Fleetwood art project Inside Out is up for award - but needs votes

The Inside Out programme, which drew on the creative talents of Fleetwood residents during the first lockdown in 2020, has been nominated for the national Creative Lives People’s Choice Award.

However, all 31 nationwide projects shortlisted for the award, which shines a spotlight on resilience and creativity during the pandemic, need to be voted for by the public via an online voting page.

LeftCoast, the Blackpool-based arts organisation which devised the Fleetwood project, hopes supporters of Inside Out will cast their vote for the project before the deadline on January 31 2022.

After its launch earlier this year, Inside Out quickly developed into a prolific collective of local artists and makers, with around 25 people involved.

Gillian Wood, a Hollywood costume designer, who has been living and working with the Fleetwood community as LeftCoast’s artist in residence for almost two years, realised the potential of fellow Fleetwood residents after she founded the Fylde Coast Scrub Hub during lockdown.

The scrub hub brought together a team of local sewers who produced more than 400 sets of scrubs for the NHS.

Gill said: “I realised how much talent there was within the group.

"People weren’t only sewing, but sculpting, knitting, making and painting.

"Not only that but people were sharing stories of people making rocking horses, designing suits and sewing wedding dresses.

"We thought that this needed celebrating, and so Inside Out was born.

"We have been genuinely amazed at the local capability and standard of the work and the breadth and amount of stuff being produced in Fleetwood."

The Inside Out exhibition ran for four weeks in June in the former Fleetwood Hospital building, which is being turned into a multipurpose community hub, and the display attracted around 500 visitors over its duration.

The work was curated by LeftCoast creative engagement manager, Laura Jamieson, and Gill, who also worked with the local artists and makers to help them turn their creations into wallpapers, fabric and furniture.

Last month some of the artists involved staged a day-long workshop to help pass on some of their skills.

And for those who missed the Inside Out exhibition the first time, a new collection - including some of the original pieces - is currently on show at the Fleetwood Hospital gallery on Thursdays and Saturdays until December 11 (Saturday).

For more details and to vote, visit https://www.creative-lives.org/inside-outWinners will be announced at the Creative Lives Awards ceremony in Coventry in early March 2022, as part of the city’s UK City of Culture celebrations.

Winners will receive an award, framed certificate,cash prize and free access to all of Creative Lives’ future ‘Creative Learning’ online training sessions.

For more information about Inside Out visit: https://leftcoast.org.uk/insideout