Whilst I don’t strictly need to develop a business, I do need to think about how I manage relationships with partners in my proposed project (and consequent and parallel projects) and get the work that is produced to the right audience. So I am going to think about he marketing plan in those terms. And I’m going to keep it simple, so as not to divert me from the core activity of making images. The marketing related activities should help to drive the project forward and structure activity. In the plan posted below I have drawn on my project proposal and incorporated what I have learned from this module thus far. In the proposal I have mapped out activities relating to the other modules, but not included them here.
The feedback on the plan has been really useful. In particular, I need to keep a systematic and evolving record of contact (my own CMS) as this is going to get complex quickly. I also need to think about how I sustain engagement with residents over the duration of the project. Sophie has suggested ‘consider keeping them updated with your pictures by emailing them images as you go, or swapping images with them, yours and theirs etc as part of the collaboration – images they might like family photos, pets etc – this can create good will and trust’. All good ideas to follow up.
Background
Areas of east London are experiencing dramatic and rapid development, which will potentially transform the local environment and demographic profile. In the past these developments have, at best, brought limited benefit to existing residents, and, at worst, driven long-established communities out of the area.
This project aims to use photographic image-making, alongside other media, to understand the social, cultural, political and economic dynamics of change in these areas, and help residents to be pro-active in achieving positive outcomes for the local community.
Objectives
- use photographic images and image-making to understand the life-worlds and aspirations of residents and how their circumstances relate to and can be improved by proposed developments in their locality, and to help them influence these developments.
- meet, build trust and work collaboratively with residents, researchers, community groups, local government and businesses to develop photographic and related resources to use in initiatives designed to develop local prosperity and advocacy.
- increase the complexity and scope of my own practice as a photographic artist in addressing challenging interdisciplinary and multi-professional issues, and to take this work to a wider audience.
- enhance understanding of how photography, in an arts-based research approach, can integrate with and contribute to physical and social science research addressing complex and enduring social concerns.
Outcomes
The outcomes of the project will combine three different levels of image-making, engaging different audiences and entailing a range of means of dissemination:
- images produced by residents as part of a participatory style research study, designed to explore the life-worlds of communities.
- images produced in collaboration with local stakeholders for use by local community groups and other stakeholders for use in advocacy.
- images produced through my own artistic, emotional and intellectual response to resident and collaborative images and my engagement with the areas and their communities.
Skills
Over coming modules I seek to develop skills in:
- use of online collaboration tools and social media to disseminate and promote the work produced in the project, and enhance public engagement (Sustainable Prospects).
- arts-based research, with more sophisticated knowledge of critical theory relating to my project (Informing Contexts).
- photo-book production, installation design, printing for exhibition and alternative modes of presentation to different audiences, physically and online (Strategies & Surfaces).
Activities (Sept-Dec 2018 – Sustainable Prospects)
- Relationship building with community groups and other stakeholders .
- Identify areas in which to trial collaborative image making.
- Make links with citizen scientists and local activists.
- Exploratory image making.
- Review online portfolio weekly.
- Compile print portfolio.
- Develop personal and project website.
- Spend ten minutes every two days reviewing and posting on Instagram.
- Determine locality for main study.
- Explore online tools and social media for networking, collaborative working, community building and dissemination.