By Ben Thompson
First Draft, an art collective based in Manchester, has recently launched ‘Let The Artists In!’ in conjunction with support network The Writing Squad. The project, financially backed by Arts Council England, will offer three lucky poets the opportunity to be a poet in residence (a poet affiliated with a university or college).
Headed by the Manchester Writing School and the Manchester Poetry Library, this project will see three winners taking up a short residency at Manchester Metropolitan University’s Special Collections. Whilst there, they will have the chance to explore the materials featured within the extensive collection, and respond to materials within by either producing an artistic commission or hosting a creative writing workshop for the public.
The winners won’t be expected to know everything about being a poet in residence at the point of application. On offer through the programme is a day’s training under Malika Booker (Poet and Lecturer at Manchester Writing School), Louise Clennell (Education & Outreach Officer at Special Collections) and Dr. Martin Kratz (Manchester Poetry Library). This will teach them what they need to know about the duties of a poet in residence, which can involve anything from handling artefects to crafting creative responses to holdings in the collection.
To take part, students must submit an expression of interest, including a cover letter, CV and a sample of their work, by April 5th. Once the three winners are announced after a fortnight, training will take place on May 18th. From there, they’ll have a month to complete their chosen assignment.
Anybody interested in taking part should send their submission to poetrylibrary@mmu.ac.uk. Further information can be found via the MMU website.
Tuesday 2nd June, 2020 marked the day social media went black to show solidarity with the US protests that began after the brutal and violent murder of George Floyd. On Monday 25th May a white police officer choked George Floyd, using his knee. Even after exclaiming his last words, “I can’t breathe”, George’s windpipe continued to be…
Not many bands can blend genres so easily or as smoothly as Cassia. The Manchester-born group released their debut album Replica last year and were awarded an abundance of acclaim for their efforts. It was a masterpiece in combining tropical sounding melodies, with well-placed indie-rock twists. They proceeded to charge into the beginning of 2020 with their melodic…
Recent lockdown measures and self-isolation has given many young freelance journalists and filmmakers time to contemplate on how this pandemic is affecting their craft. Fledgling journalists embarking on careers in this competitive industry will be affected the most. Renowned UK publisher Reach Plc. has informed journalists to work remotely, but with the new academic due…
aAh! Magazine remotely catches up with Thea, the front-woman of Fox Violet. Thea tells us about their new single, the challenges of being a woman in rock music and how Fox Violet are staying musically active during the current situation. Tell us a bit about Fox Violet? “My name is Thea, and I front the…
Leave a reply