ABOUT
OUR VISION
A creative and inclusive community where people can freely express themselves; where voices of the people are heard; where art and culture are celebrated and embedded into everyday life.
OUR MISSION
Our mission is to provide creative solutions that have a positive social impact in communities. We use art as a tool to tackle inequalities and promote a diverse, creative, and inclusive community. With a positive outlook and hope for a better future, we will strive to help people fulfil their potential and work with communities, partners, and artists to build cohesion, resilience and unity. Art has the power to stimulate change, and through collaboration, expertise, passion, and togetherness, we will reach our goals.
OUR VALUES
COLLABORATION
Collaboration is hugely important to us, we feel that collaboration is vital for any organisation, and in terms of community; a holistic approach is needed to cater for all the needs of a society. Working with partner organisations gives you insight into the services they offer, where there are gaps and where you can fill these. Everyone has a different talent, experience, and knowledge and when put together, incredible ideas are born.
Lived experience of artists and the community and a combination of our ideas and stories and shared values, common goals and desires. It is often the case that people are able express in artwork that which they cannot express in words, therefore communication improves between people of all backgrounds.
Collective energy creates momentum, and a dialogic approach is astonishingly important in developing and elevating ideas, enhancing lives and securing long term relationships. It is due to these long-term relationships that we are able to bring ideas to life. The individual is important, but the whole is vital. We work towards a shared common goal of a brighter, more just, and creative future.
At Community Arts by ZK, we frequently work in collaboration with other organisations to focus on community-relevant, solution-focused art. This is done through projects which are sensitive to the rich and multi-faceted features of local places. As a community arts organisation we have had the opportunity to work with a range of establishments. We have worked with hospitals, women only groups, refugees and asylum seekers, art organisations, galleries, youth zones, children, young people, schools, care homes, community groups, libraries, local authorities and carried out work at art festivals. We use art as a tool to positively impact communities and the current issues they face; our art programmes are catered to community needs. For example, we help groups to build confidence and achieve their dreams or long terms goals, we lift people out of loneliness and isolation to help reshape their future. We help with specialist projects and gain knowledge of working with people with SEN (Special Educational Needs). We use art for therapy and as a tool for promoting well-being. We conceive and develop stimulating, forward-thinking projects that bring communities together. Working collaboratively and with a strong emphasis on community cohesion, our projects provide a blended learning experience for all.
INCLUSIVITY AND INDIVIDUALITY
We want everyone to feel valued, represented, recognised, and heard, regardless of age, race, gender, identity, or ability. We want to provide hope and opportunity and recognise and celebrate individual talent at all levels. We empower people through art, culture and education and help communities to thrive and excel. We value and encourage creativity and freedom of expression, and strive to create a positive, inclusive, and kind society.
CULTURE, ART AND EDUCATION
Community Arts by ZK changes perceptions of art. We believe that the term ‘art’ is misunderstood, and people are afraid of it. We see art as an umbrella term for “doing”, “learning” and “wondering”; it intrigues us, gives us a sense of wonder; excitement. We want to remove the stigma attached to art and encourage creative mindsets that think “what if?”.
Community Arts by ZK is invested in increasing engagement in formal education through supporting creative approaches to teaching and learning. We provide volunteering and training opportunities and advice and support with careers.
Art teaches us to experiment, to try new things and builds confidence and resilience; whether we fail or succeed. We encourage people to see failure as a positive thing, as a starting point. Art builds empathy and compassion, it allows people to see the world through the eyes of their neighbour, it breaks down barriers and connects people across cultures, time and place. Art is powerful; it enhances and enriches life for everyone, once they realise that anyone can create. We want to reverse power dynamic and take away the stigma attached to art, and the artists role within society. We don’t only empower the community, we empower artists.
WELLBEING
Art is a proven way of making a tangible difference to neighbourhoods and there is plethora of evidence to show that the arts improve personal, social, and mental health and well-being.
We use art as a tool to improve and enhance people’s lives and provide a support network for deprived, disadvantaged, and marginalised groups. We want to help people who experience poor mental health. We want people to feel safe and valued, like they belong and that they are important. We want to build a resilient and confident society where people respect one another and feel seen and heard and where individual talents are celebrated.
Our activities help people from all walks of life to overcome issues that they might be facing, such as depression, stress and anxiety, isolation and loneliness. We provide them with opportunity, resources and creative workshops and access to enriching life experiences that educate and inspire. We want to see an increase in creativity and confidence, self-understanding, and personal growth. We tackle the difficult questions together.
HOW WE WORK
At Community Arts by ZK, we use art as a driving force to bring communities together from different age ranges, walks of life and social, cultural backgrounds, with a strong emphasis on community cohesion and integration.
We design and deliver art projects, activities, and workshops that value, encourage and engage people in the community, allowing them to express themselves more effectively and communicate their ideas in a creative way. Our workshops and projects cover a broad range of techniques, and we work with creative practitioners and artists from across the world and from a variety of creative disciplines. Examples include fine art, mixed media, photography, traditional and contemporary methods, textiles, environmental artists, installation, and sculpture.
Art has always held the power to stimulate change. It can educate, inform and inspire, as well as helping people feel a sense of purpose, or that their dreams can become real. This is what Community Arts by ZK encourages and strives to achieve.
OUR HISTORY
COMMUNITY ARTS by ZK was founded in 2016 by Zaneb Khatun, an experienced community artist and university lecturer, who returned to her home here in Pendle after obtaining an MA in Design for Textile Futures at the prestigious Central Saint Martin’s College of Art and Design, London. Zaneb is a passionate advocate of using art to empower individuals and groups. On returning to the Northwest of England, Zaneb made it her goal to engage with as many representatives as possible from across the social and cultural backgrounds of the district. Zaneb is committed to the needs of the modern world and is aware of the current issues in her community - she feels that with her experience, it is now her duty and responsibility to give something back to the people and the place where she was raised. In August 2019, COMMUNITY ARTS by ZK became a Community Interest Company CIC, registered with Companies House.
SUSTAINABILITY
Community Arts by ZK seeks to use art as a tool to motivate and inspire sustainable practices when creating and in day-to-day life. We want new ecological strategies to become weaved into our everyday practice as a community organisation so that we can become more sustainable in our future work and build a more resilient community with a greener future.
We promote resourcefulness and problem-solving by inspiring innovative usage of discarded, natural, or recyclable materials. Through upcycling we reduce landfill as these materials would otherwise go to waste.
Pendle is surrounded by natural landscape, with community gardens, parks, rivers, and canals. We utilise these green spaces through artist walks and creative field trips and celebrate the natural beauty of our locale, using it as a catalyst for change. At our outdoor and community garden workshops, such as those held at the Garden Project, we encourage the community to see the beauty and joy the natural world can bring to motivate them to protect their local environment.
DOWNLOAD OUR CATLOGUE
WOMEN AT WORK
Introducing some of the powerful young women behind the success of Community Arts by ZK. Led by strong, resilient women, our CEO and our directors stand together passionately to help communities thrive and flourish through art. With their skills, determination, and passion for people and communities, they strive to break barriers and create lasting change. Our CEO is a professional artist and lecturer, Courtney Wright is certified chartered accountant and helps with the finance, Asma Hussain is an established fundraiser who support us in securing funding for the organisation, and Thalaya Darr is a creative writer, poet and assists in delivering creative workshops. Success goes hand in hand with hardship and challenge and these strong female role models are an inspiration, illustrating that anything is possible if you work hard.