A Bristol-based arts organisation conceived and founded by acclaimed deaf curator Cathy Mager has been awarded £127,000 from Arts Council England.
The funding will help Spectroscope expand its collective of exceptional artists and producers and deliver a ground-breaking, two-year programme of immersive artworks and installations around the world.
It will also support Spectroscope’s longer-term ambition to establish a foundry in the next five years that brings together artists and makers of different disciplines to support creative development and the making of innovative artworks by disabled artists.
A disabled-led organisation, Spectroscope collaborates with an international network of diverse artists, performers and digital innovators to achieve unique and complex artworks that create spectacle and bring heritage to life.
Upcoming projects from Spectroscope to look out for in the next few months include an extraordinary world-first. ‘Night Bloom’ sees a series of giant projections taking on the themes of sustainability and the role of the deaf community in supporting it, through the story of a mystical garden’s fight for survival where plants grow and blossom from the fingertips of those that live there.
‘Night Bloom’ will be a touring artwork brought to life in cities across the world, starting with London and Shanghai.
The team will also be creating a workshop programme, ‘Hand in Hand’, in partnership with Elmfield School for Deaf Children in Bristol. Led by deaf and disabled artists, the workshops will explore shadow play, projection and sign language with the primary school children and will culminate in the creation of a timber tree sculpture.
It is the first commissioned installation at the school and the first opportunity the children have had to be involved in a significant and permanent artwork.
“This major funding award from Arts Council England is a pivotal moment for Spectroscope and real recognition of our organisation’s mission and contribution to the sector,” said Cathy.
“This, along with other partner investment secured, will allow us to be even more ambitious with our work, collaborate with other brilliant artists and organisations, and bring our unique immersive storytelling to an international stage.
“Our mission is to create artworks that reflect the experiences of people who have historically been left out of the narrative, while pushing the boundaries of what public art can be.”
To find out more visit https://spectroscope.co.uk/
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