Agenda item

Gemma Girvan, Thelma Hulbert Gallery Manager and Curator updated the Forum on some of the activities happening at the Thelma Hulbert Gallery (THG).

The Create our Space (COS) Arts Council funded project encouraged young people between the ages of seven and 25 into gallery spaces and to engage with visual arts.  Some of the highlights of the project were:

·        Employed the first Student Intern.

·        Delivered over 30 school’s workshops engaging more than 1000 young people.

·        Reached over 5000 people directly engaging in the project and over 10,000 more widely.

·        Welcomed Visitors to THG from 26 of the 33 EX postcodes.

·        Delivered over 75 workshops, events and festival events.

·        Successfully hosted 2 Summer Art Weeks.

Further Arts Council funding (£29,000) had been secured to continue the positives from the COS project and continue working with young people.  The highlights of the extensive Arts Council application for the new COS project were:

•        Continue to work with young people to build our Youth Network.

•        Establish student intern opportunity.

•        Work with community groups to build a long-term relationship, including East Devon Tenant's and Youth Groups.

•        Continue to take artists into secondary schools to build community confidence in the gallery and creative arts.

•        Find a more portable solution to the Creative Cabin. ‘The Creative Cabinet’.

•        Build awareness of hidden disabilities through programming and training.

The following exhibitions had successfully been delivered:

·        Seam ­- an visible thread. Textile collective that received Arts Council funding to exhibit a touring exhibition.

·        Philippa Lawrence – a space between.

·        Anne Jackson – the Witchcraft series.

The next exhibition was Telling our Stories Finding our Roots, from 23 November – 21 December 2024, celebrating Devon’s multicultural history.  Funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund the project continued on from similar projects in Exeter, Tiverton, Bideford and Okehampton. Further funding from the Creative East Devon Fund had enabled the commission of British-Mexican artist Ione Maria Rojas, to create an artist commission and engage children from a local primary school to contribute artwork to the exhibition.   The annual Christmas selling exhibition Present Makers would also be held.

The Gallery Manager and Curator Thelma Hulbert Gallery outlined the 2025 programme, which had the theme Community and Place.  The aim was to strengthen ties with both local and artistic communities through the following initiatives:

•        Encouraging emerging artists: Providing opportunities and support for new talent.

•        Collaborating with local artists and photographers: Showcasing the unique perspectives of the community's creative voices.

•        Bringing renowned artists to a rural setting: Creating a platform for the local audience to engage with established artists.

•        Continuing climate-focused exhibitions: Highlighting the interconnectedness of climate and racial justice through impactful programming.

•        Embedding Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) and accessibility into programming and delivery.

The programme included:

·        Ashish Ghadiali

·        James Ravilious

·        THG Open 2025

·        CAMP

Members of the Forum thanked the THG Manager and Curator and the Cultural Producer for the excellent work being undertaken.  The ability to secure the highly competitive Arts Council funding was a real testament to the work of the THG team.  On behalf of the Forum the Chair thanked the THG Manager and Curator for her presentation.