Calling Visual Interpreters!
Lancaster Arts is looking for a small group of artists, illustrators, designers and visual practitioners to help us tell the story of our interactive creative events in different ways.
Many of our projects bring together people who might not otherwise meet, creating spaces for conversation, creativity and new ways of thinking. We believe that the most meaningful parts of these experiences are often difficult to capture through photographs, reports or meeting notes alone, especially for those who were not there.
This brief sits somewhere between documentation and artistic interpretation. Rather than creating a comprehensive record of an event, we're interested in work that identifies the threads running through a conversation, notices what matters, and shapes these into compelling visual work that invites reflection.
We're looking for people who can attend these events, listen deeply and create thoughtful visual responses. These will be shared with participants, helping them reflect on and recognise something meaningful about their shared experience. They will also be shared more widely, offering others a glimpse into the ideas, atmosphere, relationships and moments of connection that emerged.
What we're looking for
We're creating a pool of 3 to 5 people based in north Lancashire or south Cumbria.
You don't need previous experience of creating visual interpretations of events. We're more interested in your ability to:
listen with care and curiosity
notice patterns, relationships and significant moments
distil complex ideas into clear visual communication
bring your own artistic voice to your work
create thoughtful, engaging work that invites reflection
The final work might take the form of drawing, collage, painting, print, mixed media or another visual approach. We're less interested in the medium than in the quality of attention, interpretation and visual communication.
You're welcome to make notes or sketches during an event, but we don't expect the final work to be produced live. We value thoughtful interpretation and reflection over real-time documentation.
For each commission, we'll invite the person whose practice feels the best fit for that particular event. You'll receive a short online briefing beforehand, attend the event, and submit a draft visual interpretation within one week. We'll then have a short conversation before the work is finalised, allowing space for reflection and refinement.
Once finalised, the work may be shared with participants, published online or used to share the story of Lancaster Arts' programmes. All contributors will be fully credited.
Our first commission will take place during Festival of Dissent on 5 September 2026.
How to apply
Please send us:
A short statement (around 150 to 200 words) telling us why this opportunity interests you and how it connects with your practice.
Two examples of work that best demonstrate your approach to visual communication or interpretation.
Confirmation that you're based in north Lancashire or south Cumbria.
A short creative exercise as described below
We're interested not only in the work you make, but in how you listen, notice and interpret.
Please take a look at this blog from a previous Lancaster Arts project.
Using the writing, images and participant-created drawing in the blog, we'd like you to create the beginnings of a visual interpretation. We're not looking for a finished piece, just an opportunity to see how you respond to the material and what you notice. We stress that this does not need to be a finished artwork.
We're interested in seeing how you begin to make sense of the material, what you choose to carry forward, and how you start to shape ideas visually. This might include sketches, notes, compositional ideas, visual experiments or a partially developed piece.
Examples
We've included a link to a visual interpretation created by artist Lowri Evans in response to a previous Lancaster Arts project as well as other examples of work commissioned in a similar vein elsewhere.
None of these represent a blueprint or a house style, and we don't expect your work to look like this. We're sharing these because we admire the way they draw together ideas, observations and human connections into a thoughtful visual interpretation. Rather than documenting everything that happened, they identify what felt significant and created space for reflection.
We're excited to see how your own practice might approach this in a completely different way.
A place to have a cup of coffee by Chris Gylee
Timeline
Deadline: Sunday 16 August (we encourage you to apply early. Applications will close once we have received 50 submissions, even if this is before the advertised deadline).
Please send your application to hello@lancasterarts.org
We will get back to you by 20 August
Shortlisted applicants invited to an online conversation: 24 August
Successful applicants notified: Tuesday 25 August
First commission: Festival of Dissent, 5 September 2026
Fee: Commissions are usually paid at £400, plus reasonable travel expenses. Fees may vary depending on the scale and nature of the commission.
Creative Gathering by Sarah Godshill
