Key Skills:

Coordination

Working to a brief

Time management

Installation

​

​

 

RISEgallery was approached by a wonderful Lebanese lady who had seen a short piece about street art in Croydon on the BBC as she believed there was a clear connection between the work we have been doing in Croydon and what she was working on in Hamra, Beirut. We flew to Lebanon to meet her and begin working together on the annual arts and culture summer festival that she has run for the last 5 years. This year’s plans are the most ambitious yet.

 

There are 3 key elements to the project, organising murals to be painted for Hamra, the 3 day festival in Aley and workshops with Syrian refugees, all of these elements will be run collaboratively between UK and Lebanese artists. As the festival is due to take place at the beginning of August we’re still in planning stages but substantial progress has been made already in preparation for the summer. My role within the project has allowed me to develop my coordination and time management skills as well as my ability to work to a brief and produce plans for an installation.

 

Coordination - After the initial call out for artists we had to go through several proposals and liaising with our partners in Lebanon to find the most suitable artists. We then began thinking who they would partner best with and started arranging appropriate spaces for them to stay and work, sort out different dates for flights, organise their materials and shipping of those materials as well as exactly where they would be painting and making work. Working in this way with lots of people doing different things will be useful for future collaborative projects.

 

Working to a brief - The work created for the festival has to be sensitive to the location, the political climate and the issues that the local people are facing. As a result of this we have begun to create plans for works specific to Lebanon addressing issues that they are currently facing in a sensitive manner using materials that are suitable to the location. This is a practical skill for future projects because it allows you to create the best work for a given situation and doesn't leave any party disappointed.

 

Time management - This project is running along side several others so being able to balance the work load has been essential, the festival date has been set since the beginning so we have been working to the required time frame and making provisions to complete the work within the specified time that we are there. Being able to manage several projects simultaneously will allow a much more for a productive practice as I continue to make work.

 

Installation - Another key part of the project for me in a collaborative installation with Cara Jena Flynn, we have worked together on the brief and thought about the best way to use the materials available so they best suit the current environmental issues. We have also been thinking about how the installation will sit within the landscape and remain there safely. Working on a large scale in the public realm is still relatively new to me but I’ve already learnt a lot from previous projects and have begun to learn new techniques for this piece.