The Hepworth Wakefield is selected as Iniva's partner for Future Collect
16 Apr 2021
We’re delighted to announce that The Hepworth Wakefield has been selected as gallery partner for the second year of Iniva‘s Future Collect programme. Future Collect was established in 2020 with generous support from the Art Fund, Arts Council England and Esmée Fairbairn Foundation. Future Collect is a three-year initiative to reimagine the future of public collections at major art galleries and museums throughout the UK and provide paid curatorial trainee opportunities.
The partnership will commission a major new work of art by an artist of African and/or Asian descent born or based in Britain for display at The Hepworth Wakefield in 2022. It will be supported with a wide public engagement programme and new research into Wakefield’s growing art collection. A paid, year-long Curatorial Trainee, jointly appointed by Iniva and The Hepworth Wakefield will be predominantly based in Wakefield, where they will be given an outstanding opportunity to develop a range of essential skills needed for the curatorial workforce today, including working with the commissioned artist, collection research, care and display, and audience engagement. The partnership also offers an opportunity for The Hepworth Wakefield’s Assistant Curator to spend time on secondment at Iniva, utilising the unique resource of the Stuart Hall Library as a space for critical enquiry and creative exchange.
Sepake Angiama, Artistic Director of Iniva, said: “We are delighted with our new collaboration with The Hepworth Wakefield to radically rethink new models for commissioning for our collections so that they are a better reflection of our contemporary culturally diverse society. Following our successful partnership with the Manchester Art Gallery, we are very pleased to work with such a committed and dedicated team in engaging their community with culturally diverse practices.”
Simon Wallis, Director of The Hepworth Wakefield, said: “We are very excited to have been chosen for the second year of this important partnership initiative with Iniva. Wakefield’s collection was established, as a local Councillor said in 1923, ‘to nurture a public understanding of contemporary art and its relation to modern life’. The Hepworth Wakefield continues to pursue this founding mission to reflect contemporary society. We are committed to addressing historic gender and racial biases in the collection so that it reflects contemporary society and is inspiring and relevant to the broadest possible audience. This partnership with Iniva will help us tackle issues of inequality and racism which have long been prevalent in our sector, and which we need to be part of changing swiftly. We are thrilled to help nurture the next diverse generation of curators and directors through this partnership. It’s an excellent paid opportunity for someone with ambition and vision.”
The application process for the Curatorial Trainee post has been completed. We are now seeking expressions of interest from artists of African and/or Asian descent to work with us on the new commission. To find out more visit our vacancies page.
About Iniva
Iniva (Institute of International Visual Arts) is an evolving, radical visual arts organisation dedicated to developing an artistic programme that reflects on the social and political impact of globalisation.
With the Stuart Hall Library acting as a critical and creative hub for our work, we collaborate with artists, curators, researchers and cultural producers to challenge conventional notions of diversity and difference. We engage a wide audience, particularly young people, in discourse and debate on issues surrounding the politics of race, class and gender.
Through our programme we work predominantly with British-born and British-based visual artists of African and Asian descent supporting them at different stages in their careers. We offer residencies, commission new work and promote existing practices enabling artistic ambition and development. By cultivating innovative thinking, we are committed to disseminating research across a wide cultural spectrum and geographical network. Our ambition is to build a greater body of knowledge around each of the artists with whom we work to ensure the legacy of their practices for future generations of researchers and audiences.
