Opportunity: Two Queens Exhibition Makers
Two Queens is seeking 4 Leicester/shire residents to form a new collaborative project team to co-curate a group exhibition by local artists.
The group will work collaboratively through monthly sessions between April-November, to plan and curate the group exhibition, which will take place at Two Queens in Autumn 2025.
The project aims to create opportunities for local people who are interested in curation to learn more and develop new skills, alongside and with the support of Two Queens staff. A series of monthly planning sessions will allow for exchange of knowledge and skills, with the hope that Two Queens staff and our Exhibition Makers can learn from each other throughout the process. The group will organise and run an open call aimed at local artists, prepare marketing materials, design and produce the exhibition.
Participants aren’t expected to have an educational background in curation or work experience in the museums and gallery sector. We are keen to work with those who have had limited opportunities to gain curatorial experience, and recognise that intersecting factors of ethnicity, gender, sexuality, disability, neurodiversity and socio-economic background can play a role in preventing participation in the visual arts. We particularly welcome applications from people with characteristics that have been historically underrepresented in the visual arts workforce.
This project comes following Two Queens’ transition to become a community-owned co-operative. We want to understand what meaningful community co-creation can mean for us, and to involve the people who benefit from our work more directly in our projects, with the hope that our programmes can better reflect our community.
Important Details
Participants will need to be available to take part in a group session every month between April-November. We plan for these sessions to take place on Friday afternoons – dates to be finalised once participants are appointed. Sessions will take place in-person, mostly at Two Queens. Some communication and planning will take place between sessions via email or an online platform.
Participants will each be able to claim a fee of £600 for their involvement in the project. This is calculated based on a £150 freelance day rate, typical of an early career position in the visual arts in the East Midlands. Participants will take part in 8 half/day sessions, equivalent to 32 hours work.
A budget is available to support the participation of those with access needs or who are on a low income, for example to cover the costs of an access worker, or transport costs associated with the project.
Application Process
To apply, please complete the application form at:
https://forms.gle/7H9HSyxY4B6RKr139
The deadline for applications is Thursday 20th February. We do not intend to conduct interviews before appointing participants. Successful applicants will be informed in the week beginning the 24th February.
We are willing to accept applications in other formats. To discuss this please email info@2queens.com
This project is made possible by public funding from The National Lottery through Arts Council England.
Rolling Opportunity – Join our Critical Friends group
Two Queens is seeking new volunteer members for our Critical Friends Group, to help us evaluate and shape our public programmes.
We are seeking critical feedback from people who access our exhibitions and events, and in particular from those whose lived experiences have been historically under-represented in spaces like ours. Traditional evaluation methods like surveys don’t always capture the things we are doing well or that we could improve, so our aim is that receiving longer-term, in-depth feedback will help us to better improve how we meet the needs of our community.
Currently we are looking for critical friends who are either:
- Leicester-based young people aged 18-25
- Families with children aged 5-12
- Local practising artists from global majority backgrounds
- Local practising artists aged 65 plus
- Audience members who are d/Deaf or disabled
- Audience members with a Queer or Trans gender identity
As a critical friend, you will be invited to attend our exhibitions and events at a time that suits you, and have the opportunity to give feedback through a 1-2-1 conversation with Two Queens staff in person or over video chat. We anticipate these conversations will take around 30 minutes. There is no minimum commitment to take part in feedback sessions – you may want to attend some or all of the sessions you are invited to. We are unable to pay for your time, but we can reimburse travel costs within the Leicester area to and from Two Queens to allow participation.
This is a rolling opportunity with applications to join accepted at any time. To apply please complete the google form here, or contact us if you would like to make your application by alternative means: info@2queens.com