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Posted by: jenni

urbanflo's founding Director, Jenni Lewin-Turner was part of the Sustained Theatre UK delegation to the Grahamstown Festival in South Africa last July, and will be returning this year as a producer for Nanzikambe Art's South African and UK theatre tour in 2010/11. She was also invited to participate as the sole UK representative at the Diaspora Vibe Gallery's 3rd International Biennale - "As Far As The Eye Can See". This dynamic cultural exchange programme was a huge success and took place in Puerto Rico from 11 -15 March in conjunction with Universidad del Sagrado Corazón.

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Jenni is urbanflo's founding Director and a highly experienced project manager and creative consultant, specialising in producing, programming and promoting artists of all disciplines. Jenni has a passionate and extensive history in arts management, arts marketing, audience development, and theatre/venue management. Her exceptional leadership and organisational skills have enabled her to successfully deliver a wide variety of arts related and business development projects. She has been responsible for devising events of every description from conception through to production and evaluation, in roles that combine strategic planning, programming and production management for challenging and inclusive projects.

Jenni’s core work involves producing a range of creative activities focussed on promoting social inclusion within the arts sector – making the transition from mere ideology into action and aligning grassroots communities with high quality creative products. Her more recent transition into the international arts arena has enabled her to combine her academic and professional careers, to research and develop a collaborative interdisciplinary project to connect disparate artists and communities in the Caribbean, South Africa, USA, South America, Canada, Australia and of course the UK.

Jenni holds a Masters degree in Cultural Leadership, and is on the board of Creative Future and KALAPHOOL – both cultural agencies with a core vision to align grassroots communities with high quality arts activity. She is also co-vice Chair of Sustained Theatre – an artist-led national initiative developing a space for creative connections, conversations and collaborations. Jenni appears in the Cultural Leadership Programme's top 50 Women To Watch list, which features female leaders, directors, producers and curators from across the UK. Current projects in her eclectic portfolio include:

mentoring MA students at City University, London
delivering an artists’ consultation programme on behalf of Sustained Theatre
developing a continuing professional development (CPD) programme for creative practitioners in the Caribbean
researching an inter-disciplinary creative exchange programme to take place in the UK, Caribbean, Canada, Australia, Argentina, USA and South Africa
producing a theatre tour in South Africa and the UK
producing a symposium and creative showcase
strategic planning, fundraising and organisational development for several arts agencies

Sarah is Director of Cusp inc and is a highly respected consultant, trainer, coach and arts practitioner. She has an extensive track record working in the arts with arts organisations, disability organisations and funders and in education and television. Central to Sarah's approach is the exploration of how we put up barriers and how we might develop strategic and striking ways to remove them together to realise a more inclusive society. Sarah is passionate about people, about challenging inequalities and transforming how people feel about their lives. Sarah strongly believes that arts and culture should be accessible to all. She works with a collective of artists and inspirational people to infuse the delivery of her programmes of work.

Rosaria is a research consultant, university lecturer and educationalist. She enjoys working in different environments where there is a need to use initiative and creativity to accomplish goals. She has successful record of working with grassroots organisations, community groups, university departments and with the IT and digital media industries, through the provision of research support, organisational development advice and creative solutions to reach their aims. Some of the many skills developed through her work are:

the ability to communicate with very different audiences in clear formats, bridging sectors and agendas;
the use of diplomatic skills and creative ways to tackle conflict resolution;
the capacity to support the client group to work well under pressure in large and small groups where there is a need to multitask and fulfil tight deadlines;

Rosaria is also a practicing artist, and has extensive experience as a dancer, performer and choreographer, working with groups and individuals to approach issues in an effective yet flexible and celebratory manner. She specialises in exploring the links between Western and Yoruban (Nigeria, Brazil and Cuba specifically) dance forms.
Rosaria holds a PhD in Philosophy and Masters in Environment, Development and Policy.

Alison is the Director of ALM Associates, a consultancy offering a range of services for arts and cultural organisations and individual artists. Her passion is ‘people’. Exploring creative approaches to promote participation in cultural activity is central to Alison’s approach.
Alison enjoys offering a flexible service that is tailored according to the particular needs of her clients – be they individuals, grassroots organisations, small arts organisations or large cultural institutions.
Services include: visioning, programme design, strategic development, project and events management, fundraising, evaluation, training, facilitation, research and consultation. Alison also works as a Creative Agent for Creative Junction (Creative Partnerships Thames Valley).
Alison’s many interests have found her working in a diverse range of settings – ranging from Diamond Light Source, the cutting edge science facility in South Oxfordshire, to museums and galleries, residential care homes, schools and hospitals. As former Director of ITHACA (2000-2007), Alison developed a reputation for strong leadership and innovative work in the fields of arts and older people, disability arts, intergenerational practice, arts and heritage and arts education.
One of Alison’s key strengths is brokering new collaborations and partnerships between artists, arts and cultural organisations and public and voluntary sector bodies - including hospitals, social care providers and schools.
Clients include/have included: Arts Council England SE, Barton Sings, Buckinghamshire County Arts Partnership, Bracknell Forest Borough Council, Creative Junction, DADA South, Diamond Light Source, Modern Art Oxford, No Handbags Theatre Company, Oxfordshire County Museum Service, Oxford Concert Party, Oxford Inspires, Oxford Film and Video Makers, Oxfordshire Theatre Company, Stantonbury Campus, The University Museums of Oxford, Vale of White Horse District Council.
Alison has a BA (Hons) in Fine Art and Aesthetics (University of Wales Cardiff 1994) and an MA in Cultural Leadership (City University 2008)..

