Mansfield Museum

Building Creative Futures: Mansfield Artist Development Programme

Building Creative Futures comprises two, two-part sessions combining practical skills development with networking and peer exchange. Each session is designed to strengthen professional practice, confidence, and connectivity of visual artists and makers based in, hailing from or connected with Mansfield.

Attendees do not need to attend both sessions, but it is advised.

Session 1: Building Creative Foundations

Date: Saturday 29 November 2025
Time: 10.30 – 3pm (arrival from 10am)
Venue: Mansfield Museum & Art Gallery

Overview:
The first session focuses on developing sustainable creative structures and networks, equipping artists with the practical knowledge needed to establish and grow their practice.

Programme:

• 10 – 10.30am: Arrive from 10am if you would like to view current exhibitions and connect with the site team ahead of the session.
• 10.30 – 10.40am: Welcome and introductions from Mansfield Museum team
• 10.40 – 12pm: Setting Up and Sustaining Creative Enterprises | Presentation and Q&A with Daniel Sean Kelley
  Daniel will provide practical guidance on:
  • Establishing creative CICs and co-operatives
  • Accessing and activating creative workspace and negotiating with councils or property owners
  • Funding and brokering partnerships to develop and sustain ‘meanwhile spaces’
• 12 – 12.45pm: Lunch break (lunch provided, please confirm dietary requirements on booking)
• 12.45 – 2.30pm: Networking & Creative Exchange | Facilitated by No Jobs in the Arts
  • Demonstration on how to think about, write on, discuss and share work effectively
  • Group crit and informal networking session
• 2.30 – 3pm: Closing reflections from the Mansfield Museum & Art Gallery team

Contributor Bios

Daniel Sean Kelley

Daniel Sean Kelly is an artist and arts worker based in Leicester. He leads the fundraising and development activity at artist-run gallery and studios Two Queens, including ongoing work to place the organisation in community ownership and secure a more accessible and sustainable future for their work. He is increasingly involved with Cooperative Business Development and is an associate of CASE, an organisation that works across the East Midlands to support and grow co-operatives, CICs and social enterprises. 

No Jobs in the Arts

Working from the Midlands, UK, No Jobs in the Arts support and champion the voices of early-career creatives, namely emerging artists and curators at the start of their careers in the visual arts. They do this through creative opportunities, services, and representation. 

At No Jobs in the Arts, we develop professional opportunities tailored for, by, and with early-career creatives in the visual arts. Our diverse programmes include events, workshops, exhibitions, and publications—all designed to foster growth and engagement. Many of these initiatives offer free-to-access outcomes, ensuring that creativity reaches a wide audience

Our work has led to remarkable achievements. Through our opportunities, publications and prints have been showcased across the UK, including notable acquisitions by the Tate and the Welcome Collection. Since 2018, our self-titled publication series has captured the evolving practices of emerging artists. You can explore all previous issues and selected documentation from past events in our online archive.