Bahzad Sulaiman, a performance maker and visual artist from Syria, now residing in Germany, who “believes that cultural heritage is an excellent way to promote social inclusion and community empowerment.”

Parham Ghalamdar, an Iranian-born painter and researcher based in the UK. “During my residency I will train an AI engine to study flags of different countries to create new ones belonging to no country. My work will be a study on borders, sense of belonging, diversity, technology, and science-fiction”.

Rita Adib, amulti-disciplinary artist also from Syria, now residing in Germany, who believes “in the importance of creating site specific work that can spark a conversation, engage and provoke the public.”

Ally Zlatar, a lecturer in Philosophy, History and visual culture, originally from Canada, now residing in Scotland, who says, “Especially after the pandemic, mental health needs to be looked after now, more than ever. Mental health can be interpreted in so many ways during this project in relation to these themes and I would love to divulge into this project with mentors and peers to create some very interesting work.“

The selected mentors for the programme, who will be guiding these artists through the residencies and creative processes, include Rachel Dobbs and Adam Broomberg.

Produced by ArtReach, as part of the Liberty EU project and Journeys Festival International. Hosted by Aspex Gallery, Portsmouth, United Kingdom, and coculture, Berlin, Germany.

INSTAGRAM: @coculture.de @aspexportsmouth @adambroomberg @racheldobbs1 @bahzad_sulaiman@ritaadib @parham.ghalamdar @allycardone

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ArtReach launched an Open Call for early-career artists and mentors to participate in LOOK UP 2021, a project exploring the role of art in public spaces. Selected artists received a £3,000 fee, plus materials and travel support, to create new site-responsive digital works for exhibition in public spaces across Europe.

The call was open to artists under 30 from refugee or sanctuary-seeking backgrounds, based in the UK or EU, and eligible to work in their country of residence. Two mentors, each receiving a £1,800 fee, were also selected to guide the artists through the creative process.

Participants attended two intensive residencies (in-person or online), developing concepts alongside experienced mentors and exploring how public messaging can shape urban environments. Final works were designed in a scalable 2D digital format for display on billboards, buses, poster sites, and other public infrastructure. The project sought bold, thought-provoking responses to the current social moment, in line with the uplifting theme of LOOK UP.