National success for Leeds theatre designer
David Shearing, from the School of Performance and Cultural Industries, has beaten off stiff nationwide competition to be awarded a £30,000 Sky Academy Arts Scholarship.
Around 1,000 developing artists applied for the Scholarships this year, but only five were successful. David impressed a high profile panel of judges, including the Barbican's Director of Arts, Louise Jeffreys, and the BALTIC Contemporary Art Gallery Director, Godfrey Worsdale, with his proposal for an immersive performance installation exploring the way we, as humans, experience the weather.
The winners were announced by Melvyn Bragg at the South Bank Sky Arts Awards ceremony in London.
David says: “The Scholarship gives me an incredible opportunity to spend time nurturing my practice. The funding will help support a sustained period of development. I make immersive installations that require some of the most valuable elements to any project; time, space and people to help make them happen – this funding, together with the mentorship, will provide this essential mix.
“The next stage is to inform collaborators and the venues who are supporting the project. This offers a brilliant opportunity to be bold and create an inspiring and challenging new piece of theatre – I want to take some risks."
David will begin work immediately on his installation in partnership with stage@leeds.
Above, and homepage banner picture: Images of David's 'And it all comes down to this', which won the award for Best Installation at the World Stage Design (2013) event in Cardiff.
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