“I value working in in contemporary visual arts because artists are really challenging the world, and their ideas make sense to me. They're needed more now than they ever have been.”

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Join us this month for an interview with Paula Orrell, Director of Contemporary Visual Arts Network England, as she updates us on ideas for a new trade body for the visual arts-bringing together representatives from both the commercial and public sectors. 

Paula takes us through her career - from nurturing Plymouth’s cultural ecosystem, to transforming a cultural space in Christchurch, New Zealand, aswell as her subsequent return to the UK’s visual arts sector.

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About our guest‍

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Paula began her career in Plymouth, where she was Curator of Plymouth Arts Centre and Artistic Director of the River Tamar Project. During her ten years in the city, she commissioned artists including Marina Abramović, John Akomfrah and Melanie Manchot, and produced major citywide exhibitions including British Art Show 7 in 2011.

She went on to become Director of Contemporary Art Christchurch Toi Moroki in New Zealand, transforming the organisation into a bilingual public gallery as part of the city’s post-earthquake cultural development. Her work has consistently championed socially engaged practice, equitable investment in artists and the development of cultural infrastructure.

Paula volunteers with Creative Youth Network in Bristol, is Chair of Coventry Biennial and sits on the Inc Arts, Arts Against Racism Steering Committee. She holds an MA in Creative Curating from Goldsmiths College and a BA in Sculpture from Sheffield Hallam University.

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