We are inviting expressions of interest from artists and makers based in the Leeds area who feel inspired and excited about working with us on KIOSK, a mobile makerspace designed by Emma Hardaker, commissioned by the East Leeds Project and fabricated with assistance from Duke Makes. KIOSK takes making to the people, spreading joy and inspiration through opportunities to take part in hands-on creative workshops.

Call Out for Artists and Makers - KIOSK

Help us create KIOSK!

KIOSK is a mobile makerspace designed by Leeds-based artist Emma Hardaker, commissioned by the East Leeds Project [ELP] and fabricated with assistance from Duke Makes.

KIOSK is mobile autonomy, disruptive architecture, sculpture on wheels and an intervention in public space. It takes making to the people, spreading joy and inspiration through opportunities to take part in hands-on creative workshops. Small-scale and on wheels, KIOSK can be transported for use in a range of indoor and outdoor settings. From parks to gardens, galleries to living rooms and many places in between - flexibility and accessibility are key to its success. Vibrantly decorated and modular in design, KIOSK unfolds in situ to reveal work surfaces, display areas, storage, seating, an A-board and a flagpole to facilitate and inspire anyone to get creative! For visuals, please see our website at www.eastleedsproject.org.

How KIOSK will work

KIOSK will offer free hand-on creative workshops led by artists and makers. There will be two parallel strands of activity:

1. Day-long large scale public events such as local fairs and galas, with quick and easy activities that are open to everyone without booking

2. Half-day or full-day pre-booked workshops for smaller groups, tailored to their interests and access requirements

We are booking KIOSK into events like the Gipton Gala and working with partners in the arts, health and community sectors to develop a tour tailored for the specific groups that they work with and represent from summer 2021.

We are inviting expressions of interest from artists and makers based in the Leeds area who feel inspired and excited about working with us on this project. We would like to hear from you with ideas for new workshops or existing ones that can be adapted for KIOSK. Ideas for new activities do not need to be fully formed at this stage. We will work together to shape a programme of workshops matched to our partners across Leeds. The aim of all workshops will be to offer a safe, relaxed and sociable space for being together, where participants can meet and make collectively over conversation.

Artists and makers selected from this call out will be paid for their time to develop and deliver workshops. The ELP will cover all associated project management (administration, communications, marketing and logistics) and provide support for the artists and makers we work with.

Eligibility

In the first instance we are inviting expressions of interest from practitioners with at least 3+ years experience of working directly with participants. This may include public or private settings (e.g. galleries, museums, schools, community centres) and/or for people with additional access requirements. There are no restrictions on media provided you propose to use KIOSK as a base for your workshop. You might use printmaking, collage, textiles, sculptural practices or activities that use the environment as a starting point, for example through drawing, photography, sound-based work or digital media. 

You do not need to have graduated from formal education to apply and the only restriction on age is that applicants must be over 18. As the project develops beyond this pilot phase, we aim to offer developmental opportunities for less experienced practitioners to take part.

Applicants must be willing to undergo a basic check through the Disclosure and Barring Service, which prevents unsuitable people working with vulnerable groups, including children. The ELP will cover this cost. Successful artists will receive training in our Safeguarding Policy and procedures.

Submissions are welcome from collectives as well as individual artists.

Access

The ELP is working towards improved inclusion and diversity across all of our work and we warmly welcome applications from artists and makers who face barriers to taking up opportunities in the arts. We value opportunities to think about how KIOSK works for both practitioners and participants, and conversations that will help shape the future of the project.

We would like to gather a cohort of artists and makers that we work with regularly so that we collaboratively develop a community of practice around KIOSK and learn from and with each other. We will develop a KIOSK Users’ Manualthrough ongoing conversations with artists and participants so that we can continually review and improve how the project works.

We will work with selected artists and makers to discuss any access requirements you may have and to take appropriate action. The ELP is striving to be a disability positive organisation and we actively encourage applications from artists who identify as d/Deaf and disabled.

Budget

Artists and makers will be paid to develop and deliver workshops at current rates recommended by Artists Union England:

Day rate for an artist with 3+ years’ experience = £230

Day rate for an artist with 5+ years’ experience = £285

An additional budget is available for artists’ expenses (e.g. travel, subsistence), workshop materials and participant access (e.g. travel, personal assistance). This will be agreed collaboratively on a case-by-case basis.

How to apply

Please submit your application online through Curatorspace. Our intention is to keep this initial expression of interest as quick and easy as possible, so please submit what you can at this stage and we will contact you with follow up questions if necessary.

Note: Please use the ‘Additional Information’ box on the form to tell us about any access requirements that would help you to take up this opportunity (your ‘access rider’).

Submissions will be reviewed by Kerry Harker (Founder and Artistic Director) and Claire Irving (Communities Director) and we will get in touch with selected applicants to progress their ideas to the next stage. We will respond to and offer feedback on all applications. 

Timescales

The first deadline for expressions of interest is Friday 2 July at midnight, an application window of 5 weeks. After this deadline, the Call Out will remain open on a rolling basis through 2021.

About the East Leeds Project

The East Leeds Project is a visual arts organisation founded in 2017 and based above the Methodist Church in the heart of the Gipton estate. We work with art as a social action, which we understand as a practice that aims to ‘employ the varied forms offered by the expanded field of contemporary art as a collaborative, collective, and participatory method for bringing about real world instances of progressive justice, community building and transformation’ (Gregory Sholette, Chloe Bass and Social Practice Queens, Art as Social Action, 2018).

Contact

For queries about KIOSK and this open call, please contact Claire Irving (Communities Director) through Curatorspace.

Thank you for your interest in this project, we look forward to hearing from you!

East Leeds Project, c/o Gipton Methodist Church, Oak Tree Place, Leeds, LS9 6SX

www.eastleedsproject.org

Instagram @eastleedsproject

Twitter @leeds_east

Facebook @eastleedsproject

The East Leeds Project is a Community Interest Company registered in England and Wales, no. 11746322.

KIOSK is funded by Arts Council England, Leeds 2023 and Leeds Inspired

KIOSK design © Emma Hardaker