Find out more about the young artists on our Creative Futures programme.

Name: Sarah Selby

Age: 24

Art form: Mixed media

What made you apply for Creative Futures?

After graduating last year and moving to a new city, the loss of my creative network and resources was challenging. The living room became my make-shift studio, which wasn’t ideal for me or my housemates (thanks for understanding guys!). Creative Futures offers a shared studio with other creatives to bounce ideas with – which is already increasing my productivity. I also struggled to find a manageable work-life balance, and as a result my practice suffered. Creative Futures offers the opportunity to learn how to combine the two as a freelancer, so that really appealed to me.

Tell us about the piece of work you’re currently making.

I’m interested in exploring how we project ourselves through the technology we create, and how it can develop and alter our understanding of ‘self’. I’m currently investigating how we can use our uniquely human traits as a catalyst for generative design, putting us back in the driving seat of what has become a semi-automated design process. But it’s early days so that could all change!

What are you most excited to do on Creative Futures?

I’m looking forward to having the time and space to be really experimental with my practice. With the support of the Creative Futures staff who are all practicing artists, and mentoring through Rising Arts, I’m viewing it as a time to challenge myself and to push the boundaries of my creativity. Being in a shared studio with other artists from such a broad range of backgrounds is also exciting – combining different thought processes and disciplines can generate new concepts and ideas, so it will be interesting to see how we influence and shape each other’s work.

Where do you see yourself at the end of the programme?

At the end of the programme I hope that I’ll have the industry knowledge necessary to take my work to a professional level - and the confidence to work as a freelance artist! I also hope to have a much broader creative network which will hopefully lead to more opportunities.

Find out more about our Creative Futures programme.