If you’re an artist, a creative or part of a cultural organisation or if you’re just interested in supporting the cultural sector in Plymouth, join us on our first ever ‘Creative Conversation’.

We have developed this event, in partnership with creative organisations, to open a conversation by posing the question ‘What are we going to do about culture in Plymouth?’.

This question is timely and pertinent and so we are creating this time and space to be able to delve into this with stakeholders from all sectors.

For more details, please read Plymouth Culture CEO. Hannah Harris’ invitation letter below.

Places are free, but you must register here

(Booking closes 20th March)

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Invitation Letter from Plymouth Culture CEO, Hannah Harris:

What are we going to do about culture in Plymouth?

I talk about culture a lot, you may have noticed! I believe passionately in the power of arts and culture and the profound impact it can have on the economy and society. I have dedicated the last 20 years of my career to advocating for culture, firstly through sport, then creative education and now sector development and cultural-placemaking. But I can’t help but feel that, despite my best efforts, the role and importance of culture is still not fully understood or valued.

At times is seems like it is, and that maybe others share my believe in its power, because creatives and cultural organisations are increasingly being asked to support, or even solve, wider societal problems; they are supporting fields such as education, tolerance, mental wellbeing, sustainability and public space to name but a few. And that’s a good thing, right?

Yet somehow, this doesn’t feel like the right way to value the sector. Expecting culture to come to the rescue of society whilst continuing to cut funding, strip it out of the national curriculum and failing to give the sector an equal seat at the decision-making table isn’t value. It’s extractive, exhausting and unsustainable.

So what am I doing wrong? Why am I still not able to tell the story well enough for people to take note and take action? Why are we still on the edge being asked to ‘make the case for culture’ again and not embedded?

Then I stop and remind myself that the most important questions is, what am I going to do about it? And I remember we are a city with an incredible cultural ecology and a shared ambition to value and celebrate our cultural community; that the creative and cultural organisations here are world-class and community rooted, and that others are also working hard to sustain and grow our cultural ecology for the benefit of everyone. And I know in my gut I am not the only one feeling this way, or asking these questions or prepared to do something about it.

So I extend a heartfelt invitation to you to join our first ever Creative Conversation and to explore the question - What are we going to do about culture in Plymouth? We invite you not because we think you will simply agree with us because we know we all bring a different perspective, personal and professional, but that we have a set of shared values that make this question of culture and Plymouth timely and pertinent to all of us.

This conversation will be facilitated by Improbable, a theatre company who specialise in using a process called Open Space Technology (OST). OST is a simple way for groups of people to think, work and take action together around a shared concern. There is no set agenda and you decide what to discuss. You are free to move between conversations in a single session depending on what interests you. You can read more about Improbable and Open Space here

We decided on Open Space because we feel it creates the time and space we need to do this question justice, to avoid predetermining outcomes and to invite real conversation.

That’s what we want, real conversation, which we welcome you to join.

Hannah Harris, CEO Plymouth Culture