SPACE
Previously an empty shop and community space SPACE is situated at the Old Market area in Bristol.
The project was a partnership between Artspace Lifespace and Trinity Community Arts to maintain and promote the premises as an affordable, accessible community arts space began in April 2016. Standing for ‘sound, performance, art, community, engagement’, SPACE has hosted public events, art shows, artist residencies, community meetings, pop-up shops, as well as providing opportunities for volunteers.
I led our team to submit a proposal to take on the empty space and curate a very exciting programme of monthly events, ranging from exhibitions, workshops, art & crafts pop-up shops, small theatre shows, fashion markets and so much more.
My vision was to create an open platform for the local community and support creatives in Bristol with a new hub where they can showcase work and share ideas.
We worked on a public petition to allow us to allow us to continue running the project. The petition gained well over 1,000 signatures in the space of two weeks. One petition support commented; “The arts are important to people's lives and well-being as well as the local economy. I believe creative spaces and places that the local and artistic community can express themselves deserve to be supported.”
After a series of discussions with Deputy Mayor, Councillor Estella Tincknell an agreement was made to keep SPACE & Arts West Side as a community asset and a hub for community arts and events until the end of March 2018.
It was a victory for community arts and the importance of projects like SPACE in making Bristol the city it is today. I strongly believe that the temporary use and re-use of empty premises and buildings can help create dynamic and resilient places in and around our towns and cities.
Project website
Dates
2016 - 2017
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