Oglesby Charitable Trust has agreed a 5-year funding investment to SICK! Productions to support their 10 year programme of creative projects in Moston and Harpurhey and a series of commissions with leading local and international artists.
In 2019, SICK! launched a 10-year plan to deliver an extensive programme of creative projects in Moston and Harpurhey. The work will be supported by an Ambassadors Group of local residents and organisations who work in the local area. Projects will be developed and created with local people, addressing some of the key issues and opportunities that are important to these communities.
Funding from the Oglesby Charitable Trust will also go towards a programme of international commissions which will bring artists from across the globe to work in Manchester communities, and with local artists, to develop new performances and exhibitions that will be presented in our Festivals and toured across the region, the UK and around the world. The Oglesby grant will enable SICK! to lever considerable international investment into Greater Manchester.
Faidat Ope, Harpurhey resident and SICK! Productions ambassador says:
“We’re not known as an artistic part of Manchester here but there’s a huge artistic community. I believe that SICK! will start to address this and have a positive influence on the way people see Moston and Harpurhey. We are a wonderful, diverse and hard-working community here. I’m excited about how a ten-year commitment to the area will result in changing perceptions of my home and give people more opportunities to express themselves through art.”
Steve Vickers, Creative Producer for SICK! Productions says:
“I’ve been working in the community here, for a range of organisations, since 2010. I want us to shine a light on Moston and Harpurhey to let the wider arts community know there’s a pool of talent here that can be drawn on to become a part of Manchester’s cultural offer. The talent is already here. Our job is to highlight this with a genuine long-term commitment.”
Jane Oglesby, Trustee, Oglesby Charitable Trust says:
“We are delighted to build on our support of SICK! through this new programme in Moston and Harpurhey, believing that this place-based activity will be of great artistic, social and health value and that it will enhance this community’s connections with the city region and the world. The long term nature of this commitment is key, and we are excited to share the journey with SICK! and the community, and to learn from what is produced and shared throughout.”
Helen Medland, CEO and Artistic Director for SICK! Productions says:
“We have made a long term commitment to this community because of the enthusiasm of local people and organisations and fantastic potential of the local area. We know that in order to really make change through creating projects with local communities, this takes a long time and we are delighted that Oglesby Charitable Trust are on this journey with us. The investment into international work means we can bring amazing international artists to Manchester, where they will work with local people and artists to explore the issues that are most important in their lives.”
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