Support Us

Tag: Young People

Categories
News

Testing, testing… anybody there?

Welcome back Dumfries. This month we’re ready to open our doors once again with a month-long programme of inspiring events from conversations to workshops, creative activities and talks alongside the long-awaited return of our monthly film night Reel To Real, as well as the unmissable Brave New Words. We want to be extra safe as we navigate our way back into the world of live events so the way of doing things is a little bit different. First of all, you’ll need a ticket. You can see the full list of events here, so if you’d like to attend, you’ll need to book your place. And we’re not out of the woods yet so we’ll have some extra safety measures in place when you arrive, to protect everyone in our community. 

This month it’s all about testing new activity. We want to see how we can have a blended approach to our live events. So whether that’s a mix of live streaming to walks outdoors, we want to play with new ways of coming back together, that’s both safe and creative. Who knows, some of it might stick. So why not join us as we retrace our steps back to the world of live events…

Dumfries Fountain Project

The Dumfries Fountain Project goes live this month with the first of our workshops with writer JoAnne McKay, and a conversation evening exploring the history and heritage of the fountain!

Creative Spaces

Creative Spaces welcomes you back to our blended model of bi-monthly workshops we shall be exploring the link between mental wellbeing and creativity through the concept of the Tortured Artist.

Brave New Words

You heard us right, it’s back! We’re going live on the last Friday of the month, in The Stove Cafe and The Stove Network’s Youtube channel.

Reel to Real Cinema

This month we are discussing film and food in The Stove Cafe with filmmaker Zev Robinson, and his short film The Glasgow Diet

Categories
News

Introducing…

binary comment

Creative Spaces’ Associate Artists

From the back: Jenna Macrory (Creative Spaces Producer), Leanne Bradwick (Associate Artist), Jodie Barnacle-Best (Associate Artist) and Rachel Shnapp (Associate Artist).

From blueprint100’s consultation and development period, came Creative Spaces – providing opportunities for emerging artists under 30 to have the support and funding to explore and enhance their creative practice, while building professional confidence and developing a network of peers.

After promoting these opportunities and fine combing an extremely talented pool of applicants, we’ve now curated our own trio of Associate Artists, who introduce themselves below…

Meet the Team

Jodie Barnacle-Best

I’m Jodie…

While I’m wrapping up my Masters right now, I’m about to start honing in on my main practice in fashion knitwear (though, more generally speaking, I’m really excited by experimenting with colour and material!).

Most of all, I’m eager to start steering my practice more towards community-making/workshopping and interactive fashion making: demystifying the fashion space and encouraging connections between the clothing and the wearer.

Leanne Bradwick

I’m Leanne…

I am a travelling jewellery artist who makes narrative jewellery in my self-converted van that I live in and call home. I studied jewellery and silversmithing at Uni between 2014 and 2017, before going on to work within the industries in Birmingham’s jewellery quarter. 

I’ve now moved to Dumfries and Galloway to begin my own practice of narrating folklore stories through silver coin pendants, which I’ll be selling alongside little books to keep the tales alive!

Rachel Shnapp

I’m Rachel…

I’m an early-career filmmaker and artist creating works across a variety of genres. In my practice, I aim to get as close as possible to subversive or hidden narratives – creating socially engaged, stylised films that tell lesser-known stories.

I am really looking forward to contributing to The Stove, and I’m excited for what lies in store.



Thanks Jodie, Leanne and Rachel, we’re thrilled to have you join the Creative Spaces team.

Would you like to know more about Creative Spaces and find out how you can get involved? Visit our webpage: https://thestove.org/creative-spaces/


Categories
Musings News

Accessibility and Inclusion, Reflections: Winston Denerley

Guest Blog Post by Winston Denerley

Over the past few months Winston has been working with the Stove team, and particularly the Creative Spaces and Soap Box projects to help us explore how to make our programming more accessible for the D/deaf community. We’ve learned a lot and really enjoyed having Winston as part of the team, and are looking forward to the conversations going forward!

Still of the BSL version of the Learn page available on our website here

“It was a really interesting start to my time with the Stove Network. I was proposing a project consisting of a Deaf Hub/Festival within the Kirkcudbright Arts and Crafts Festival. Due to complications with COVID-19, this had to be delayed and put on the back burner. While speaking with Katharine Wheeler about this project idea, she mentioned the Stove’s need to be more accessible, aware and inclusive of people with disabilities. Because of my lived-in experience of the deaf community, current studies of British Sign Language and passion for inclusivity, we felt as though I would be able to fulfil the organisation’s need to be more inclusive.

Over my short time working (remotely) for the Stove Network, I have really enjoyed being the voice for people that need it and invoking necessary change. To do this I have created British Sign Language interpretations of the website, contributed to meetings, been involved in a successful panel on Inclusive Communication and held an ‘Accessibility in the Arts’ conversation on the 28th of May. Both the panel and the conversation had a diverse mix of organisation representatives and disabled people allowing for important discussions to be had about access in the arts industry. In the panel discussion, I was a part of the team answering questions about my own experiences, however with the conversation I was a host asking questions and prompting responses from the speakers. I really enjoyed playing both roles as speaker as well as host and look forward to hosting/being involved in future conversations and discussions about important issues!

Screenshot from some of the content that went out on the Creative Spaces social media accounts in relation to the Accessibility in the Arts conversation

It has been really interesting to see a somewhat closed off industry learning to be more inclusive and accepting of different types of people. Through this, I have begun to wonder the significant changes that could be made to the world if all businesses, organisations, and corporations understood their lack of awareness and inclusivity and took large strides to change this. By doing this, some groups may no longer feel as though it is society that disables them because they are given the vital support they need. 

