Bradford Culture Company has announced the eight projects selected to receive its legacy grants, with each initiative eligible for up to £20,000 in funding. The grants aim to sustain the cultural vibrancy established during Bradford's tenure as the UK City of Culture.
Among the recipients is the collaborative project Vespertine Garden by artists Amy and Emma-Jo Bairstow. This project will result in an immersive installation featuring UV-lit sculptural plants and creatures, to be displayed at the South Square Centre in Thornton.
Choreographer and dancer Joachim Keke is set to premiere The Memory House, an Afro-diasporic dance-theatre experience described as immersive. In Frizinghall, zine artist Munaza Kulsoom will develop an exhibition and a series of zines focused on gardening, in collaboration with South Asian residents.
Kamal Kaan, an artist, writer, and director, will present To Leave This Soil Altered, a performance combining contemporary dance, music, and poetry. Kaan previously received a Gardeners' World Magazine award for his garden in Saltaire.
Kirsty Taylor's theatre show, Birth Mum, is also among the funded projects. This show will be developed in partnership with professionals from women's services and individuals with personal experience of child removal.
Poet Kauser Mukhtar plans to create a puppet show based on a satirical poem by the renowned Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore. Additionally, Ella Tighe will present a dance-theatre piece titled Fierce Little Things, and painter Anji Timlin will contribute work to two separate exhibitions, one in Keighley and another in Ilkley.