The Cut is a vibrant centre for the arts and creativity, based in a heritage maltings building located in the market town of Halesworth in rural Suffolk. Already a focus for collaboration between artists and across disciplines, The Cut has designed the Summer Project to give participants a unique opportunity to work collaboratively across a full range of media and method to develop their visual arts activity.

The Cut is a combined arts theatre and a creative hub catering for all groups and all ages. The Cut aims to develop the potential of young creatives in drama, dance, visual art & music through its mentoring scheme
and showcases. As a cross-disciplinary hub, The Cut is an ideal home for The Summer Project, and enables the organisers to access the expertise of a wide range of people representing different sectors, including higher education, technology, voluntary, and commerce.

The Cut is offering an exciting opportunity for up to 40 emerging and mid-career artists to participate in a unique interdisciplinary visual arts project in the summer of 2024. The Summer Project will focus on the themes of Environment, Identity, Migration and Sustainable Structures and artists appropriate to these topics have been invited as artist mentors. It will encourage exploration and cross-pollination across a range of approaches, including performance, digital and sound as well as more familiar forms.

The Project has been launched and introduced through an exhibition and workshops at The Undercroft Gallery in Norwich during July 2023, highlighting The Cut and its offer to the local and wider community, as well as raising awareness of The Summer Project, and continuing in September with an exhibition by the wide-ranging artist Bruce McLean – a perfect prelude for the Summer Project residency in the summer of 2024.

Participants will be encouraged to give full reign to their abilities and imagination, but also to challenge notions of what art activity can be through communication and collaboration with those in other subject areas. Participants will be supported by a group of 14 artist mentors – all established artists and practitioners – drawn from a wide range of backgrounds and disciplines. Technical support in film, digital and print will also be available throughout the residency. Additionally, a series of lectures, seminars and discussions on the key themes will be led by visiting artists who are working across boundaries and at the intersection of the arts and other areas like science and new technologies. The local community will be invited to attend the evening lecture series which will be free of charge on booking.

The Summer Project will conclude with an exhibition of selected work from the residency and a Summer Project publication will be available in print and digital formats for schools, libraries, and colleges.