To all the artists, creatives, art-lovers and enthusiasts of Newport!

147 Commercial Street, Newport NP20 1LN

Firstly, thank you for your support of The Project Space in Newport over 2014 and into 2015. It has been an amazing time for all the team involved with starting up and developing this project in Newport. It has been both our pride and our honour to work with and support so many amazing and passionate people who want to see and experience even more arty goings on in our city. But the time has now come to gather feedback to feed back to our funders about what you felt the successes were of the project.

Initiated by Sally-Anne Evans, the Community Arts development officer at The Riverfront Theatre & Arts Centre, The Project Space has been funded by the Arts Council of Wales, Welsh National Government and The National Lottery to run for 1 year as a short term project. What has become clear over the last year is that space like The Project Space is both sorely needed, regularly used and highly valued in the city – and as such, we need your help.

On Tuesday 14th July, between 5:30pm and 6:30pm – we’d love it if you could pop in and give us your comments and feedback. Let us know:

How were you involved with The Project Space? Did you put on an event at the space? Did you visit one of our events?

What did having a space like this allow you to do?

What did you think we did well?

What would you like to see more of?

How well does the space connect with our community in Newport?

Did having the space increase your access or awareness to other arty goings on in the city?

Did having the space create opportunities for professional artists and creatives to create work and engage with community groups in Newport?

How do you think we could improve?

If you can’t make it on the night, feel free to email you comments to project leader Sally-Anne Evans at sally-anne.evans@newportlive.co.uk

Looking forward to seeing you there! The Project Space team x

LIFE ART ON TOUR – A week of exhibitions and life drawing at The Project Space

FREE – 22nd June – 27th June 2015 – 10am to 4pm daily

DROP-IN Life Drawing Sessions – WEDS / THURS / FRI (tbc)

This month we welcome our resident life drawing class – CARDIFF LIFE MODELS to The Project Space with their exhibition LIFE ART ON TOUR. With partner hosts Carnegie House in Bridgend and Jacob’s Market Gallery in Cardiff, the exhibition will feature work by students who have attended the weekly life drawing sessions run by the group across South Wales, showcasing a wide variety of media and stylistic approaches to figurative work. Pieces of artwork will be on sale during the event – please contact event organiser Andy Lamb for details.

In addition, CARDIFF LIFE MODELS will be hosting a number of drop in life drawing sessions during the week for visitors to have a go at themselves. These sessions are open to all and suitable for all abilities – materials provided.

PLEASE NOTE: Nudity and the human form are key elements of this exhibition. Some adults bringing children and /or young people to this exhibition may deem parental guidance advisory.

For more information about this event or life drawing classes in your area, please contact Andy Lamb via welshlamb@me.com or visit www.cardifflifemodels.co.uk

drift: A photographic exhibition by students at University of South Wales, Newport

FREE – Opens: 26th February: 6pm – 8pm
Continues: 27th February – 5th March 10am – 4pm

This week at The Project Space, we welcome 2nd year BA(Hons) Photographic Art students from the University of South Wales to present Drift, a collective exhibition of visual artworks about the River Usk, connecting waterways, and its surrounding land.

For the last twenty weeks, seventeen second year Photographic Art students have been creating works for this site-specific brief, integrating themselves within the local community, each individually responding to different aspects of the 63 mile long tidal river, creating a diverse range of personal and explorative art, with themes addressing local heritage, community, and the power of the river.

