A group of 28 cultural leaders have been chosen to develop their skills and gain new insights into the arts, as part of The Clore Leadership Programme. The UK-based scheme, now in its 10th year, supports cultural professionals from across the arts through funded residency fellowships.
The 2013-14 programme will support 21 fellows from the UK and Ireland, and 7 international fellows – with funding secured from 28 partners.
Among the 10th cohort are Mohamed El Ghawy, a theatre director from Cairo; Meena Vari, a contemporary arts specialist who lives in Bangalore; Dominique Chan Shiu Tung, an exhibition curator working in Hong Kong; Cathy Marston, a dancer and ballet director living in Bern.
‘The programme was set up to encourage leadership in the cultural sector,’ director Sue Hoyle told IAM. ‘We do that by offering fellowships and courses to exceptional people who we think have got the potential to be outstanding leaders.’
The Clore scheme places creatives in a different setting to their normal work environment: a museum curator might spend time with a theatre, or a choreographer might work in the heritage sector.
‘We believe the best way to learn about leading is through doing, and practical experience,’ said Hoyle. ‘We encourage fellows to go somewhere quite different, and lead a project that will set them new challenges, and in doing so hopefully they’ll do something really useful for the organisation.’
Previous Clore fellow Ariane Koek took her arts expertise to CERN (European Organisation for Nuclear Research) and established an artist residency programme, allowing creators to use the centre’s unique surroundings and resources to influence and shape their work.
Emma Jay, meanwhile, used her knowledge from working at the National Archives to help the Sage Gateshead develop a new approach to archiving.
‘The individuals get stretched and challenged and discover that they have transferable skills that can be applied in a different setting,’ said Hoyle. ‘[After the programme] a lot go back to the kind of work they were doing before the fellowship, but with new skills, new networks and a fresh perspective, as well as a much clearer sense of purpose.’
The Clore Leadership Programme is an initiative of the Clore Duffield Foundation.
The major funding partners for the 2013- 14 scheme are: Arts Council England, Arts Council Ireland, Arts Council of Wales, the Arts and Humanities Research Council, Creative Scotland, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Gatsby Charitable Foundation, Home Affairs Bureau of the Government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region through the Hong Kong Arts Development Council, the Linbury Trust, the National Art Gallery, Singapore, the Paul Hamlyn Foundation and the Wellcome Trust.
Some of this year’s Clore leaders: Jenny Rutter; Abdul Shayek; Robin Norton-Hale; Lois Stonock; Leon Patel; Penelope Sexton; Astrid Alben; Frazer Hoyle; Reem Kassem; Yang Yang Tao.
