OASIS OPEN CALL – A Curatorial Project at FormaHQ

About Forma

Forma is a contemporary arts organisation that champions ideas and artists who address the social and political questions of our times. Through a discursive process, we nurture artists’ creative vision and grow their ambition in order to develop collaborative projects that are career defining and lead to new major opportunities around the world. We pride ourselves in being an organisation that artists want to work with. We offer commissioning, fundraising and production expertise, and as a non-gallery-based organisation we present projects in partnership with cultural institutions across the UK and internationally. In short, Forma is where ideas become art.

For the first time in the organisation’s 20-year history, Forma now has a permanent home in South London, located at Peveril Gardens and Studios in Southwark. FormaHQ, as we like to call it, is a new cultural hub designed by Sanchez Benton architects in collaboration with curator Aldo Rinaldi, artist Gabriel Kuri, urbanist Rumi Bose and horticulturalist Nigel Dunnett. The site consists of a brutalist concrete and brick structure with a new public garden on the top floor and Forma’s offices, affordable artist studios, event space and café bookshop on the ground floor.

About the Oasis Open Call

Forma is inviting proposals for Oasis: a socially engaged curatorial project or short cultural programme that will take place at FormaHQ between September 2022 and April 2023.

Aimed at individuals and groups who want to develop their creative practice, Oasis is an opportunity to explore research interests and deliver socially engaged activities in collaboration with Forma’s team and our local audiences in London. Oasis takes its name from the research and conversations initiated by the lead creatives in the redevelopment of Peveril Gardens and FormaHQ. Led by consultation with local residents and driven by Mexican artist Gabriel Kuri’s vision for a new oasis of nature and culture on the edge of central London, the aim was to transform the underused site into a purposeful and beautiful meeting point for both artists and local residents. The result is a RIBA award-winning building that Forma operates as a cultural hub and launchpad for its international commissions. This Open Call is for a curatorial or artistic project or cultural programme that embraces Kuri’s vision of an oasis – a safe place where creatives and local residents can take part in cultural activities and enjoy the benefits of our new Peveril Gardens.

Open to individuals or curatorial collectives, educators, artists and community programmers alike, we are looking for innovative proposals that will create meaningful connections with our local community, with a specific focus on our immediate neighbours in Peveril House and the wider Southwark borough.

Proposals may be driven by a single project or take the form of a short cultural programme and may include participatory and community activities; performance and discursive events; micro-exhibitions and the commission of new work; digital and online work and education and learning opportunities for young, elderly and non-art audiences. We will keep an open mind and look forward to newly devised proposals as well as how existing programmes respond to the call, as long as they are inspired by the visual arts.

The selected candidate(s) will have access to a free studio at FormaHQ and will be expected to present activities within FormaHQ’s events space, the rooftop Peveril Garden or the local neighbourhood. We therefore FormaHQ Peveril Garden Studios 140 Great Dover Street, London SE1 4GW forma.org.uk encourage applicants to submit proposals that make good use of the building and resources; are realistic and deliverable; demonstrate a vision and passion for community engagement; show an understanding of our local community and have considered diversity and inclusion as part of their creative process. Proposals could further draw inspiration from the guiding principles of the building’s design: environmental sustainability, biodiversity and social cohesion. Find out more about FormaHQ here.

The Forma team will offer professional development sessions to the selected candidate(s) and support with fundraising and marketing in the delivery of their programme. They will further work closely with Forma’s Artistic Programme team to accommodate key events already planned, including the Artist in Residence programme, sporadic talks, screenings and social gatherings.

Our current staff team is predominantly white, cis-gender and non-disabled. We believe that what we do will have greater impact if our organisation better reflects the area in which we work and we therefore welcome applicants from South East London and in particular from those who are underrepresented in the sector, including Black, Asian, minority ethnic and mixed heritage applicants, those facing visible or invisible disabilities and the LGBTQ+ community. We also welcome proposals from those who have dependents and might need flexible working arrangements and those in p/t time education or p/t time work.

Oasis is the second phase of a pilot scheme towards launching a full 24-month Public Programme and Community Curator Fellowship in 2023/24. As part of Oasis, Forma will work closely with the selected candidate(s) to share resources, gather information, feedback and data in order to inform the future Fellowship programme. We anticipate Oasis will be a time of experimentation and therefore have not set out specific outcomes in this Open Call.

Key Information

What: A socially engaged curatorial or artistic project or short cultural programme delivered in and around FormaHQ in Southwark, South East London.

