Peterborough Culture Forum

Providing support and a place to connect for those interested in arts and culture in Peterborough.

What started in April 2020 as an online catch-up for Peterborough’s arts network has since grown into a city-wide open group for artists, arts organisations, community groups and individuals who are interested in the arts.

Free monthly meetings about pressing arts-focused topics and sector needs relevant to Peterborough. Connect with others and get support, build partnerships, trust and skills.

Suggestions for speakers and topics are welcome.

To receive notifications about Culture Forum events, including Zoom links for online events, please sign up for the Peterborough Culture Forum newsletter.

Next Session: Monday 30th June [online session] 7.00pm-8.00pm
What do emerging artists need to thrive?

An online session with one of the Culture Forum’s new hosts, Sarah Saxby for artists. This session will explore what support artists need at the beginning of their careers. This session is designed to be useful for creatives within the first 3 years of their career, or currently studying.

You are also invited to attend if you want to provide support for emerging artists - we were all new creatives at some point - what helped you get going? What can we all do now?

What do emerging artists need to thrive?

This 50-minute online session will be the starting block of Sarah’s three culture forum sessions, all aimed at encouraging support for early career artists. This session will focus on creating a road map of what early career artists need and how established artists and organisations can facilitate those needs being met.

1. Introduce yourself and your most recent artistic struggle/roadblock to an online room of other early-career artists and creatives.

2. Share the most impactful thing an artist or organisation has done for you thus far and dig into how it really helped.

This session will end with each artist in attendance leaving with one action they can take independently, and will also be followed up with a session write-up being sent to artist, including Sarah’s own personal ‘roadmap’. 

Use the link below to RSVP for this online training session - we need to know you’re coming to be able to send you a link.

Monday 21 July, [online session] 7:00pm-8.30pm
Finding joy in a turbulent world

An online session with artist and facilitator Emily Bowers for creatives and community members. This session will explore how to reconnect with joy when life feels overwhelming or draining. This session is designed for anyone who feels like joy has escaped them - whether through constant funding applications, creative blocks, or simply feeling the weight of the world.

Emily Bowers is an artist living on the rural outskirts of Peterborough, working in both personal practice based around feelings and nature, and socially engaged practice with local communities. Having experienced challenges with self-esteem and negative headspace, they've pivoted their attention to the power of finding joy, connection, and building resilience.

Finding joy in a turbulent world

This relaxed, gentle online session will provide space to pause and turn inwards to listen to where you need a bit of joy in your life. Through tools such as journaling and drawing, we'll explore what brings each of us joy and create a personal toolkit based on what emerges during the session.

1. Take time to reflect on where joy has gone missing in your life and what might bring it back

2. Share and explore joy through creative exercises, including journaling and drawing

3. Build a personal toolkit of joy-finding strategies to take away

This session will end with each participant having their own personalised toolkit for reconnecting with joy, plus insights and inspiration shared by the group. Looking after yourself is vital and in turn will help keep the collective ship afloat.

Thursday 24 July: Jumped Up Theatre Summer Social

6-9pm at The Willow Cafe, Central Park, Peterborough.

Join us for a chilled and informal evening of celebration, connection, and good vibes as we bring together the brilliant people who make our work possible – participants, partner artists, audiences, and supporters. If you’ve been part of what we do, as a creative, participants, audience or cheerleader, we want to thank you in person.

We’ve booked a live band and local DJ Gaz Jones to soundtrack the evening, with BBQ sausages and burgers (vegetarian and vegan options available) served between 6-7:30pm, and lawn games to keep things lively. It's a chance to unwind and catch up.

This is a free event, but places are limited – RSVP is essential. You're welcome to bring partners and family – just make sure to reserve a ticket for everyone attending.

Please note: While the event is free to attend, we’ll be inviting donations on the day to help support the next wave of our Cypher programme – a dance and beatbox project for young people.

Please RSVP to let us know if you’ll be attending any of the sessions. This is essential if the session is online so we can send you the online link, and for IRL sessions it helps us plan for refreshments.

More events to be announced soon.
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