My mind is brimming with new ideas and projects, so I am excited to see what the future holds working with an exciting and constantly developing organisation that has all the right intentions. Conversations discussing important issues, content aimed at different audiences with different needs, project development support and so much more – the future looks bright!”

Categories
News

Blueprint100 Looking Forward April – September 2020

Over the next few months, we’re taking some time to reflect on blueprint100. How can we grow and evolve the learning opportunities The Stove Network offers for young creative people, and by doing so, empower those and other young people to start professional careers within the arts?

It’s been 5 years since blueprint100 initiated itself as a coveted opportunity for young creative people through a self-led approach to professional development and active working experience within The Stove Network.

This is an approach to learning and professional development aimed at supporting young people across varied stages in their work and helping to build bridges both in and out of more formal structures and other types of work and experience.

As The Stove and blueprint100 have grown and changed rapidly over the past few years we feel it is a good time to take a deeper look at blueprint100 and the learning opportunities it provides as part of The Stove team.

Through a period of consultation and reflection we will evaluate and reshape our blueprint100 framework to ensure it meets the needs of our region’s young creatives giving them the right balance of support and freedom to develop.

For this reason we want to let you know that we will not be recruiting for another blueprint100 team this April 2020 but instead taking the space for this deeper consultation and evaluation. We will do this through a series of targeted workshops and one to one interviews with past blueprint100 curatorial team members, active participants and young creatives, creative groups and organisations and relative learning bodies and service providers.

The consultation will be lead by blueprint100 mentor Katharine Wheeler who will be supported by a young person within the blueprint age range (18-30).

Please stay tuned for more updates in the near future.

Categories
News

Meet Ruari – Music Stage Manager at this year’s Nithraid!

Earlier this month, we selected a young local musician to undertake music stage management at this year’s Nithraid River Festival on Saturday 11th August. Ruari Barber-Fleming from Castle Douglas has been selected to run the small acoustic stage that is held as part of the festival to showcase up and coming talent from around the region. The previous years have included regulars from the Stove’s monthly open mic nights, Brave New Words, as well as other musicians who are based within Dumfries & Galloway.

Ruari has been involved in the Dumfries music scene for several years now, having previously played in local band ‘Gracefell’ as well as photographing live music and working with various artists around the region. He is hoping that through this opportunity he will be able to deliver something unique for the visitors to Nithraid and believes that the stage is a great platform to showcase some local talent.

Ruari feels very positively about the music scene in Dumfries and feels it has been thriving the past few years with a gig frequency that is extremely impressive for the size of the region that it is. He is very passionate about originality and sincerity when it comes to live performance of music, and from this he hopes to be able to deliver just that – performances that the audience can latch on to and connect with the artist.

The commission will provide Ruari the opportunity to work with members of the Nithraid team to gain experience of all aspects of running a music stage at a festival including programming, design/build, marketing, sound engineering and equipment hire. There will be extra opportunities to integrate and learn through this commission with support from Euan Macrory, who undertook a similar internship in 2016 and now programs events both as part of the blueprint100 Curatorial Team and other festivals such as Moniaive Folk Festival.

The Nithraid music stage will be part of the ‘Nithraid Village’ situated on the Mill Green on Saturday 11th August and will run from 12pm until 4pm. Visitors to Nithraid are also invited to join in with other activities happening in the town and around the River Nith. The Salty Coo procession will kick off the day, leaving from Fountain Square on High Street at noon and arriving at the Mill Green at approximately 12.30pm. The Nithraid Village provides a jam-packed day of family friendly activities for all ages, which includes live music, food stalls and creative workshops which include stone carving, public art, zine making, upcycling, origami, badge making and recycling.

For more information, including how to take part in the races (or anything else!), please visit www.thestove.org/nithraid

Categories
News

The Tinderbox Orchestra Heads to Dumfries for The Big Jam

The Big Jam 2
The Big Jam

A ‘punk orchestra’ will come to Dumfries over April and May to collaborate, compose and improvise with young musicians during five Saturday workshops, as well as offering an opportunity to perform at the Theatre Royal. The Big Jam workshops, presented in collaboration with Dumfries Music Conference, and supported by The Stove Network and D&G Arts Festival, will provide musicians with the opportunity to work with the Tinderbox Orchestra. The Orchestra, which features a fusion of instruments, styles and people, write and perform original compositions. The group will host a series of free workshops in Dumfries town centre that are suitable for musicians aged 12 and over.
Founded in 2010 as a small community youth orchestra with a difference, Tinderbox has grown to become a ground-breaking youth arts organisation, charity and social enterprise. Tinderbox aims to ignite a spark in young people; one which fills them with confidence, imagination and a sense of possibility, and which enables people to achieve things they never thought possible. Tinderbox Orchestra will collaborate with Dumfries Music Conference to undertake a five-week project in Dumfries during April and May, which will culminate with the group’s performance at the town’s Theatre Royal on 27th May. During these five-weeks, free workshops will be held for five consecutive Saturdays, starting on 22nd April at Lovers Lane Studios from 12-4pm. Musicians will have the opportunity to play with a real-life orchestra and learn the craft of scoring an orchestral composition to go along with their own performances and song-writing endeavours.

Participants are invited to attend all or some of the sessions and to bring along their instrument, so that they can play with the group. The sessions will focus on a different piece each week, which will interweave around writing a group composition. Experiment with ideas, collaborate with other musicians and become part of the country’s loudest, most innovative orchestra.

For more information, visit DMC on Facebook @DumfriesMusicConference

Skip to content