Who: A curator and/or curatorial collective, educator, community programmer or artist with demonstrable experience or interest in socially engaged practices. The applicant(s) may be in p/t education and may have other professional responsibilities.

Role: To work closely with the Programme Manager and Artistic Director to:

1. Devise and deliver Oasis, a socially engaged project or cultural programme of events
2. Prioritise community engagement with Peveril House residents and the wider community in Southwark (non-art audiences, students)
3. Work closely with the Forma team to collaborate with existing groups in the immediate neighbourhood and create new partnerships (ie: schools, businesses, cultural organisations, resident associations and gardening groups)
4. Take inspiration from Forma’s artistic programme of commissions and exhibitions to inform the Oasis programme of activities (such as Alberta Whittle’s Venice biennale film Lagareh, Amartey Golding touring show Bring Me To Heal and Sophie Hoyle’s Psychic Refuge online project)
5. Be open to working with existing and relevant Forma networks and resources such as FormaHQ’s studio tenants, FormaHQ café & bookshop, local schools and care homes
6. In working with the public realm, liaise with Forma’s team to ensure that all events comply with our H&S and Safeguarding policies. Also that necessary assessments and checks are completed in advance.
7. Share research with Forma and work with the team to plan for and fundraise around additional Oasis activities
8. As an Arts Council NPO we are required to provide information on who we work with, what we programme and the audiences we manage to reach. The candidate will therefore work with our audience development team to plan for, gather and collate feedback and data around activities.

Please note the selected candidate(s) and Forma team will work closely to coordinate existing Forma public programmes alongside Oasis activities.

Term and working hours

• Oasis is a 7 month freelance contract, starting from September 2022
• Flexible and remote working is permitted however we expect the selected candidate(s) to work primarily at FormaHQ
• We welcome alternative working patterns that don’t follow the 10-6pm, 5 days a week working hours of Forma’s office
• Oasis activities may take place during the day, evenings and weekends

Funds

A fixed bursary of £15,000 is available. In your application we ask that you present a short working plan of how this money will be allocated

Fundraising

While we hope applicants would seek to fundraise to support their programme, we are aware the short duration of the programme makes this challenging. Forma will support with:

• Help and advice on fundraising applications
• Devising possible income streams through ticketed events, sales, partnership funding
• Possible additional Forma funds to support Oasis activities
• Marketing and audience reach

Workspace and resources

• Access to the Forma office and resources
• A free studio at FormaHQ (which at times is shared with the artists in residence) to undertake research and meetings
• An Apple computer, printer and office materials
• Use of Forma’s projectors, audio and video equipment, furniture and events equipment

Where

We expect the majority of Oasis to take place:

• At FormaHQ in the event space and allocated studio
• In the rooftop Peveril Gardens
• In neighbouring Peveril House estate
• Within the borough of Southwark
• Online

How to apply

Please submit your application via this Google Form. Alternatively mail the following to info@forma.org.uk, including “OASIS APPLICATION” in the email subject line:

1. A C.V.
2. We also welcome web links to existing relevant work and/or existing PDFs (max 10Mb). A document (max two pages) that includes:
3. Your proposal for Oasis, including a brief activity plan and timeline. Please indicate how many days a week (or hours a day) you plan to dedicate to Oasis
4. A draft summary budget that details how you will allocate your fee vs Oasis activity costs as well as any expectations you have around additional fundraising or income generation.

Intellectual property

Please note we do not expect applicants to divulge too much of their ideas at this stage. Your ideas are precious and valuable, they belong to you. Instead we hope to understand your curatorial interest and experience in socially engaged practices, how you might devise your project or short cultural programme within the context and structures of Forma and how you might balance the role within your responsibilities outside of Forma.

Selection process

Forma seeks to avoid creating unnecessary and heavy workloads, we are therefore not looking for fully formed proposals at this stage. After reviewing all applications, we will shortlist proposals. Those selected will be invited for an interview during which they will be asked to present a fully developed proposal and presentation. If you have access requirement needs and/or face difficulties in submitting conventional applications please contact Caroline Heron ch@forma.org.uk or call 07769977216 to arrange alternative methods of communication.

Access

While FormaHQ is accessible to most disabled visitors, there are some barriers for those with access needs, in particular with the security grills at FormaHQ. The rooftop garden is accessible by a lift although it is noted the garden is not particularly friendly to wheelchair users. Please contact us for images and a conversation about accessibility.

Deadline to submit is Sunday 31 July 2022