In this episode of She Who Dares Wins, Michelle sits down with Anna, Arts Director at Sunny Bank Mills, to explore what it really means to dare in your career and life. From experimental theatre and large-scale cultural production at Leeds 2023, to community-focused curation in a former textile mill, Anna shares how she stepped off the traditional career ladder to build a lifestyle job that actually fits her values.

They discuss the WoW Barn project – a 24‑hour build with 300 women and non-binary people – the realities of work in the arts, the tension between ambition and burnout, and the courage it takes to be radically honest about what you really want, including the prospect of starting a family.

• Daring can mean changing direction, not just climbing higher
• Anna talks about leaving a “successful” trajectory in large-scale cultural events when she realised the next logical steps (EP, Director of Programmes) didn’t align with the life she wanted.
• The WoW Barn: women, non-binary people and agency in construction
• The 24-hour timber build with 300 women and non-binary people challenged ideas about who construction is “for” and gave many participants their first experience of building and tools – with powerful confidence and identity shifts.
• Redefining what an art gallery can be
• At Sunny Bank Mills, Anna focuses on accessibility and community:
• A gallery on a village high street, not just in a city centre
• A zine library and touchable pieces to break down shame and intimidation
• Welcoming honest feedback from locals who feel real ownership of the space
• Curating with integrity (not just what sells)
• As Arts Director of a commercial gallery, Anna balances:
• Work that’s easy to sell (e.g. Yorkshire landscapes)
• With pieces that expand horizons, communicate lived experience, and make people think
• She wants to stand beside every work and confidently say why it’s on the wall.
• Lifestyle job vs endless growth
• Moving from freelancing and high-intensity projects to a family-run, community-rooted site has shifted Anna’s view of success:
• One “hat” instead of six
• Daily connection with artists, locals, and a historic site of making
• Space to prioritise work–life balance over constant “more, bigger, faster”.
• Honesty about motherhood and identity
• Anna shares two “dares” for herself:
• Returning to horse riding as a hobby
• Seriously considering starting a family
• She talks openly about fears around losing identity, career impact, and inherited anxieties many career-driven women feel.
• A dare for other women
• Anna’s challenge:

• [0:00] – Intro: Anna’s background in theatre, experimental live art & producing
• [0:17]–[7:55] – Leeds, European Capital of Culture bid & the birth of Leeds 2023
• [7:55]–[13:47] – The WoW Barn: 24-hour build, women in construction, empowerment stories
• [13:47]–[20:12] – Leaving Leeds 2023 & landing the Arts Director role at Sunny Bank Mills
• [20:12]–[30:37] – Making art accessible: village gallery, community feedback, zine library, touching the art
• [30:37]–[43:19] – What it really means to curate: taste vs sales, contemporary craft, and the “she’s a keeper” piece
• [43:19]–[49:44] – Lifestyle careers, work–life balance, family-run business culture, unlearning toxic work patterns
• [49:44]–[58:35] – Daring to ride horses again, thinking about starting a family, and identity as a career-driven woman
• [58:35]–end – Anna’s dare to listeners: radical honesty about the paths you’re on

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