A string of our region's most exciting cultural projects and
events have picked up a healthy haul of silverware at a
prestigious awards ceremony.
The North East Culture Awards saw the trio of Middlesbrough Art
Week, Hopetown, in Darlington, and the Black Creatives and Arts
Network all pick up top prizes at its glittering annual event
last night (29 November).
The three have all been backed by Combined Authority funding.
Middlesbrough-born performing artist Rachel Stockdale also took
home The Arts Council Award, while The Latitude Project –
supported through the Tees Valley Creative Education Partnership
to inspire our TV and filmmakers of tomorrow – was also
shortlisted for the Best Art & Education Partnership.
Meanwhile, Alexandra Carr and Colin Rennie took home the Visual
Artist of the Year prize sponsored by the Combined Authority.
The Awards are an annual celebration of the thriving arts and
cultural scene in the North East of England and are organised by
Reach plc – publisher of The Gazette, The Journal, The Chronicle,
and websites TeessideLive and ChronicleLive.
Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “Our region is a hotbed of
cultural brilliance and great events so it's wonderful to see the
hard work put in by so many people recognised in this way.
“We're always keen to bring world-leading events and festivals to
Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool and we've built the
foundations to allow our young cultural talent to stay local and
go far.
“Be It through our development corporations, our pioneering
partnership with North East Screen or our Artists of the Year
programme, we're taking bold action to back our best and ensure
our region takes its rightful place on the UK's cultural map.”
Middlesbrough Art Week – the largest annual contemporary arts
festival in the North East – won Best Event or Exhibition, while
Hopetown, backed with £23milion of Combined Authority funding,
took home the Best Museum or Cultural Venue prize.
The Black Creative Arts Network, backed with just shy of £10,000
of Combined Authority funding, is a network for Black Creatives
to support skills development, collaboration and the showcasing
of talent.
Run by Taste of Africa, the Network won The Heritage Award.
It's been a busy 2024 of culture and arts launches in the Tees
Valley with the inaugural Tees Valley Artists of the Year
programme marking a successful start and the star-studded
premieres of film Jackdaw and TV series Smoggie Queens in our
region.
Fresh figures have also shown the Tees Valley's tourism economy
is on the rise with more than 12,000 people now in jobs supported
by the sector.
The region welcomed 19.4million visitors in 2023 – up 7% on the
previous year - providing a £1.3billion impact to the local
economy driven by major events and successful promotion of Tees
Valley's unique range of attractions.
Alison Gwynn, Chief Executive of North East Screen and Creative
Economy lead on the Tees Valey Business Board, added: “It was
truly inspiring to see the depth of creative talent our region
has to offer last night.
“The energy and innovation on display showed the North East is
not just a centre of artistic excellence but a region well and
truly on the rise.
“With new opportunities in filmmaking and production, a wealth of
creative talent, and new infrastructure paving the way, there's
never been a more exciting time to celebrate and invest in the
North East's cultural future."
