The School of Liberal and Creative Arts at St Mary’s University, Twickenham, is holding its inaugural Festival of Creativity from Saturday 20th April to Monday 5th May.
The Festival of Creativity is an opportunity for students and academic staff in the School of Liberal and Creative Arts to showcase their work and expertise, through 50 separate events held both on campus and in cultural and creative venues across the Borough of Richmond.
We caught up with Festival of Creativity Curator Mark Griffin and Head of School for Liberal and Creative Arts Kim Salmons about the story behind the Festival and how preparations are going.
Could you tell us a bit about your background and what your role at St Mary’s is?
Mark: I trained as a Drama teacher and spent eight years working in schools, colleges, and youth theatres before striking out full time as a freelance theatre director. I joined St Mary's in 2006 as a Senior Lecturer and have held a range of different managerial roles since then. I'm currently the Subject Lead for Partnerships in the School of Liberal and Creative Arts.
Kim: I originally come from a journalism background, having been a commissioning editor on the arts pages of the Observer Newspaper for 12 years. I also have a PhD in Modern Literature and have published three books. I am now Head of School for Liberal and Creative Arts.
What is the SCALA Festival of Creativity?
Mark: It's fifteen full on days of performances, talks, screenings, exhibitions, walking tours, live music, debates and networking events held across twelve different venues in Richmond and Hounslow.
Kim: I think Mark summed it up perfectly!
Could you tell us about the background to the Festival/how it came about?
Mark: I think there were two big ideas behind the Festival. Firstly, it's designed to publicly showcase and promote the new School. We're a new formulation, born out of the restructure last summer, and this event provides a platform to celebrate the vast range of activities, approaches, and imaginative ideas going on across the curriculum areas.
Secondly, the Festival has enabled us to reach out and make new contacts with local cultural, creative and heritage organisations, making sure they're aware of the wonderful talent pool that we have at St Mary's, whilst simultaneously developing key partnerships that we might draw on for advice, consultancy and support in the future.
Kim: In August 2023 the Humanities, Film, Acting and Creative Production programmes were brought together to form the new School of Liberal and Creative Arts. One of the first things we wanted to do was bring the students across the different disciplines together to celebrate creativity, while also taking our talent and expertise out into the local community.
The best way of doing this was through a Festival which would offer our students the opportunity to have real-world experience on local theatres and arts centres, while also allowing them to think creatively. The Festival is a prime example of how the creative industries contribute to well-being and the economy, as well as bring the staff, students, and local people of Richmond, Twickenham, and Hounslow together.
What has the preparation and organisation process been like?
Mark: We started in September with a staff/student steering group that met weekly throughout the autumn semester to suggest, develop and, occasionally, reject ideas. In the early part of the process, we were quite freewheeling, but we quickly began to consolidate and pull together the final programme, which we signed off on at the end of January. The time since then has been spent making sure all the logistics are securely in place ready for the launch on April 20th.
Kim: Mark has done an amazing job of working with staff, students, and local heritage and arts partners to create a truly remarkable festival. The logistics of organising an event on this scale are quite significant and Mark has done a wonderful job, not only for the students but for the School and the University.
Are there any Festival events that you are particularly excited to see?
Mark: There's so much going on but I'm really interested to see how the staff and students from Film convert the gallery at Richmond Riverside as a small installation venue.
Kim: I am really looking forward to the performances at the local arts centres. It's so great to see students programmed for external events. I'm also really looking forward to the Big Debate.
You can find out more about the Festival of Creativity, including ticketing and timetable information, at www.stmarys.ac.uk/fetta/school-of-liberal-and-creative-arts/festival-of-creativity/home.aspx