“Jury for Joy is a marathon not a sprint” – something our Lead Facilitator David Jubb, from Citizens in Power, reminded our jury right at the start of the weekend. There was going to be lots of learning and much to unpack and discuss. And the jury is going to meet every six month to take ideas forward and make plans so this wasn’t a one off but the start of a long-term journey together.
Throughout the Saturday our jury got a taster of different artforms. They immersed themselves into the playful installation Sensory World, watched a dance piece from choreographer Jewels Kemp, enjoyed an audio experience from North Star Co-Design, discovered painted work from Georgia Dalzell, explored different techniques and approaches to light, colour and pattern with artists working on Workington Art Trail and Workington Light Festival, plus poet Emma McGovern joined us throughout the weekend sharing her work at various points.
Deliberation is a key part of any citizens’ jury so our jury had lots of opportunity to unpack things, ask questions, listen to each other and work together to reach some shared decisions. We discussed everything from budgets to buses, attitudes to audiences and assessed the role the jury members should play in this long-term process. They generated some brilliant ideas too.
So how did our jury members find the experience…
“I found it brilliant. I’ve learnt new things, I’ve met new people and it’s been fabulous. The process has been brilliant.” – Tina
“Very eye-opening and I got a better understanding of what art really is and how it can be expressed in so many different ways” – Ian
“I found the Jury for Joy experience extremely empowering and it’s been a privilege and a joy to take part in this process” – Nanette
“Really interesting and surprising. There’s a lot of art out there that I didn’t realise – that’s a good thing for us to be able to take forward to the people of West Cumbria” – Georgina
And our Co-Directors Kieran and Sam reflect back on the weekend…
“I learnt a lot from the detailed ideas that came out of the jury, each person was such an important part of the process and I felt very lucky to work with each and every one of them on this” – Kieran
“Jury for Joy was just that, a total joy. A weekend well spent, making new friends, and talking about how to make a difference in West Cumbria. This is a new way of working for me, decisions and direction all drawn from deliberation and conversation. Our job is to help enable that process and act on whatever is decided, and the Jury for Joy didn’t disappoint! Some really exciting plans were hatched and ideas had and we can’t wait to help make them reality!” – Sam
We’ll be sharing the outcomes and next steps for Jury for Joy soon – we’re really excited about bringing the jury’s vision to life!
