Future Arts Centres will lead the programme, working with 60 arts centres and libraries, their communities and artists to create special cultural events, exhibitions and performances that are meaningful to people living in these places and across the UK.
Queen’s Hall Arts will work with the community linked to RAF Spadeadam, a military base on the Northumberland and Cumbria border.
We have commissioned Creative Producer and Multimedia Participatory Artist Emma Tominey to deliver a series of workshops, using the poem Freedom Road by Simon Armitage as a starting point and asking people what freedom means to them.
Our Freedom: Then and Now
Our Freedom: Then and Now is a new UK-wide, locally-led arts and creative programme which will produce 60 new pieces of work reflecting on what ‘Our Freedom’ means to local people and their communities, following the 80th anniversary of VE/VJ Day.
Here's a video of award-winning poet, playwright, musician and novelist Simon Armitage performing his poem, Freedom Road…
The ideas for a final artwork will come from the communities and be shaped by artist Emma Tominey, honouring personal and shared histories through a contemporary lens. The work created will be informed by the location of the military base and the experiences of the people who live, work or a connected to it.
Emma Tominey
Emma is a Creative Producer and multimedia participatory artist and designer based in the North East of England. With a background in graphic design and communication, her practice spans co-creation, visual storytelling, and socially engaged design. She leads inclusive, cross-sector arts projects—often in collaboration with museums, libraries, schools, and health services—to explore memory, identity, literacy, and place. Working across mediums like printmaking, book arts, AR, and digital storytelling, Emma champions accessibility, community voice, and creativity as tools for social change.
On Wednesday 6 August, Emma led the first workshop at Spadeadam’s Family Day, using Simon Armitage’s Freedom Road to spark conversations about what freedom means today.
Here are some photos of the day which saw participants exploring what freedom looks, sounds, tastes, and smells like, creating expressive prints and collages...
Watch this space for exciting updates and announcements!
Got a question? Email the Queen's Hall Box Office team and someone will be in touch!
The programme is delivered in partnership with Libraries Connected and Open Eye Gallery, supported using public funding by UK Government through Arts Council England.
