In this episode I’m delighted to talk to Amanda Sutton Director of Venture Arts

Based in Manchester, Venture Arts is a supported studio that provides professional facilities, long-term artistic development, and artistic support that enables neurodivergent learning disabled artists to develop their own visual languages, produce ambitious work, and build sustainable careers within the contemporary art world.

Under Amanda’s leadership, Venture Arts has become nationally and internationally recognised for its exhibitions, commissions, collaborations with major cultural institutions, and its commitment to challenging who the art world is for, and whose work is valued.

In this conversation, we talk about how Venture Arts works day-to-day as a supported studio, the conditions artists need to thrive, and what happens when access, care, and excellence are placed at the centre of an organisation’s practice. We also discuss what learning disabled artist Nnena Kalus’s recent Turner Prize win means for artists, organisations, and the future of inclusive contemporary art.

https://venturearts.org

@venturearts_

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Hello and welcome to the grateful web. I’m Dr Jo Clements - artist, artists coach and your grateful web host

My guest today is the brilliant Jamie Holman

A multidisciplinary artist, Jamie Holman seeks to make visible the exciting connection and propositions that manifest when heritage collides with contemporary practice. His research often proposes the emergence of culture through the celebration of topics & movements including subcultures, trades unions, folklore, activism, mill workers, football, labour & poetry.

Jamie’s work includes deep research particularly into archives, often resulting in the discovery of unknown working class histories and stories of individuals who have impacted the future of our nation, it’s culture and communities.

He often works in collaboration with communities, many of whom are categorised as not engaging in art

Recent commissions include ‘Wonderful Electric’ a four-part commission for the capital development of Blackburn Youth Zone, and his solo exhibition ‘Contagious Acts’ at The Whitaker.

https://www.jamieholman.co.uk @jamie_holman_studio

If you enjoyed this episode please follow, share, spread the word and look out for more brilliant conversations coming soon. You can find the grateful web on ACAST, spotify, apple podcasts, Patreon or wherever you get your podcasts.

Thank you so much to those regular listeners who have been supporting me in this endeavour. If you want to support me further, please do check out my Patreon page, for just £2 a month you can help me to keep this podcast going – https://www.patreon.com/cw/JoClementsTheGratefulWeb

This podcast has been made possible with generous support from GMCA Inspire Fund and by an a-n Artists Bursary.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

My guest today is the fabulous artist Jude Wainwright

Jude is a figurative and surrealist painter based in Manchester. Her work explores identity, emotion and storytelling through staged, symbolic self-portraits that blur the line between the real and the imagined. Drawing on theatrical gesture, costume and surreal settings, she examines how we construct and conceal the self, reflecting on the boundaries between authenticity, performance and control.

Alongside her practice, Jude is the Studio Manager at AWOL Studios in Ancoats, where she supports a large community of artists and creatives. In 2022, she reached the semi-finals of Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year, and in 2025 returned to Sky Arts as a guest presenter, leading two Portrait Artist Masterclass episodes on narrative portraiture.

Jude is an Associate Member of the Manchester Academy of Fine Artists, and her work has been exhibited widely across the UK and internationally.

@judewainwright_ https://www.judewainwright.com.

If you enjoyed this episode please follow, share, spread the word and look out for more brilliant conversations coming soon. You can find the grateful web on ACAST, spotify, apple podcasts, Patreon or wherever you get your podcasts.

Thank you so much to those regular listeners who have been supporting me in this endeavour. If you want to support me further, please do check out my Patreon page, for just £2 a month you can help me to keep this podcast going – link in bio/show notes

This podcast has been made possible with generous support from GMCA Inspire Fund and by an a-n Artists Bursary.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.