Unity Arts Trust has a mission. It wants to build a dynamic and thriving community of artists and craftspeople in Chichester, whose creativity, skill and ambition reach out into the wider community providing pleasure and inspiration – to learn and to practice.

In a recessionary climate we believe that Art and Craft can provide something more than the personal satisfaction the practitioner obtains or its financial worth. We believe:

• Creativity can enhance the way we experience the world by presenting new and exciting interpretations of reality.
• Art can encourage debate, inviting us to question what we see and whether our interpretation is valid. In this way we may be moved to explore the nature of the world that we, as individuals, experience.
• Above all, art and craft can bring joy and pleasure into our lives, and the Trust is keen to do all it can to broadcast its enthusiasms.

Unity Arts Trust and its artists resident in Unity Studios are already beginning to channel their creativity to the Chichester community through a variety of projects and ‘open days’. We hope you will share our vision. Come and join us. 

“create, inspire, educate”

Workshops, Artists in Schools and community.

• Mentoring Scheme: UAT is running 2 ‘community art’ projects any one time, run by 6 artists and overseen by 2 mentors, Rachel Johnston and Mandie Saw.
  This will be supplemented by 1½ days of professional development to be provided by Inroads, Continuing Professional Development Consultants for Creative Partnerships, Sussex and Surrey.
• Shadowing Scheme: UAT is currently partnering with West Sussex County Council’s Arts Service. Creative Partnerships, Sussex and Surrey. Westergate Community School, Specialists in Visual and Performing Arts to pilot a free ‘shadowing scheme’ whereby 5 emerging artists/craftspeople will each ‘shadow’ a more established artist educator for three half-days as they undertake Enquiry Projects at schools involved in the West Sussex Creative Partnerships programme, observing a creative practitioner at work with a school group. This will be supplemented by 1½ days of professional development to be provided by Inroads, Continuing Professional Development Consultants for Creative Partnerships, Sussex and Surrey.

Unity Studio Artists are also independently engaged with community activities in the following ways, often supported by the mentoring schemes run by UAT:

• Sophie Adams – part time Project Assistant  working for ‘Flying Books’ http://flyingbooks.net/ , a ‘shared sketchbook’ community project connected to ‘The Big Draw’. http://www.campaignfordrawing.org/home/index.aspx
• Jayne Sandys-Renton – having set up and run the Chichester Art School for Young People for 3 years http://www.jstudio.co.uk/chichester-art-school-for-young-people/ , and numerous other freelance teaching roles in schools and for the West Sussex ‘very able pupil scheme’, Jayne is now teaching A-level Art as a part-time tutor at Southdowns College, Waterlooville, Hants.
• Laurence Elliott – Laurence Elliott has planned & designed various drawing & painting workshops, as well as delivering a stencil/poster workshop at 2010’s I AM JOY festival which had participants aged from 6 to their sixties.  In 2006 he was the artist in residence for ‘Studio Project 6’ at Glasgow’s Market gallery, on Duke Street. There was much discussion with the public, in particular with drugged drunk youth gangs (NonEducatedDelinquents).

OPEN STUDIOS: Enabling members of the public to engage with artists, visit artists’ studios and learn about their practices.

Future Open Studio weekends planned on 7/8 and 14/15 May 2011.

Previous Open Studios:

• 30/31 October and 6/7 & 13 November 2010, 10am – 5pm, coinciding with the National Open Art Exhibition http://www.thenationalopenartcompetition.com/ at the Minerva Theatre. Chichester.
• 7/8 and 15/16 May 2010 – coinciding with Chichester Open Studio Art Trail. http://www.chichesterarttrail.org/.

EXHIBITIONS:

• July 2010 – Exhibition by 9 studio artists at the Oxmarket Centre of Arts, attended by 670 people. Artists present 100% of the time to answer questions and talk to visitors.

THE FUTURE: Intended community-access facilities at Graylingwell in 2014 (approx) – to be confirmed:

• Large flexible ‘education space’, a perfect place for you or your group to experience new art activities, particularly those that are messy and require lots of space
• Workshops for print & 3D equipment; an ideal place to learn new skills on the sort of equipment that’s hard to find elsewhere.
• Mural wall outside – a great place for young people to express themselves publicly, and to develop their art skills and passions in an informal environment.
• Gallery - UAT’s aim for the gallery would be that it be ‘curated’, a place for professional artists from the region to present works to enhance their careers, as well as presenting exhibitions and outcomes from artist-in-residence schemes with a strong educational element.

Unity Studios – Pilot project  – 11 studio spaces.

Selection Criteria for studio space:

• ‘Art/Craft Research/Practice,
• Skill and/or innovation, ambition, aspiration to excellence and to national/international standards of art and/or craftsmanship,
• demonstration of commitment to artistic development and helping to provide public benefit,
• ‘need’.
• Note: There is no waiting list, applications are judged on merit.

Intended facilities for Artists & Craftspeople at Graylingwell in 2014 (approx):

 ‘studio space for artists’ @ 1500 sq meters.

• 40% space (600 sq meters) for established artists in large market-rent studios around large open courtyard, with shop windows, good for potential sales
• 60% space (900 sq meters) for emerging artists working in shared ‘incubator’ studio spaces. 
• Large flexible ‘education space’, ideal for teaching messy activities. 
• Workshops for print & 3D equipment, available to rent on timed basis, and to teach classes.
• Mural wall outside, ideal for engaging youth groups.
• Gallery. UAT’s aim for the gallery would be that it be ‘curated’, a place for professional artists from the region to present work, as well as presenting exhibitions and outcomes from artist-in-residence schemes. There would be a strong educational element.