Introducing Lighthouse's Future Creative Leaders
We're thrilled to share with the world our Future Creative Leaders (FCL), a brand new programme for Lighthouse working with a team of six, Brighton-based artists aged between 19 and 26 years old.
They're embarking on a year-long programme that aims to reimagine the landscape of cultural leadership by empowering young creatives to explore alternative pathways into leadership roles while fostering diversity and inclusivity within the sector. The programme extends beyond our existing Lighthouse Young Creatives and reimagines the Lighthouse workforce, with aims to diversify sector-wide cultural leadership through talent development initiatives for young creatives.
ABOUT FUTURE CREATIVE LEADERS
Future Creative Leaders (FCL) is a 12-month paid programme offering young creatives from underrepresented backgrounds the opportunity to work closely with Lighthouse's leadership team to explore various aspects of creative leadership. Funded and supported by Art Fund’s ‘Reimagine Grants’, and Chalk Cliff Trust, over the year, participants will co-curate programmes, select participants for mini-residencies, and recruit their successors, all while exploring alternative governance structures, accountability, and power-sharing.
The programme partners the FCL members with Trustee Buddies, providing them with essential finance and governance training. This mentorship aims to integrate FCL more closely with Lighthouse's Board of Trustees, setting a precedent for similar organisations across the cultural sector to follow.
Throughout the year, participants will document their governance experience creatively, sharing their insights and learnings with the wider sector. The culmination of their efforts will be showcased during Brighton Festival 2025, offering a platform to highlight the impact and significance of the programme.
Lighthouse’s Creative Communities Producer, Bobby Brown is leading the ‘Future Creative Leaders’ programme. He says: "We believe that the future of cultural leadership lies in nurturing diverse talents and embracing innovative approaches. Our Future Creative Leaders initiative represents our commitment to empowering the next generation of leaders and reimagining the possibilities within our sector.
Lighthouse Artistic Director and CEO, Alli Beddoes said: “The creative landscape of the city is under existential threat from budget cuts. It’s increasingly difficult for new creative voices to be heard. We are driven to reform an arts scene which too often holds back many talented young people for economic and social reasons. We see a brighter future for the next generation of inspiring young artists.”
MEET OUR FUTURE CREATIVE LEADERS
ABOUT OUR FUTURE CREATIVE LEADERS
Elsa
Elsa is a writer and broadcaster working in music, the arts, and with impact-driven organisations. She has a newsletter called Discontented which explores "content" as both a feeling and a symptom of the algorithm - subscribe here! Elsa is an LYC alumni and completed the programme in 2020.
Fez
Fez (she/her) is a Doctoral researcher in Education at the University of Sussex, and part of the network of scholars at the Stuart Hall Foundation. She is particularly interested in how marginalised groups experience education and is driven by social justice. Fez has written about race, gender, and intersectional environmentalism for academic articles, magazines, and blogs. She is an Editorial Associate and Community Contributor at the Critical Race Theory Collective, who are “a Community of international, interdisciplinary and intersectional scholar-activists who are committed to cultivating knowledge and information across borders”. Additionally, she is a co-founder of SHY Collective, which aims to make academic work more accessible by challenging educational and academic structures.
Levvy
Founder and Creative Director of ‘eott’ - a youth mental health project focused on creatively communicating mental health - Levvy is an experienced videographer, DJ, producer, writer, award-winning Young entrepreneur and degree holder from Brighton, aged 24. He founded eott in 2019, and has since led the creative work and well-being focused messaging that it exists to push, raising over £10,000 for charity, selling 1000s of pieces of merchandise and reaching 100,000s people with his words in the process. Alongside which, he is/has been parts of the creative teams at Audio Active, The New Society and Keep Hush, has worked alongside Pirate Studios, UKF + Bru-C, and has produced media work for some of the UK's biggest music festivals. Levvy can't quite think of a fun fact but his favourite radio station is by far and wide Classic FM.
Dred
Influenced by the likes of Nines, Dave, Jay Z, Kendrick Lamar, and Nipsey Hussle, Dred uses his relatable lyricism and story-telling ability to deliver musically dense, gritty and catchy UK rap bangers. His content and creative writing point at his own real life experiences and paint vivid pictures, stirring emotions in songs like ‘Otis’, to street ready segments such as ‘Cascades’ which display his real rap foundations through and through. Fresh off a year of firsts, including his first ever UK tour support slot with Brighton super star ‘Arrdee’, as well as headlining his first sell out show, 2024 will see Dred releasing more epic music than ever and solidifying his spot as a future UK rap staple. “...it’s only a matter of time until Dred gains the recognition he deserves!” – Mixtape Madness.
Lucia
After completing a Masters degree at Edinburgh university, Lucia has moved back to Brighton where she pursues her creative interests in community engagement projects, writing, events, curation and spatial design. As an award-winning writer, and exhibitor at Tate Modern and Set Designer in Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Lucia has varied creative experiences within different arts organisations. She continues to expand her creative pursuits in diverse spaces through digital design avenues, public talks and research.
Sami
Sami is a visionary visual artist whose work is the essence of artivism - navigating themes such as politics, youth culture, mental health, and the intricacies of consumerism and capitalism - His art has featured at places such as the Brighton Fringe and Camden Open Air Gallery. Sami's provocative approach has garnered attention from both local and national press, eliciting praise and sparking debate in equal measure. His commitment to raising awareness and stimulating conversation around critical societal issues aims to inspire social engagement and foster meaningful change. Through his unapologetic exploration of topics like media manipulation, exploitation, and anti-establishment sentiments, Sami seeks to not only reflect the complexities of the modern world but to act as a catalyst for collective awareness and action.
ABOUT ARTFUND
Art Fund is the national charity for art, helping museums and people to share in great art and culture for 120 years. Art Fund raises millions of pounds every year to help the UK’s museums, galleries and historic houses. The charity funds art, enabling the UK’s museums to buy and share exciting works, connect with their communities, and inspire the next generation. It builds audiences, with its National Art Pass opening doors to great culture. And it amplifies the museum sector through the world’s largest museum prize, Museum of the Year, and creative events that bring the UK’s museums together. Art Fund is people-powered by 135,000 members who buy a National Art Pass, and the donors, trusts and foundations who support the charity. The National Art Pass provides free or discounted entry to over 850 museums, galleries and historic places, 50% off major exhibitions, and Art Quarterly magazine.
ABOUT CHALK CLIFF TRUST
The Chalk Cliff Trust is a foundation set up to provide grants and donations to charities, action groups and benevolent organisations in East Sussex.
