Details

• The artist fee for this project is £4,500 for 25 days over 10 weeks (£180 day rate), plus travel expenses.
• We can provide a studio space at ROSL, if needed, for the duration of the project. On days at ROSL lunch and tea/coffee will be provided in the staff canteen.
• The project will cover artist materials for both the artist and residence and the students at Riverley Primary School.
• An enhanced DBS check with barred list information will be carried out for the successful candidate.
• All digital outputs for the project will be made freely available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) Open Licence