John Hansard Gallery, in partnership with ArtfulScribe, is pleased to announce the

appointment of Ella Frears as Writer in Residence from February to July 2021 as

part of the SO:Write Literature Development Project.

Ella Frears is a poet and artist. Her debut collection Shine, Darling (Offord Road

Books, 2020) was a Poetry Book Society recommendation and was shortlisted for

both the Forward Prize for Best First Collection and the T. S. Eliot Prize for

Poetry. Her poems about the St Ives Modernists are currently on show at Tate St

Ives.

An impressive candidate from a strong field of applicants, Ella is no stranger to

Southampton, having worked with K6 Gallery on Next Stop: City Bus project in 2018,

following in the footsteps of former Poet Laureate, Dame Carol Ann Duffy, who led a

similar initiative 25 years earlier. Ella has also held residencies at the National Trust,

and the Observatory at Buckler’s Hard, New Forest,

John Hansard Gallery Director, Woodrow Kernohan, said, “We are delighted to

welcome the fantastic Ella Frears as Writer-in-Residence within our team. It will be

exciting to see how Ella engages with the Gallery’s communities, upcoming

exhibitions, events and transition of our programme, as we move from the digital to a

return to the physical, with the reopening of John Hansard Gallery”.

Ella said: “I’m delighted to be John Hansard Gallery’s new Writer in Residence. It’s

been such a strange, troubling year and like many I’ve found myself missing

exhibitions, galleries and the people who occupy and engage with them. I can’t wait

to get stuck in - discussing art and poetry, sharing ideas, running workshops and

writing, writing, writing. Whether digitally or in person... or a bit of both, I’m keen to

connect with as many people as possible. We all need art - now more than ever."

ArtfulScribe Director Matt West said: ‘Ella’s poetry is currently enjoying critical

acclaim at a national level and her talent and experience will really help others to

engage with the Gallery and with creative writing, in new and unexpected ways. I’m

really looking forward to seeing how this role develops within the unusual parameters

of social distancing, and also to this fresh opportunity to engage with Ella’s work.”

For more information, please contact:

Jack Lewis, Communications Co-ordinator, John Hansard Gallery

J.W.Lewis@soton.ac.uk | +44 (0)23 8059 2477

Matt West, Director, ArtfulScribe

matt@artfulscribe.co.uk | 07588 719891

Notes for Editors

John Hansard Gallery

John Hansard Gallery is an internationally recognised and locally engaged

contemporary art gallery in Southampton. Being part of the University of

Southampton, the Gallery aims to change the world for the better through great art.

To realise this the Gallery creates innovative and critically acclaimed contemporary

art exhibitions, events, engagement and research projects that excite, challenge,

represent and reach the widest possible public audience. John Hansard Gallery is

supported using public funding as a National Portfolio Organisation by Arts Council

England. www.jhg.art

ArtfulScribe

ArtfulScribe is a not-for-profit writer development agency based in Southampton. We

support emerging and continuing writers in Hampshire, Dorset, and the Solent region

to create new work and develop skills through writing workshops, live events and

career-development opportunities. We work with all ages and levels of ability, from

primary years through to life's later stages. Our work includes collaboration with

schools, businesses and organisations, embedding writing into everyday activities

through residencies, creative programmes and individual events that celebrate both

spoken and written word. www.artfulscribe.co.uk

John Hansard Gallery Writer in Residence

Press Release February 2021

University of Southampton

The University of Southampton is one of the UK’s leading teaching and research

institutions, with a global reputation for research and scholarship across a wide

range of subjects. The University combines academic excellence with an innovative

and entrepreneurial approach to research, supporting a culture that engages and

challenges students and staff in their pursuit of learning. www.southampton.ac.uk