The d/Deaf and Disabled Artists Support Fund 2020/21

£94,000 awarded to d/Deaf and Disabled Artists

Forty-four d/Deaf and disabled artists have been awarded £94,000 in funding to create new work and support them through the Covid-19 crisis.

The University of Atypical, on behalf of the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the Department for Communities, has awarded the grants at a time when artists’ potential to generate income has been seriously impacted by the closure of art galleries, theatres, music venues and other creative outlets.

Department for Communities Minister, Deirdre Hargey, said “Our local arts sector is so important in terms of the contribution it makes socially, creatively and economically to the lives of individuals, communities and wider society.  I am therefore delighted that this funding has been awarded which will provide our local d/Deaf and disabled artists with much needed financial assistance throughout the current crisis. The support will help enable the artists to invest in developing their careers, improve their skills and buy equipment and materials.”

The 44 awards were made to individual artists with 41 receiving grants of £2,000 each.  Three artists received grants of £4,000 each in recognition of the quality of their professional practice. They are musician and composer, Ruth McGinley from Belfast, filmmaker Jamie Baker from Comber, and painter Ciaran Magill from Newcastle. 

Damien Coyle, CEO of the University of Atypical, said, “This funding is of vital importance as it provides much needed assistance to d/Deaf and disabled artists who are struggling for financial survival.  This support underpins the role University of Atypical plays in facilitating career enhancement opportunities for and in promoting the work of d/Deaf and Disabled Artists.  The awards recognise the important contribution d/Deaf and disabled artists make to our society and they will create a legacy beyond the current pandemic as the visual arts and crafts works produced through the commissions go on display at public venues across Northern Ireland.”

The d/Deaf and Disabled Artists Support Fund awarded grants in two categories, Firstly, commissioning new work from visual arts and crafts practitioner with commissioned work being made available for exhibition in public spaces including special educational needs sector schools, libraries and disability organisations.  Secondly, career development grants from practitioners in all other disciplines. Grants will enable d/Deaf and Disabled Artists and performers to buy time to create, purchase equipment or materials, and access mentoring and training to enhance their professional practice and career development. 

Gilly Campbell, Head of Community Arts and Education, Arts Council of Northern Ireland, said, “The Arts Council of Northern Ireland is committed to improving access to the arts for people with disabilities and to providing meaningful opportunities for disabled artists to develop their professional artistic careers.  We welcome this critically-needed funding for 44 artists which will help them create new work and support them at a time when many artists have been left struggling as a result of the pandemic.” 

Creating Time Awards

Creating Time Awards for d/Deaf and Disabled Artists in Northern Ireland funded by Unlimited and the Paul Hamlyn Foundation

Covid 19 has caused great difficulties for many people in our community – especially the d/Deaf and disabled artists – but thanks to the generosity of Unlimited and the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, we are able to provide much needed funding to help d/Deaf and disabled artists to continue working. 

University of Atypical is managing a new grants programme to support d/Deaf and Disabled Artists with funding provided by Unlimited and the Paul Hamlyn Foundation.  The initial funding programme offers ten £1,000 grants to support artists to continue with their creative practice.  The funding is open to artists from all artforms. 

Verrent, senior producer, Unlimited, explains.

Hardest hit were our artists who had worked through 2019/20 creating work who then had that work frozen. Exhibitions stuck in empty galleries, tours cancelled gig by gig, planned workshops postponed whilst no physical contact is possible.  Unlimited worked with the Paul Hamlyn Foundation to identify gaps and set funding programmes in place to meet the needs of the sector.  Through these funds we will partner with University of Atypical and have both a series of micro grants and also some slightly larger Ledger Legacy awards later in the year, honouring the memory of their former CEO Chris Ledger, who sadly passed away in the summer of 2020. University of Atypical will lead on these, and all those awarded will join the Unlimited alumni, enabling the development of a close partnership between us and University of Atypical going forward

Damien Coyle, CEO, University of Atypical stated:

We thank Unlimited and the Paul Hamlyn Foundation for their generous and timely investment in d/Deaf and disabled artists in Northern Ireland. This awards programme will offer a lifeline to D/deaf and disabled artists who are struggling for financial survival.  This support underpins the developmental role University of Atypical plays in promoting the work created by D/deaf and Disabled Artists and facilitating career enhancement opportunities”.

Information on the awards, application packs, and advice clinic booking forms are available from the University of Atypical website and Facebook account: www.universityofatypical.org

https://www.facebook.com/universityofatypical/

Notes to the editor:

The University of Atypical is a disabled-led arts charity, taking an empowerment-based approach towards supporting disabled and deaf people’s involvement in the arts. The organisation specialises in developing and promoting the work of artists who are disabled and deaf and in reaching disabled and deaf audiences.

Unlimited is an arts commissioning programme that aims to embed work by disabled artists within the UK and international cultural sectors, reach new audiences and shift perceptions of disabled people. Since 2013, Unlimited has awarded more than £4 million to over 360 ambitious disabled artists and companies, through commissions, awards and support, which have been seen by or engaged with more than 3.8 million people globally and online, making it the largest supporter of disabled artists worldwide

The Paul Hamlyn Foundation is one of the largest independent grant-making foundations in the UK.  The Foundation use its resources to support social change, working towards a just and equitable society in which everyone, especially young people, can realise their full potential and enjoy fulfilling and creative lives.

This fund is part of a £40,500 grant allocated to University of Atypical to support d/Deaf and Disabled Artists in Northern Ireland.

10 grants of £1, 000 each will be awarded D/deaf and Disabled Artists in the first round.

The Fund is open for applications on Thursday 1th February 2021 and closes at 4.00 pm Friday 12^th March 2021.  University of Atypical will provide advice clinics to assist applicant with the application process.  Advice clinics are now open and run to Friday 5^th March 2021. Award recipients will be notified by Friday 9^th April 2021

Contact details:

T: 028 90239450

E: administration@universityofatypical.org W: www.universityofatypical.org