skart : poetry will be written by all
Skart residency at Bells Project, Hackney, a partnership between SPACE and Family Mosaic 2009.
This residency demonstrated an innovative way of working between an arts organisation and housing association. Importantly it allowed for time and space for relationships to develop between artists and residents and for new ideas and experiences to take shape. It explored the gaps, tensions and creative potential of a residency that was both resident and artist led. It has the potential to open up ways in the future that housing associations and arts organisations work by allowing artists to become temporary residents and neighbours.
This residency demonstrated an innovative way of working between an arts organisation and housing association. Importantly it allowed for time and space for relationships to develop between artists and residents and for new ideas and experiences to take shape. It explored the gaps, tensions and creative potential of a residency that was both resident and artist led. It has the potential to open up ways in the future that housing associations and arts organisations work by allowing artists to become temporary residents and neighbours.
SPACE and Family Mosaic set a joint framework for this work to take place.
Belgrade based artist-duo Skart moved into an empty flat in the Bells Project, Hackney, for six weeks, a supported accommodation scheme, home to approximately 30 elderly Afro Caribbean men and women. Conversations between Skart and the tenants formed the basis of a series of drawings and two line rhymes made by Skart that they painted onto small boards. They presented these back to the tenants and hung them on the walls of the communal areas, in the living room and corridors. The tenants also attended Skart’s ‘pop-up’ poetry event at SPACE, ‘Poetry Will be Written by All’.
At the time of their residency, Skart had a retrospective exhibition at SPACE showing documentation of their work over the last 20 years. As well as the poetry event mentioned above, Skart and SPACE also hosted an embroidery workshop and a dinner at the gallery. These events and exhibition served to contextualise their residency at the Bells Project, just as the residency was a live project in which Skart could put their practice to the test.
The emphasis was on engaging communities through long periods of consultation and resident led decision making in order to help people find a voice in this process and address how to manage change creatively.
Family Mosaic identified Bells Project for Skart to work with as they had recently taken over the management of the scheme. Family Mosaic was keen to give the tenants an opportunity to get involved in a new project during this transition period of uncertainty and turbulence for the tenants.
Pam Boodhna (Housing Officer) felt the value of the project lay in the fact that it focused on the tenants at a time of relative upheaval, it gave the residents something new and interesting to do.
- Skart living there enabled them to meet regularly and informally with the tenants during coffee mornings, playing dominoes, gaining trust and spending time getting to know each other.
- Sheila’s (Sheila Lewis, SPACE volunteer) role was invaluable, as a link between the Afro-Caribbean tenants and Skart.
- Skart were patient and well-prepared.
- Skart watched, listened and picked up on the mood of the people and the place.
- Skart were good communicators, took time to understand and follow through.
The experience demonstrated how nothing was insurmountable across cultures; that it is possible to communicate without a common language.
Pam Boodhna (Housing Officer) was enthusiastic and positive about the project although she could not give Skart much support because of her work load. She felt Skart were very self-sufficient, however, and did not need much support from her. She felt they organised themselves really well, just got on with it and looked after themselves.
Feedback from residents (Vincent, George, Irene, Miss Phang)
“We miss them”
“Would like it again if they were nice like them”
“They were fun guys”
“We used to go on trips, it’s more quiet now…Just coffee mornings on Mondays now”
“Skart woke people up a bit”
“They did something wonderful, for others to see as well”
“I would check if they needed anything”
“They make you feel so good”
“Some people really liked them, they made them feel welcome”
“They respected the tenants and the other way round”
“They were my neighbours, they were nice”
“They sit and have a chat”
Some of the characteristics of the residency:
- It crossed over with reminiscence work
- It was a process of engagement and sharing
- It helps keep depression at bay
- There was a storytelling theme
- That Skart were able to spend time listening to these stories (often this is not the case)
Download the article commissioned by SPACE on this project 'We All Make Mistakes' by Sophie Hope.
