WEFT STUDIO 2023 GETS UNDERWAY
The Weft Studio gets underway with the arrival of international mentor Connor Allen.
Weft Studio, designed to foster talent development and community building for emerging and early career black and global majority artists, brings together a group of eight exceptional artists for a journey of artistic exploration and growth led by award-winning writer and creative producer Shannon Yee. The eight participating artists are Debora Adachi, Matthew Sharpe, Clodagh Boyce, Georgie Lynch, Karen Aguiar, Mai Ishikawa, Daranijoh Sanni (E The Artist) and Shauna Harris.
Connor Allen joins Weft Studio this week as an international mentor. With his invaluable knowledge, artistic insights and expertise, Connor will guide and inspire the participating artists through insightful interventions and creative exchanges.
Throughout the week, the Weft Studio artists will engage in workshops, discussions and creative explorations under Shannon and Connor’s guidance and mentorship. The exchange of ideas and the cultivation of a strong artistic community will form the cornerstone of their journey. As the artists delve into a week of collaboration, play, experimentation and learning, Weft Studio sets a promising precedent for the artistic landscape in Ireland and beyond.
Stay tuned for updates on Weft Studio and the progress of these emerging artists as they embark on a six-month journey of artistic development and self-discovery.
Weft Studio is funded by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon and supported by British Council Ireland and Community Foundation Ireland.
Connor Allen is an award-winning multidisciplinary artist and the Children’s Laureate Wales (2021-2023). He has written for BBC Wales, BBC Radio 4, Wales Millennium Centre, Sherman Theatre, Dirty Protest, and others, and is a former member of the BBC Wales Welsh Voices and The Welsh Royal Court writing groups. His work is heavily inspired by elements of his own life including grief, love, masculinity, identity and ethnicity. An actor graduate from Trinity Saint David, he wrote and performed in his acclaimed debut show The Making of a Monster at the Wales Millennium Centre in 2022 (playtext published by Aurora Metro Books). He was the 2023 winner of the Imison Award at the BBC Audio Drama Awards for his debut audio drama The Making of a Monster. He has also won the Rising Star Wales Award and was a Jerwood Live Work Fund recipient. His debut poetry collections Dominoes (For general audiences) and Miracles (For children) were published in 2023 by Lucent Dreaming. He is Associate Artist of his hometown theatre The Riverfront in Newport.