SKIPPKO - Key Persons
Anne studied textile design at Central Saint Martins, London, returning to the north of England to weave and share her passion for all things textile. As a freelance artist she works in a wide range of community settings helping others to discover their own creative expression.
In recent years Anne's business, Daisy Florence Design, has flourished and she now showcases her collection at selected artisan and makers events throughout the north of England. This work is inspired by the Pennine landscape, is stitched and hand cut from recycled fabrics and features numerous hand cut flowers.
Job Titles:
- Development Consultant
- Director
Arthur joined Skippko in September 2016. Following a career in mainstream business (legal and project management) with multi-national conglomerate Lonrho, Arthur started out in ‘the arts' in June 1990 as part of the Enterprise Allowance Scheme with a community arts company in Lincoln.
Since then, Arthur has worked as a development consultant, fundraiser, national lottery capital assessor & project manager, theatre / live arts producer, board member and director / chief executive for a number of building-based arts organisations. He freely admits to having fun here at Skippko, is annoyingly positive and his most frequently heard comment in the office is: "I can't believe it's Friday, where did the week go?"
Job Titles:
- Artist
- Finance and Admin Worker
Ashley is our finance officer.
He's been with us for 2 years and has over 20 years experience working in the voluntary sector in Leeds.
He likes fine wine, fifties Japanese cinema and puppies.
Cath manages our programme of work and co-ordinates the activities of our artists.
Cath started life at Skippko as a volunteer almost 20 years ago!
She is also a printmaker and shows work regularly across the North of England.
I am a practicing artist based in Yorkshire, working mainly in printmaking. I teach art …
Emma is a qualified secondary school teacher with specialist training in Applied Theatre and fifteen years' experience devising and delivering creative workshops to a range of client groups.
She fell in love with performing at the tender age of three, and firmly believes in the importance of making the arts accessible to everyone, instilling that passion into those who might not otherwise experience it. Emma's portfolio includes educational projects, community initiatives, corporate training, one-to-one coaching, performance masterclasses and work within the criminal justice system.
Emma is also an actor, writer, Arts Award Trainer and LAMDA examiner, so she certainly has no time to get bored.
I spent some years working in the third sector in Leeds in Supported Housing Services …
I've been a trustee for 12 years, although my involvement goes back further than that, …
Val Hewison was the CEO of Carers Leeds, the vital support service for Carers throughout Leeds.
Working at a strategic and at a local level, Val led Carers Leeds for over 15 years. Her determination and hard work transformed the support available to carers by working together with other services in Leeds to develop a single Point of Access service.
The positive impact that had for the 72,000 unpaid carers focused Val's determination to ensure every carer is recognised and supported to continue caring if they wish. This passion for supporting carers was developed through Val's personal experiences as a carer and her extensive qualifications in social care and management.
In recognition of her dedication, in working with and supporting unpaid carers across Leeds, Val Hewison was presented with the prestigious Leeds Award by the Lord Mayor of Leeds, Councillor Asghar Khan in 2021. Val has recently retired from her role as CEO of Carers Leeds, where she led the organisation to national and international acclaim as a beacon of best leadership and support to unpaid carers.
Matthew is a Leeds based writer and storyteller with a wealth of experience working with community groups.
His background is in devised theatre and he has performed at drama festivals in Canada, Germany and New Zealand as well as throughout the UK.
He currently runs Moveable Feast Productions, a touring Theatre in Education company, for whom he has written and produced a wide range of shows and workshops for young people.
Over the past few years, he has worked extensively in collaboration with A Quiet Word, a site-specific theatre company based in Leeds.
Nicki has had over twenty years experience of initiating, coordinating and delivering community photography projects. She has worked on specific commissions, self- initiated projects and facilitated workshops.
Nicki's vibrant photographs lead you along a very fine line between humour and tragedy. Her Fine Art background is visible in her unique way of exploring her field of photography. Her excitement sparks at the possibilities of selecting and combining a variety of techniques that enables her cherished subjects to ‘shine brightly' in her photographs.
Nicki's studio is at home and that is where all her quirky and wonderful objects live together sharing wall space, shelves and work surfaces. Once she starts working with her subjects she constructs a whole new world for them to inhabit, creating surreal mini landscapes which tell her story of the everyday. Nicki uses both her manual and digital cameras for shoots. She loves the rich tradition of darkroom printing and is now finding herself in the 21st century happily using her lovely digital camera!
I trained in textiles at Huddersfield Polytechnic. Since then I have worked as an artist …
Job Titles:
- Blank Canvas York Co - Ordinator
Phil is our Blank Canvas co-ordinator in York and manages our studio and pop-up spaces.
In 2016 Phil organised the festival of events that took place at the Old Fire Station and he was directly involved in creating the brilliant Halloween and Grottoland installations.
He is also a contemporary artist creating colourful, quirky and playful art.
My work covers many areas of art and animation, from broadcast content, short films, projections …
Sally is a fine artist, working in a variety of media, running raku firing workshops from her studio in North Yorkshire.
She works as an artist educator at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park and Leeds Arts Universty, as well as with schools and community groups.
Sally is also a teacher in ceramics and glass, currently running two evening ceramics classes at Leeds City College.
I am a mixed media artist and my work often incorporates elements of existing imagery, …
Job Titles:
- Artist
- Professional Artist
I have been a professional artist for over 22 years, creating artworks with the public …