Stoke-on-Trent in April and May 2025

GRAIN Projects is pleased to announce a new collaboration with IKON, Slow Boat’s visit to Stoke-on-Trent will take place in April and May 2025.  The programme of activities will involve artists and photographers, education partners and arts organisations, with a focus on engaging young people in North Staffordshire. 

Funded by Freelands Foundation until 2027, Ikon Slow Boat is a heritage narrowboat that has been converted into a ‘floating art school’, introducing young people, aged 16-21, to the rich arts and crafts heritage of the Midlands. Creative sessions involve different making practices including ceramics, glass, printmaking, photography, silversmithing and textile weaving. Led by Ikon Youth Programme (IYP), it offers a space where young people can be themselves, experimenting with the idea of an artistic identity, individually and as a collective.

With support from the Canal & River Trust’s Stoke-on-Trent team, Slow Boat tours the Trent and Mersey Canal and the Caldon Canal, making key stop-offs at Trentham, Middleport Pottery, Etruria, Westport Lake and Stockton Brook Waterworks, a Victorian pumping station. Led by GRAIN Projects, the programme explores Stoke-on-Trent’s industrial heritage and natural environment through a contemporary lens, with activities blending arts, crafts, photography, and collage.

ASSOCIATED EVENT
Slow Boat creative workshop. A Canalside Arcana with artist Anna Francis.
Saturday 10 May, 11am-2pm. Free entry. No need to book, just drop in.
Onboard Slow Boat, Etruria Trent and Mersey Canal Visitor Moorings, Stoke-on-Trent

Slow Boat hosts free creative activities including collage as part of A Canalside Arcana, the launch of a new public art trail by artist Anna Francis. No need to book, just drop in. Open to all ages, children must be accompanied at all times. For more information visit ikon-gallery.org

During this time, Ikon and GRAIN Projects work with regional artists onboard Slow Boat. Artists include Louise Adams, David Bethell, Stephen Burke, Anna Francis, Anthony Hammond, Ruby Nixon, Becky Nunes and Juneau Projects. Local arts organisations Appetite and The Portland Inn Project also utilise the workshop space onboard the boat to continue their important work with local communities. By using Slow Boat as an activity hub and exhibition space GRAIN Projects continue its tradition of working beyond the boundaries of a museum or gallery building.  

Ikon’s Slow Boat programme has been an important part of the gallery’s outreach work for more than a decade, and we’re delighted that its next voyage will take them to Stoke-on-Trent, during the city’s centenary year celebrations. Slow Boat’s tour will spotlight the rich cultural heritage and natural environment providing opportunities for artists and young people in the Midlands to experiment with creative practice in the unique context of a floating art school. Working alongside cultural organisations GRAIN Projects, Appetite and The Portland Inn Project, Slow Boat is another great opportunity for local people to access great art on their doorstep.”Peter Knott, Midlands Area Director, Arts Council England

Slow Boat’s programme in Stoke-on-Trent is focused on engaging with regional youth groups and organisations who provide invaluable opportunities to young people in the city, including Middleport Matters, YMCA and the City Learning Trust. Education partners, such as Staffordshire University and Pinc College, also utilise the boat as an alternative space for study, offering a new perspective of these post-industrial towns. Alongside this programme, Ikon Youth Programme (IYP) visit Stoke-on-Trent to explore the local arts ecology, rich crafts heritage and canal network.  

Ikon Youth Programme and Slow Boat are supported by Freelands Foundation.

Ikon is an internationally acclaimed contemporary art gallery, situated in Birmingham’s city centre. Established in 1964 by a group of artists, Ikon celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2024. It is an educational charity with free entry for all, and works to encourage public engagement with contemporary art through exhibiting new work in a context of debate and participation. The gallery programme features international and local artists working in a variety of media, including sound, film, mixed media, photography, painting, sculpture and installation. Ikon’s off-site programme develops dynamic relationships between art, artists and audiences outside the gallery. Projects vary enormously in scale, duration and location, challenging expectations of where art can be seen and by whom. Education is at the heart of Ikon’s activities, stimulating public interest in and understanding of contemporary visual art. Ikon aims to build dynamic relationships with audiences, enabling visitors to engage with, discuss and reflect on contemporary art. ikon-gallery.org

Freelands Foundation believes art is central to a broad and balanced education, and a right for everyone. They are driven by a conviction in the vital role of learning and making to foster creativity, resilience, criticality and problem-solving that empowers and equips us for the future. As the Foundation approach their tenth anniversary, they resolve to strengthen their work with teachers, students, schools, universities, artists and cultural organisations. freelandsfoundation.co.uk