Coventry Creates
Coventry Creates
In spring 2020, the City of Culture University Partnership funded 18 local artists to respond to, and work with, researchers from the University of Warwick and Coventry University - resulting in a wide range of innovative artworks presented through a digital exhibition.
From social sciences to arts, to science and medicine, researchers worked with artists to create artistic commissions, resulting in a Digital Exhibition in October 2020. This was updated with 12 new projects in 2021 thanks to funding from both universities and Arts Council England.
The programme was led by Professor Jackie Hodgson (School of Law and Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research) and managed by India Holme Research and Impact Development Manager (Regional) working with project leads and colleagues at Coventry University.
“We were delighted to showcase the work of Coventry artists, who have worked closely with Warwick and Coventry researchers during these difficult and unprecedented times. The works of art highlight salient issues faced by Coventry’s residents, and illustrate the strength and resilience of both the artistic and academic communities in a time of uncertainty.”
Professor Jackie Hodgson, Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research)
Coventry Creates Digital Exhibition
View the complete digital exhibition of creative work by local artists, each an interpretation of academic research from Coventry University and University of Warwick.
Coventry Creates Brochure
The Coventry Creates brochure showcases all 30 pieces of work created by artists responding to researchers in 2020 and 2021.
The value of artist-researcher collaboration
To evaluate the success of artist-researcher collaboration on artist participants, a series of interviews were carried out. Feedback forms were gathered from all artists and researchers, providing additional insights into participants’ experiences of Coventry Creates.
From these, an evaluation of Coventry Creates and a knowledge sharing document were created.
These documents share learning from Coventry Creates, including its benefits and challenges, alongside four case studies to illustrate the experiences of artists and researchers working together for the first time. In setting out our findings, as well as lessons going forward for similar projects, we hope to help promote future successful artist-researcher collaborations - not just around City of Culture, but in all aspects of academic work.