Work will be on show by photographers:

Jasmine Bell – Macarena Costan – Emma Daly – Conor Elliot – Amy Harris – Danielle Lacovou – Phillip Kenworthy

Natasha Lowe-Sellers- Rachel Lucas – Emmaleen Miller – Mihai Moldavanu – James Moore – Meg Nicholls – Brodie Phillips

Sophie Porter – Rebekah Prentice – Lacey Wheeler

SCREENING: World Community Arts Day – Film Showcase at The Riverfront

£1 ENTRY – Thursday 26th February: 6:30pm start The Riverfront Theatre & Arts Centre World Community Arts Day is a global celebration and this is the 8th year that the Community Arts team have taken part. Organised by the lovely Sally-Anne Evans and Santa Aumeistere, this year the event focuses on celebrating film and film makers in and around Newports’ communities.As part of this, the event taking place at The Riverfront Theatre & Arts Centre will be screening 10 films made by people in Newport: 1) “The Sleepover” made by Underwood Youth Club Actors: Katie Brady, Jay-Dee Wanklyn-Powell,Tonia George, Kim Cox, Harriett George, Katelyn Harvey – Film Makers: Jake Wanklyn, Joshua Belcher, India Ganner 2) ‘Where’s Walle’ made by Tom Arnold, Fairwater High School. 3) “Meals in Minutes”made by Jake Wanklyn, Joshua Belcher, India Ganner. Underwood Youth Club 4) ”Open (Except Sundays)” made by Zak Campbell, Santa Aumeistere. Newport Film School 5) ”Encrypted” made by Jake Mitchell, Patrick Coughlan-Allen, Zach F Evans, Jacob Fretwell. Newport Film School 6) ”Study Of The Iron Horse” made by Steve Jones 7) ”Made in Chile” made by Stephanie Roberts 8) ”Newport Welcome Pack”, collaboration between, Shared Futures, The Young Asylum Seekers Support service, Welsh Refugee Council and GAVO. 9) ”Communities 1st”, Pentalk labs And Communities first and Mohamad Fez Miah 10) ”Happy Newport”, The Big Splash festival in Newport What’s more is that you have a chance to vote for your most engaging film on the night – be sure to check out some of our home grown talent in Newport! Please contact sally-anne.evans@newport.gov.uk for more information, or visit: https://www.facebook.com/events/1068844709798983

Newport International Airspace – more workshops coming up!

Newport International Airspace are a group of professional artists who work collaboratively with others to showcase the talent, space and diversity within and around Newport. The next in a series of workshops, talks and events in the city, (you may well have seen photos from photographer Jo Haycocks’ workshop from last weekend – fully booked before we could promote it!) we’re proud to be supporting their latest workshops in the next coming weeks at The Project Space.

FREE to attend – booking essential, age restrictions may apply. Please contact via http://niabroadcast.com BEFORE attending.

MAKING PERFORMANCE – Saturday 14th February 2015

Gareth Clark is one half of Mr and Mrs Clark, the Newport based performance duo and is running an introductory workshop based on his performance practice. This workshop is ideal for adults and will involve some movement so loose, comfortable clothing is recommended.

MOVEMENT & MARK MARKING – Saturday 21st February 2015

Led by Marega Palser, also of Newport International Airspace, join us for a session of movement and drawing. The session will involve some movement so loose, comfortable clothing again is recommended.

We Need You – Supporting The Project Space in 2015.

To all the artists, creatives, art-lovers and enthusiasts in and around Newport.

Firstly, thank you for your support of The Project Space over 2014 and into 2015. It has been an amazing time for all the team, both the part-time staff and all the volunteers involved with starting up and developing the project in Newport. It has been both our pride and our honour to work with so many amazing and passionate people who want to see and experience even more arty goings on in our city. We’ve learnt some lessons along the way, but we’re all unanimous in the fact we want to keep building it into something more.

Initiated by Sally-Anne Evans, the Community Arts development officer at The Riverfront Theatre & Arts Centre, this project has been supported by Newport City Council, it was further funded by the Arts Council of Wales, Welsh National Government and The National Lottery to run for 1 year as a short term project. What has become clear over the last 9 months however, is that space like The Project Space is both sorely needed, regularly used and highly valued in the city – and as such, we need your help.

 

We want to turn this project into a long term, more permanent feature on our high street, and to support our funding applications and development plans, we are beginning to gather statements of support for The Project Space to give our funders, both future and present, absolute confidence in their decision to place faith in this project, and highlight the important role it has in supporting culture and creative professionals in Newport.

