Belfast Visual Arts Forum

Belfast 2024 reminder

For anyone in the visual arts seeking to be part of Belfast 2024, the closing date for proposals is March 8th

Belfast 2024 is an ambitious cultural celebration for our city. It will present a wide-ranging programme of creative local projects, events and city initiatives in 2024 - made by the people of Belfast for the people of Belfast. We are inviting expressions of interest from the creative sectors to commission a host of ideas, projects and events as part of the city’s Belfast 2024 creative programme.

Open call for creative programme ideas
We’re excited to give an opportunity to support bid ideas, imagination and ambition to create this celebratory year of creativity for Belfast. There are three stages in this first open call. For stages 1 and 2, bidders must submit a form on eSourcing. Successful bidders from these stages will receive funding to develop their idea to a full project plan in stage 3. Bidders must provide resourcing and budgeting details for stage 3.

Open call closing date
The closing date for stages 1 and 2 is Wednesday 8 March 2023.

https://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/belfast2024 #6933-2

Digital Artists (and not for profit organisations) - ACNI has a new funding scheme for Digital Arts (details below)

Organisations Digital Evolution Awards | Arts Council of Northern Ireland 1. Creation of digital arts 2. Supporting artists / arts organisations to make digital art for the first time or working with digital technology which they have not used before. 3. Encouraging cross-sectoral collaboration

Visual Artists, Curators etc. , do come along to
Looking to the Future
Sustainability and New Opportunities in the Arts

Belfast Visual Arts Forum
Thursday 14th October at 11am
Please RSVP to [email protected] by Monday 11 October 2021

Flax Arts Studios

Havelock House, Ormeau Rd, Belfast BT7 1EB
In Person Meeting

This BVAF quarterly meeting will focus on positive ways that artists and arts organisations can build successful, sustainable practices, while still producing high quality art.
As this is the first in person meeting of artists at the Belfast Visual Arts Forum since pre-covid, this is a chance for artists to meet and network with friends and colleagues from across the visual arts.
We are also delighted to welcome two guest speakers to share their experiences of the last few years and their hopes and plans for the future.
These are:
Alison Lowry and Jennifer Trouton RUA

Jennifer Trouton is an award winning artist, currently based at QSS Studios in Belfast. She has exhibited widely, including in China, America, Cuba and across Europe. Jennifer was artist in residence at XJTLU, (Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University), China just as covid 19 hit the world. Since returning to Belfast, her powerful new show “One of Many” has been shown at the Galway Arts Centre and is currently being shown at the Naughton Gallery at Queen’s University Belfast.
Throughout her career Trouton’s work has garnered numerous awards including the 2016 Golden Fleece Award hosted by the Lilias Mitchell Foundation , the 2016 Tyrone Guthrie award at the Royal Ulster Academy annual exhibition, Clare Morris Open Exhibition Adjudicators Award, and the RHA Annual Exhibition Keating/McLaughlin award . In 2007 Trouton was a finalist for the AIB Artist of promise Award. She has also been awarded Residencies in New York, Los Angeles, Canada and Ireland.
Trouton’s work is held in numerous public and private collections including the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, The University of Ulster, Belfast HSC Trust, ESB Ireland, Office of Public Works, Allianz Insurance, N.I Department of Finance & Personnel and David Roberts Foundation London.

Alison Lowry is an established glass artist whose career spans exhibitions and fine art, commissioned and retail ranges as well as teaching and training.
In 2009 Alison graduated from the University of Ulster with a first class Honours degree in Art and Design. Since then she has won numerous awards including first place in the category, ‘Glass Art’ at the Royal Dublin Show in 2015 and 2009, the Silver medal at the Royal Ulster Arts Club’s Annual Exhibition in 2010, the Warm Glass Prize in 2010 and 2011 and more recently the Bronze Award at Bullseye Glass’ ‘Emerge’ exhibition. Alison exhibits both locally and internationally and her work is held in several public collections; with the National Gallery of Ireland recently acquiring the exhibition ‘(A)dressing our hidden truths’ and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland making a fifth purchase for their collection.
Prior to her degree Alison studied textiles, completing a City and Guilds in Creative embroidery. It wasn’t until she had had her first baby that she decided to go back to University as a mature student to study art. For the first two years she studied printed textiles alongside lens based media, but it wasn’t until her final year that she decided to work with fused glass, and although it was a steep learning curve she hasn’t looked back since! Alison’s work ranges from small vessels and framed pieces to larger sculptural works more suited to the serious collector. She also works to commission. Her other passion is that of educator- this year she has hosted one day glass workshops and short courses all over Northern Ireland and also taught masterclasses in England and Germany.

Time Speaker
11:00am Peter Richards, Chair of the Belfast Visual Arts Forum
11:15am Alison Lowry and Jennifer Trouton RUA
Noon Open to forum / break out groups
12.45pm Feedback from Groups
1.30pm Lunch and networking

Please RSVP to [email protected] by Monday 11 October 2021

LIVE/WORK/WHERE? New models for artists Explore models for artists' live/work spaces, artist-led community housing and long-term residencies and how these could work in Belfast

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/over-40-contemporary-artists-supported-by-government-art-collection-response-to-covid-19-pandemic?fbclid=IwAR17A-MNTgTYmaqIFHI-QpxgpVNZabyLfiXbUJHJU1Z4z7FYN5qbc3jqiew

Over 40 contemporary artists supported by Government Art Collection response to Covid-19 pandemic The Government Art Collection (GAC) has acquired works by 45 contemporary visual artists from across the UK