The Trustee’s Annual Report Year Ended 31 March 2024
Centre for Contemporary Art Derry~Londonderry:
To encourage appreciation of the arts and stimulate the artistic creativity of people in the area of benefit by the provision of art exhibitions, performances, installations, training, support and facilities for artistic expression.
To present, promote, organise, manage and exhibit shows of artistic, cultural and educational value, including paintings, drawings, performances, sculptures, films, broadcasts, entertainments and exhibitions.
Supported the careers of emerging artists from Northern Ireland through various means including our exhibition programme, our public programme and through participation in the Arts Council of Northern Ireland’s ACES scheme, speed curating with VAI, letters of support and our CCA Supports programme of CPD events. Also, via publishing and our Guest Publications scheme showcasing artist books in our online shop.
The main achievements of the charity during the year were as follows:
Exhibitions in CCA galleries:
(a) New Curating: Sam’s Eden – group show – Yarli Allison, Suds McKenna, Michaela Razafima Nash guest curated by Thomas Wells
(b) Deferral | Echo – solo show – Kwok Tsui
(c) Stones from a Gentle Place – solo show – Susan Hughes
(d) Reciprocal Residency Solo Exhibitions 2024 – Ieva Kotryna Ski, Roisín McGuigan
CCA’s Library/Workshop continued in its form as a Project Space visible from Artillery Street:
(e) Testing Ground – Sally O’Dowd
(f) Living Studio – Indigo Azidahaka
(g) Matthew Wilson
(h) Everything is Fragile – Paola Bernardelli
(i) Reciprocal Residency Studio – Ieva Kotryna Ski
The next season of Digital Residencies took place on CCA’s website: CCADLD.org and took longer formats over two-week periods
(j) The Honky Tonks and Me – Peter Glasgow
(k) We Have Never Been Only Human – Ella Yolande
Public Programmes continued working online and remotely:
(l) National Drawing Day – Husk Bennett (m) The Uncommon: A gathering for migrant artists on the island of Ireland – Bojana Jankovic & Marta Dyczkowska
(n) Sharing Day with the CCA Research Associates
(o) SAM’S EDEN: LIFE DRAWING – Mel Bradley, Cara Donaghey
- (p) Hope as a practice – Rachel Botha, Radical Institute
(q) Bad to the Bones – Derry Halloween – Grace Fairley
(r) Bend, Form, Wrap – Ciarraí MacCormac
(s) Seed Saving Celebration / Ag Céiliuruidh na Síoltai – annual seed saving day – The Seed It Union
(t) Saint Brigid’s Crosses for Imbolc – Jack McGarrigle
(u) Studying Old Masters – Age Concern NI Workshop – Niall McLaughlin
(v) NI Science Festival 2024 – Ekaterina Solomatina
- (w) Tunes from a Gentle Place – Susan Hughes, Denise Boyle
From January 2023 CCA was awarded funding through Jerwood Developing Artists Fund to expand the Supports Programme for 2023–2024 (calendar years). The project began in January 2023 and continued throughout 2023–24 including:
(x) Crit Group – peer critique via zoom facilitated by Public Programmes Curator
(y) Laura McCafferty with sessions every two months
(z) Surgeries – one-to-one surgeries via zoom with Director Catherine Hemelryk with sessions every two months
(aa) Application Feedback sessions
(bb) Testing Ground in CCA’s Project Space
(cc) short mentoring programmes
(dd) evaluation with a freelance evaluator
(ee) research with a freelance researcher
CCA was one of 7 host organisations for the 18-month long Jerwood Curatorial Accelerator programme supporting emerging curators from low socio-economic backgrounds across the UK. The project completed and resulted in further funding from Jerwood Foundation to support New Curating – Thomas Wells, a programme participant, received mentoring from Catherine Hemelryk and additional production budget to curate a new exhibition as part of CCA’s programme entitled SAM’S EDEN.
Schools and families programme alternated between the space and packs to be completed in the gallery/at home. Schools’ visits included
(ff) SAM’S EDEN: Family Activity – Machaela Razafima Nash
(gg) Deferral | Echo – Sarah McNabb
(hh) Glowing Jelly – Kelly Ewing
(ii) Memory Rock – Eibhlín Morrison
Podcasts distributed artist conversations and artworks:
(jj) Round Table with digital residency artist Peter Glasgow, solo exhibition artist Susan Hughes and Derry~Londonderry artist and musician Ryan Vail
(kk) Audio artwork by R Talitha Samuel
(ll) Round Table with SEAMS artist Laura Wilson, writer Kerrí Ní Dochartaigh and weaver Claire Whelan
Digital Takeovers became CCA Introducing, a series of 24-hour social media takeovers by artists @CCADLD on twitter and Instagram. We invited people with a connection to CCA to nominate early-career artists to feature in the programme. Artists: Charlie Rydzewski, Lydia Davies, Niall McCallum, Kialy Tihngang, Dinosaur Kilby, Katrina Cobain, medb, Ronan Smyth, R Talitha Samuel, Eslam Abd El Salam.
Window Texts, a series of ten risograph editions produced by Derry Print Workshop inviting ten art writers to create a page of A4 then designed by an artist/designer/illustrator, continued development for the final season to be released in 2024/25.
Other key achievements:
Receiving continued funding from ACNI with a nominal uplift during challenging times. Securing continued funding for our Reciprocal Residency programme with partners Kaunas Artists’ House and Lithuanian Culture Institute to run the third edition of the biennial residency.
Working with artists to secure additional project funding including a-n bursary for Sally O’Dowd.
Partnering with Flax to support the Magnetic Residency with Dunkirk.
Producing New Social Narrative Videos thanks to Derry City & Strabane District Council and University of A-typical; these explain the accessibility of CCA to visitors with a wide range of access requirements and come in three versions including BSL and ISL.
Partnering with artists Catherine Bourne and Gráinne McMenamin to secure funding from Civic Innovation Fund for Cross Border Creativity, an arts educational programme with NEETS (not in education, employment or training) young people in border rural settings. Our director spoke at various panels and delivered webinars and presentations including VAI annual Get Together in Tullamore, a-n Assembly Belfast by PS2, Catalyst Arts, QSS and Bault Artist Studios.
Partnering with Artangel, Factory International Manchester, Glynn Vivian Art Gallery Swansea, Grundy Art Gallery Blackpool, Museum of Making Derby Museums Trust, National Festival of Making with Blackburn Museum & Art Gallery, Wolverhampton Art Gallery, Barnesley Civic, Inverness Museum and Art Gallery, Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art Sunderland, Hospitalfield Arbroath and Tate St Ives. The project began with a call for people with hobbies to get involved and the work will be developed during 2024 and the final film will be shown with CCA in 2025/26.
Receiving national and international press coverage including two exhibitions featured in The Guardian Exhibitions of the week pick and double page spread review of Kwok Tsui in Visual Artists Newsletter.