To coincide with the German Ambassador’s visit to Wales on the 18-19th of November, Wales Arts International and Arts Council of Wales are pleased to announce Valleys Kids and German partner Emanuel Geibel School and Lübeck University of Musik as one of the awarded projects of a new pilot fund encouraging collaboration between Wales and Germany.

Cultural Bridge is a new pilot fund that marks the beginning of a new bilateral partnership between the UK’s 4 nations’ arts development agencies (Arts Council England, Arts Council Northern Ireland, Arts Council of Wales/Wales Arts International, Creative Scotland) and leading German cultural institutions (British Council Germany, Goethe-Institut and Fonds Soziokultur). The programme aims to act as a platform of exchange, enabling diverse arts practitioners to discuss social issues, whilst strengthening the exchange between the UK and Germany, and fostering cultural democracy.

The awarded collaboration between Valleys Kids (Wales) and The Emanuel Geibel School and Lübeck University of Musik (Germany) called ‘Mind The Gap’ explores the creation of a practical emerging artist network to support under-represented groups and young people, working to provide better access to the arts. The project aims to break down barriers of entry and social divides for people with fewer opportunities to engage with the arts in Wales and Germany. This collaboration is one of many developed between Wales and Germany recently, with 2021 being the Year of Wales in Germany, and has been made possible by the support of Welsh Government.

 

Speaking about the new fund, Eluned Haf, Head of Wales Arts International said
“I’m thrilled that Valleys Kids have been selected as part of Cultural Bridge. It’s a great opportunity to share and learn from the wealth of socially engaged practice they have developed to encourage young people who face social barriers to engage in their communities through the arts. As we emerge from the pandemic and in a changing world, children and young people benefit greatly from community involvement and are great advocates and learners for their own benefit as well as that of future generations.”

Miranda Ballin, Sparc Valleys Kids’ Artistic Director said
“Sparc, Valleys Kids youth arts project are thrilled to be one of the first recipients of the Cultural Bridge fund with our Mind the Gap project. We are delighted to be collaborating with our German partners at the Emanuel Geibel school and Lubek University of music. There was an immediate rapport between us. Working with young people and emerging artists from disadvantaged areas in Germany and Wales gives such hope and offers opportunities that just didn't seem possible a year ago!”

Valleys Kids is a youth arts project with a 22-year history of excellence in youth work. They work across Rhondda Cynon Taf, in some of the most disadvantaged communities in Europe, enabling young people who have little or no access to the arts to create and make their own work and to get their voices hear. In the last six years, they have been determined to enable young people to reach their potential, and established high profile partnerships with Tate, and the Wales Millennium Centre. Their embedded relationships have enabled them to work with some of the most vulnerable young people in Rhondda Cynon Taf, many of those are now emerging artists and creatives in their own right.

The Emanuel Geibel School and Lübeck University of Musik have been cooperating in the field of music theatre for years. Every year they develop music theatre performances, with participating music students and pupils from the school, which reflect on current situations in the world. In this project-oriented form of work, music students learn to accompany the process of creation, from the initial idea, to the performance, in collaboration with pupils at the school. The project works with young people of all abilities, social and ethnic backgrounds. Its inclusive approach enables the pupils to use their newly acquired knowledge to express their emotions and experiences in an artistic way.

In total, 7 projects have been awarded as part of the first year of the pilot fund. Those projects are:

Enter
Kulturvilla Nellie (Germany) & Creative Black Country (England)

Northsea Neighbours
Das Letzte Kleinod (Germany) & Shetland Arts (Scotland)

Ensemble Upvention
S27 (Germany) & Govanhill Baths (Scotland)

Staging the Hidden Words
Sommerblut Kulturfestival & Running Water (Germany) & Writing On The Wall (England)

Mind The Gap
University of Music Lübeck & Emanuel Geibel-Schule & Academy for Weird Things (Germany) & Valleys Kids (Wales)

Ode to Earth
Die Villa Leipzig (Germany) & Beyond Skin and DU Dance (Northern Ireland)

Bridgit – Building Better Bridges
Fine Arts Institute Leipzig (Germany) & Folkestone Fringe (England) & Alchemy Film & Arts (Scotland)