This is where you come in. Your voice is needed to convince the powers that be that they should support The Project Space for another year, two years, even more! To do this, we need to gather letters of support, comments and feedback as to why spaces like this are sorely needed. They need to know if it has been a success, and why.

It would be awesome if you could spare a few minutes of your time to help us with it. Please email either myself, Kate Mercer at theprojectspacenpt@gmail.com or Sally-Anne Evans at sally-anne.evans@newport.gov.uk by the the end of March, or to ask for more information about how you can support this project.

 

Thank you for your help in advance – The Project Space team x 

MOLECULE: Tin Shed Theatre Company and Dino Rovaretti

Tuesday 10th February – 7.30pm – £3 tickets (includes a free glass of wine / beer)

The brainchild of Newport’s Tin Shed Theatre Company, Molecule is a new project development scheme that offers space, resource, opinion, and financial support to artists seeking a platform for work in it’s early, physical stages of development.

The very first Molecule sharing will see Newport born Dino Rovaretti develop a new autobiographical piece of work, entitled: Made Of Paper. Dino Rovaretti is a Newport born Performing Artist who recently graduated from Falmouth University and is currently based in Bristol.

Molecule is open to Welsh and International participants, and aims to assist the creation and development of new work that falls under the category of ‘Theatre’ ‘Performance’ or ‘Live Art’.

Supported by National Theatre Wales:TEAM and The Project Space, Tin Shed Theatre Company aim to run Molecule twice a year. For more information on Molecule, and information on how to pick up tickets, please visit: http://tinshedtheatre.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/molecule-sharing.html

NEWPORT SURVEY 2014: An exhibition by Documentary Photography Students at the University of South Wales, Newport

Opening – Thursday 22nd January, UPSTAIRS from 5pm.

This week we welcome the photographers Fergus Thomas, Luke Webster, Paul Fox, Danielle Jane Allen, Tom Farmer and Lua Ribeira, presenting work made in and around Newport on the theme of ‘Communities’. The exhibition continues until Friday 31st January – check out the groups Facebook page for more details: https://www.facebook.com/events/544574492312334/

National Theatre Wales TEAM – Workshop & Skill Swap

SATURDAY 17th JANUARY – 10:15am – 4:30pm

Do you have an idea / script / dream, which you’re not sure how to get off the ground? Are you looking to get involved in new projects and find new collaborators? Are you a theatre-maker who’d like to meet other theatre-makers and play for a day?

If you answered yes to any of these questions – Workout is definitely for you!

Already taken place in Cardiff, Swansea and Bangor, this session is the latest in a series of day long events that gives creative people a chance to get ideas off the ground and meet fellow theatre-makers.

As well as a chance to work on participants’ projects, the day includes a Skill Swap session.  This gives you a chance to find the help you need when you need it, in return for helping others out on their projects. A wide range of skills are encouraged from acting, directing, cake baking to photography, unicycle riding or singing . . .the list goes on! The balloons and sweets come free.

All are welcome at these events – please email team@nationaltheatrewales.org to let them know you’re coming!

Next session: Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff – 21st February 2015.

For more information about TEAM, please visit: http://nationaltheatrewales.org or search for National Theatre Wales TEAM on Facebook.

DISCOVER DANCE at The Project Space – 10th to 22nd November 2014

Discover Dance, Newport’s annual dance festival, is back for 2014 with an array of performances, dances and events across our city.  Not only will there be opportunities to see top professionals perform many different dance styles in Newport, but there will be plenty of opportunities for everyone to get involved and learn some new moves, or show off the ones you already know!

As part of this, The Project Space brings you FREE Yoga based sessions by Marega Clark for people with and without experience:

Monday 10th November – 10am – 11am

Tuesday 11th November – 10am – 11am

Wednesday 12th November – 11.15am – 12.15am

Friday 14th November – 10am – 11am

…just bring a mat, a towel or something to lie on to take part!

Marega will also be leading dance and movement drawing sessions through as part of Discover Dance festival, More details of events and performances to be announced this week – watch this space for details!