ACAVA Hosts: Barham Park Studios Residency 2024 Artist Announced

Following a record number of applications, ACAVA has announced Nick Murray (they/them) as the new Artist-in-Residence at Barham Park Studios in Brent for 2024.

The resident artist benefits from the studio space, financial resources with bespoke support and recognition to develop their practice and impact local people in Brent. Nick was selected by a panel including: Georgia Taylor Aguilar, Curator of Professional Development at ACAVA; Annie Jael Kwan, Curator of Brent Biennial; Maxi Himpe, Performance Director and interdisciplinary Artist; and Francesca Telling, Artist and ACAVA Hosts Resident 2023-24.

Nick Murray is a working-class artist, producer and composer making interactive sonic and narrative work focusing on loss and digital cultures. This often takes the form of games, interactive poetry and performance.

They have spent the last seven years developing a body of work that questions the nature of memory and grief in the light of a rapidly hyperconnected world and the looming threat of climate collapse, creating playful environments that recontextualise well known contemporary cultural symbols. Demonstrating a strong direction in their work and grounded by compelling ideas that reflect urgent issues, Nick’s practice is both imaginative and socially engaged.

As part of the residency, Nick will receive a rent-free studio for six months, a £6,000 donation, £750 to spend on career development activities, such as a guest mentor, curatorial visits, research material or talk tickets. They will also have £750 to spend on delivering six days of public engagement through their socially engaged practice.

Tom Holley, CEO of ACAVA, said: “It is with great pleasure that I congratulate and welcome Nick Murray as our next artist-in-residence. ACAVA’s residencies are designed break down barriers in the arts and offer career development opportunities for artists from underrepresented backgrounds by providing practitioners with space, time, financial, curatorial, and pastoral support. We are dedicated to continually learning from the residency experience, ensuring its value to artists through consultation with participants, and we are looking forward to work on the residency with Nick together this year.”

Georgia Taylor Aguilar, Curator of Professional Development at ACAVA, said: “We’re delighted to be working with Nick for the next six months. They have an exciting practice that explores urgent issues such as grief and climate justice, but through accessible entry points including games and gaming as a creative practice. We can’t wait to share their work with local residents to Barham Park and Brent, who will have a hands-on chance to co-create and collaborate.”

Nick Murray, Artist, said: “After a long period of trying to sustain an arts practice with the day-to-days of work and care, it is so encouraging to be afforded the opportunity to dedicate time to exploring some new participatory artworks that are truly embedded within the local community. With the space and support given I can take some risks and explore ideas that just weren’t possible at this scale before. Especially in this moment of difficult times for the arts sector, it is incredible to see ACAVA championing socially led arts practices.”

Nick Murray will begin their residency in September 2024, with public events led by the artist taking place throughout the year. The first opportunity to meet ACAVA’s new resident is at our Barham Park Open event.

ACAVA Opens: Barham Park Studios
Saturday 14 September, 12–4pm

Visit our Barham Park Open Day and celebrate the launch of our new Flourish Zine, meet our new Artist in Residence and get a behind-the-scenes tour of the site and studios. Part of the Open House Festival.

About ACAVA

We are a leading arts education charity that evolved from artist-led initiatives in the early 1970s. For 50 years we have been amongst the UK’s most progressive affordable studio and workspace providers.
With a portfolio of 20 studio buildings, exhibition spaces and workshops across nine London boroughs, three locations in Essex and an industrial heritage site in Stoke-on-Trent we support a community of over 400 creative practitioners and cultural organisations.

A pioneer of delivering arts in health and wellbeing settings, we bring professional artists together with local communities in programmes to explore their creativity with transformational outcomes.

ACAVA stands for the Association for Cultural Advancement through Visual Art. Created as a statement of radical intent by the artist founders to use culture for social good, it remains the ethos of our organisation today.

Artist’s extended biography

Nick Murray is a working-class artist, producer and composer making interactive sonic and narrative work focussing on loss and digital cultures. This often takes the form of games, interactive poetry and performance. Nick has spent the last seven years developing a body of work that questions the nature of memory and grief in the light of a rapidly hyperconnected world and the looming threat of climate collapse, creating playful environments that reframe and recontextualise well known contemporary cultural symbols.

They are lead producer of Now Play This, the experimental game design and playful arts festival, and London’s foremost incubator for game arts. They are the Director of Playing Poetry, an organisation that champions playful and interactive literature through exhibitions, workshops and participatory events.

In 2023 Nick was selected as part of Film London’s Lodestars cohort, celebrating innovative film and game-makers across the capital. Their work has been exhibited internationally, including Festival ECRU (Brazil), National Poetry Library (England), Edwin Morgan Trust (Scotland), AMAZE (Berlin).

Artist’s website: nickmurray.horse