Multicultural heritage project's last call for creatives

Exeter based multicultural heritage project Telling Our Stories, Finding Our Roots, is calling all creatives for its latest initiative.

Devon Development Education, the global charity that runs the project, is looking for a dynamic artist to work with their Honiton project coordinator, Jess Huffman, and project partners at Offwell School, Honiton Library, and the Thelma Hulbert Gallery.  

The opportunity is funded by the Creative East Devon Fund through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. 

The artist will be part of the story for a more inclusive future and will creatively engage young people through workshop activities inspired by project stories to create an art piece for a final project exhibition at the end of the year.

Telling Our Stories, Finding Our Roots aims to bring to light the forgotten or unknown diverse history in the towns of Honition and Ilfracombe, stories that have often not been recorded but which show the value and richness that different diverse communities have brought to Devon.

These include the contribution of Indian ayahs (nannies), the Romany community, Ugandan Asians, and Jewish children forced to flee Europe during the Second World War.

The project was started in June 2023 and will finish at the end of 2024, after a period of 18 months. 

By the time it concludes, at least eight new archival histories and eight oral histories will have been written up, recorded, and be the foundation for new exhibitions, walking tours, and educational resources. 

This summer, project organisers are offering an additional opportunity, challenging young photographers aged 10-19 to shine a lens on Honiton's rich multicultural heritage. 

The task involves choosing locations from the map that highlight the diverse stories uncovered by the project's volunteers. 

Photographers are encouraged to use their imagination and take as many images as they like.

Selected images will form part of an exhibition at the Thelma Hulbert Gallery at the end of the year and will be shared on social media.

The project is funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and is a continuation of two previous Telling Our Stories projects in Exeter, Tiverton, Bideford, and Okehampton. 

The National Lottery Heritage Fund was set up in 1994 to fund projects of all sizes that connect people and communities to the UK’s heritage. 

Since then, it has invested £8.8 billion in heritage and supported 51,000 heritage projects.

A spokesperson for the project said: “We aim to provide a 'window on the world', to enable children and adults to understand links between their own lives and those of others worldwide, and to develop skills, attitudes, and values that enable people to work together to bring about change to create a just and sustainable world.”

Further details on the two opportunities and how to apply can be found here: Call all creatives! | Blog | Telling Our Stories, Finding Our Roots: Devon's Multicultural History (tellingourstoriesdevon.org.uk).

The deadline for artist applications is August 9, and for photographers is September 4.