Laura has many years of experience in children's publishing and academia. She worked for seven years in the children's publishing industry in the United States, helping to produce winners of the Coretta Scott King Award and American Library Association Notable Book selections, amongst others. She also worked at Children's Book Press in San Francisco, and was an editor at Lee & Low Books in New York City - both publishers of multicultural picture books. She then completed an MA in Children's Literature at Roehampton University in London, and has done postgraduate work in the area of multicultural children's publishing in the UK at the University of Newcastle. She has extensive experience running children's literature conferences and events, which includes being a steering committee member for the Diversity Matters: Growing Markets in Children's Publishing conference, sponsored by Arts Council England.

Judith's career in Arts Administration started in 1984 when she co-founded and ran African Kalubash Dance Company, Nottingham 1984-1987. By 1986, she joined Adzido Pan-African Dance Ensemble as an Administrative Assistant, where she assisted in the co-ordination of the Youth Opportunities scheme run by the organisation; in 1987 she joined the performance side of the company and stayed until 1996. Since then, Judith has taught dance both nationally and internationally and was associate lecturer in African dance on the Dance and Culture BA (Hons) degree programme at the University of Surrey, Guildford from 1996-98. Judith is the currently the Administration Manager for IRIE! Dance Theatre. She holds a PG Diploma in Dance Studies and was an African Dance lecturer on the UK's first accredited dance training programmes in African and Caribbean dance. Judith continues to freelance/Mentor as an Arts Administrator for semi-professional companies and individuals, and is a member of the Board of the Association of Dance of the African Diaspora [ADAD].

Dominique is a published writer, working in the industry for the last ten years. She is a qualified adult education teacher and LAPIDUS mentor. She was writer in residence at the First Base Day Centre, a place of safety for homeless and vulnerable adults in Brighton from 2003-2008 where she established the First Base Arts Project. Dominique also established the charity Creative Future with partner Simon Powell to bridge the gap between the community arts and the professional arts sectors in the South East. Creative Future provides talented marginalised artists and writers opportunities to earn income from their creative work. The organisation gives those excluded by society the chance to reintegrate through their own talents by providing training, support, exhibiting and publishing opportunities, selling & promoting their work at the highest levels. Creative Future also raises the profile of individual artists/writers and the organisations they access, whilst challenging public stereotypes of marginalised people.

Rachael has extensive project management and artist management experience, plus specialist experience in website development and Viral Marketing acquired in her role as Marketing Liaison for an internationally acclaimed design company in New Zealand. Rachel is also a practicing artist and illustrator with successful exhibitions in the UK, Australia, America, France and New Zealand. She also studied graphic design, printmaking and photography, and developed www.artistinsite.com, which enables her to combine her own creative practice with Arts Marketing, helping other international artists to develop professionally, promote themselves effectively and foster collaborative relationships with other artists and curators.

ART:sync is a consortium of creative professionals from across the cultural sector with a common interest in sharing innovative concepts and the equality of opportunity in the arts. The ART:sync vision is to align grassroots communities with high-quality arts activity, and the group are committed to making diverse artforms accessible to diverse audiences. ART:sync's core membership includes practicing artists, producers and community agents;

Indy Hunjan - Creative Producer, Director of KALA PHOOL & Rising Styles
Nigel Ryan - Interior Architect, Graphic Designer, Gallery Owner, Director of SKOOLZ ART
Ruth Price - Director of Glu Consultancy: Ethical PR Agency
Wayne James - Producer, co-Proprietor of Shae Shae Creations
Hash Varsani - Photographer, Graphic Designer, co-Director of Varsani+Richardson
Gary Redding - Festival Director, Composer, Sound & Film Editor, Producer - Baobab Studios
Odi Oquosa - Visual Artist, Poet, Shamen, Workshop Leader
Irene Mensah - Visual Artist, Community Arts Co-ordinator, Dance Specialist
Philippa Vafadari - Theatre Director, Actress, Aerialist, Director of BandBazi Circus Theatre
Jaita Patel - Freelance Community Artists, Graphic Designer, Photographer, Fillmmaker
Rikki Tarascas - Actor, Theatre & Film Director, Writer, Visual Artist