Bradford Artists Receive Support for New Creative Projects

July 21, 2026 Off By

Local talent to develop diverse arts initiatives through Bradford Culture Company

Several artists across Bradford have been selected to receive funding and support for new creative projects as part of the 2026 round of the Artist Awards programme. The awards are administered by Bradford Culture Company, the organisation responsible for delivering the Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture events. The initiative aims to invest in local creative practitioners and foster cultural participation within the district.

Details of the 2026 Artist Awards projects

The selected projects cover a broad range of artistic disciplines, including theatre, dance, writing, visual arts, and community engagement. The artists and their projects are as follows:

Vespertine Garden – Amy and Emma-Jo Bairstow will create an immersive installation featuring UV-lit sculptural plants and creatures. The project engages young people with biodiversity loss and environmental stewardship, culminating in an exhibition at South Square Centre.
TO LEAVE THIS SOIL ALTERED – Kamal Kaan’s devised live installation combines contemporary dance, music, and poetic storytelling to explore themes of love, resilience, and belonging through the metaphor of horticulture.
The Memory House – Joachim Keke will premiere an immersive Afro-diasporic dance-theatre experience focusing on memory, migration, identity, and belonging, using movement, sound, and audience participation.
Gardens of Frizinghall – Munaza Kulsoom will develop a series of zines and an exhibition created with South Asian residents, highlighting the gardens in the Frizinghall area through photography, interviews, and workshops.
Multilingual Community Theatre Project – Kauser Mukhtar will explore creating a new puppet-based theatre piece inspired by a satirical poem by Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore. The project will involve local communities and aim to produce versions in multiple South Asian languages.
Birth Mum – Kirsty Taylor’s site-specific theatre show will focus on the experiences of women who have had their children removed. The project includes collaboration with women’s services professionals and individuals with lived experience.
Fierce Little Things – Ella Tighe will conduct research and development for a dance-theatre show co-created with local competitive Disco Freestyle dancers aged 16-21, exploring themes of girlhood and ambition.
CONDUIT – Landscape painter Anji Timlin will produce a new body of work inspired by Bradford’s rewilding post-industrial rivers, with two exhibitions planned in Keighley and Ilkley. The project involves community workshops and collaborations.

Programme objectives and community impact

The Artist Awards continue Bradford Culture Company’s efforts to support local creative talent and maintain the cultural momentum generated by Bradford’s year as UK City of Culture in 2025. The programme is designed to enable artists to develop their practice while increasing opportunities for the public to engage with arts and culture across the district.

Jenny Harris, Director of Programme at Bradford Culture Company, commented on the 2026 awards:

“The breadth of applications was fantastic, and it was a joy to see the enthusiasm and energy that shone through. The selected artists and projects really capture the spirit of Bradford, our storytelling, passion for nature, and want for our community and place to be embedded into the work we create.”