John Street Gallery Proposals

About SVA

SVA has a well-established 25 year track record with its artist focused collaborative approach to producing innovative engaging work. SVA provides studio, project, exhibition, event, rehearsal and online spaces, working with many talented artists, groups, producers, curators and arts industry partners locally, regionally and internationally.

In 2019 -20 (pre Covid) SVA worked with 2180 artists with a programme of exhibitions, open studios, performances, film screenings, radio projects and festivals which were visited by over 40,000 people. SVA is continuing to develop the Goods Shed Project particualarly The shipping container workspace development is building on our well established reputation as a studio space provider in the region.

As an Arts Council National Portfolio Organisation, SVA’s programme of work is aligned to their new 10 year ‘Lets Create’ strategy with a particular focus on inclusivity and relevance. After 25yrs hugely successful years we have been reviewing fundamentally why are we here, what we do, and how we do it. The essential changes invoked by Black Lives Matter and the Covid pandemic have added to this imperative. We have been marking this critical point in our history through a series of rethinking exercises with trustees, staff, artists, friends of SVA and community activists as to how we can strengthen our development and delivery work to ensure we are engaging in more radical, diverse and relevant ways in the coming years.

More recently “We Are Community – Are We” a space invited over 150 people to come into the gallery over a 2 month period to take part in creative thinking and making sessions to support SVA in developing our future programme around Inclusion and Relevance. As a result of this we will be take a stronger focus on developing more community engagement plans for the John St Gallery programme over the next 4 years.

John St Gallery Archive

To give you an idea of the John St Gallery programme you can have a look here for images and films of previous exhibitions, residencies and events:

SVA John St Gallery Instagram

SVA website project archive

John St Gallery aims and wider community engagement

SVA will offer the John St Gallery for selected exhibitions, residencies and events on a free basis for projects that are focused on meeting our aims outlined below. Exhibitions with works for sale will be on a negotiated commission & hire basis (see below).

SVA is committed to programming work that actively encourages people from the wider community beyond the local arts audience to take part, get involved and engage with what we have to offer.

We are keen in using our highly visible space to show experimental and innovative work that find ways of encouraging of people to engage with the work through collaborative processes such as making, performance and discussion sessions.

As part of the programming for the gallery SVA is actively working on an online work such as film and audio broadcasts that gives a voice to artist. The work could extend to involving contributions from visitors to the gallery and the wider community.

We would like artists and curators to consider how they might engage with digital broadcasts within the project proposal to help promote the work and build a digital audience and archive.

SVA will prioritise and support the projects that are actively working on engaging in experimental ways to engage with the wider community. We also committed to supporting young artists to make and show new work.

We are focusing on supporting a programme of exhibitions, events and residencies that produce:

• greater access to and understanding of contemporary artistic processes

• work with themes around the current political, social and environmental debates

• participative community based activities embedded in or associated within the project

• a digital presence through film and audio work to reach a wider online audience

• new collaborative partnerships with other artists and community groups

Exhibitions with works for sale

SVA will offer the gallery on for exhibitions with works for sale which would be on a negotiated commission & hire basis.

Commission basis: A commission of 25% will be charged on sales for short-term agreements. Commission splits on longer term agreements (over 6 months) will be negotiated or waived depending on the partnership, artistic or commercial nature of the project. Commission is 25% which can be off set against the hire cost.

Hire basis: Hire costs start from £150 a week depending on time of year. Price is variable dependant on the season and commercial nature of show.

How to apply

There is no fixed deadline as we are interested in receiving proposals all year round.

Proposal Form

Please complete the proposal form here

Images

If you have a Google account you can upload images and any additional background material via the upload link on the proposal form

If you don’t have a Google account you can send images and any additional background material to office@sva.org.uk

Or add a weblink to your website or instagram account on the proposal form

General agreement conditions

• Utilities are included unless extra heating is used

• Business Rates will not be applicable

• Public Liability will be covered by SVA

• All other exhibition costs would be the responsibility of artists group/collective

• All invigilation will be the responsibility of the artists. The gallery must be open a minimum of 10hrs per week (to include Sat daytime)

• SVA will use existing marketing resources to support the exhibition programme

• There maybe opportunities to organise fundraising events at SVA to support the programme

• The organisers will agree to upload and share website/ social media posts and links and display

  SVA logos on publicity

• The organisers will agree to share audience data with SVA