The Building Bridges through Contemporary Arts(BBTCA) Project is a University of Brighton (UoB) Initiative facilitated through Responsible Futures, Centre of Arts and Wellbeing (CAW), Centre of Change, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management (CENTRIM), Crossing Cultures Series (CCS) together with African Artists’ Foundation (AAF).
The project is led by Marina Novelli (Academic Lead, Responsible Futures and Professor of Tourism and International Development) in collaboration with Maria Pia Bernardoni (UoB BBTCAProject Facilitator and International Project Coordinator at AAF), Duncan Bullen and Dr Charlotte Gould and respective teams from the University of Brighton School of Arts.
Find out more about each partner…
Responsible Futures
Through Responsible Futures we harness change to enhance the delivery of sustainable economic development, improved environments and more inclusive societies
Responsible Futures research generates new ideas to positively influence policy, practice and behaviours. By bringing together interdisciplinary expertise, we explore opportunities to create more just and environmentally sustainable societies, including research into the circular economy, sustainable tourism, ethical and green business practices, sustainable health and the blue economy. Our engagement with external partners enables us to have an impact locally, nationally and globally.
Centre for Arts and Wellbeing (CAW)
The Centre for Arts and Wellbeing at the University of Brighton develops research and enterprise initiatives that directly benefit the wellbeing of individuals and communities, innovating in a wide range of practices where the arts improve people’s lives.
The university has a long and illustrious history in art and design practices, medicine and healthcare, and was a pioneer in community engagement and co-productive research. The Centre for Arts and Wellbeing brings these strengths together, fostering novel, vital, creative and collaborative modes and methods through which a range of health and wellbeing issues are investigated and brought to public benefit.
Research in this area makes a vital contribution to contemporary cultural life for communities well beyond the university, while refining the academic understanding of how and why the development of arts and wellbeing interweave.
Centre for Change, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management (CENTRIM)
The Centre for Change, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management (CENTRIM) is a Centre for Research and Enterprise Excellence within the Brighton Business School.
Working with partners in industry, academia and government, we strive to produce groundbreaking concepts to explain, harness and improve innovation, entrepreneurship and change management.
Our work tackles the complex problems facing economies, businesses, and wider society. We are committed to academic research of international excellence, providing scientific evidence and generating new insights into the processes of enterprising and managing innovation and change. We generate data to test new theories and transfer our findings into boardrooms and beyond. Our research follows high academic standards and is published in international peer-reviewed academic conferences and journals.
Crossing Cultures
Crossing Cultures aims to support an inclusive approach to the learning experience in order to offer a curriculum which reflects a diverse learning community. Through our creative community we engage with artists, designers and alumni with talks and workshops promoted through the Crossing Cultures blog. This also provides a publishing platform for content developed by students and staff with interviews and recommended exhibitions, events and talks. Through this project, we invite debate on how we can enhance our curriculum to make it more inclusive and diverse with opportunities for creative contributions from students and staff to enhance our cultural capital.
African Artists’ Foundation (AAF)
African Artist’s Foundation (AAF) is a non-profit organisation dedicated to the promotion and development of contemporary African art. The underlying tenets of AAF are capacity building peer support and advocacy.
Established in 2007 in Lagos, Nigeria, African Artists’ Foundation aims to encourage the highest standard of art in Africa. African Artists’ Foundation serves a significant role in art and academic communities through organizing art exhibitions, festivals, competitions, residencies, and workshops with the aim of unearthing and developing talent, creating societal awareness, and providing a platform to express creativity. By providing assistance to professional and emerging artists in Africa and support to international exhibitions and community outreach programmes, African Artists’ Foundation views the contribution to a strong cultural landscape in Africa as a transformative element in driving social change.
In addition to a rigorous programme of exhibitions and workshops at its gallery in Lagos, African Artists’ Foundation organises two flagship projects annually, the LagosPhoto Festival and the National Art Competition.