Drawing upon 12 years of experience and success supporting artists with our Mentoring Programme at Newlyn School of Art, we are now re-imagining what mentoring can be for artists today with a new format including sessions being held in other parts of the country.
Led by artist and curator Jesse Leroy Smith, accompanied by an array of art professionals including well-known artists, curators, gallery directors and other specialists from the UK art world, the year will be made up of four dynamic sessions each held over 3 days, culminating with a major curated group exhibition. On most days we will have six or more Mentors to deliver tutorials, group seminars, lectures and group crit’s.
As well as dedicated support and engagement with your work and your practice from the Mentoring Programme team and the encouraging input of peers on the course, participating artists will leave after the year with solid foundations for launching a new project of their choice independently.
A maximum of 30 mentee artists will benefit from a year of four energised sessions held in Newlyn, Brighton and Bristol with the following new initiatives:
Gatherings
Four dynamic sessions each held over 3 days.
On each Friday of the sessions we will create vibrant pop-up public events hosted by the group and Programme team, culminating in a talk and Q & A with a well-known artist or art world guest speaker.
By inviting other artists, creatives and the public, we can use performance, music, poetry, film or experimental media or even site-specific installations to create new art experiences. Through creative initiatives, we will explore ways to fund projects and build wider audiences. A renowned guest speaker will share their expertise with a talk and Q&A. We can instigate inspiring conversations in a vibrant atmosphere and open up the group’s interaction with more artists, curators, galleries etc. Each venue will draw upon the thriving art communities in Newlyn, Brighton, Bristol and for our show, networks across the South West and UK . We will host big social meals each Friday and Saturday evening with guests and talks by artists from each artistic community.
The following two days of each session will include indepth one-to-one tutorials, group crits for peer engagement with your work, gallery and studio visits and intimate talks for the group from artists and art specialists from around the UK.
100 Mentors
Over the last year, we have been creating an expansive and unprecedented collection of filmed interviews with proactive artists, curators, galleries and writers with exclusive features on exhibitions, curated projects, Q and A’s and artists’ presentations.
This has provided a wealth of research into artistic endeavour and excellence happening in the art world now. Interviewees so far include Jennifer Higgie, Sacha Craddock, Marcus Coates, Keiken, David Noonan, DACS, ACME studios, and galleries such as the Towner, Fabrica, Anima Mundi, James Freeman, Soup etc. We will be inviting such leading Art Professionals as guest speakers to our sessions and drawing upon this resource to fully explore how galleries, residencies, commissions and public projects work and how artists are creating new models for collaborating and exhibiting.
Think Tank
We will guide each of you to plan a project with a venue, audience, budget, etc in mind. As a group, we will deliberate on how you can realise its aspirations and exploit its full potential. We will put the groundwork in place, so that it is on the horizon after our programme and allow us to implement your own stepping stone projects into the future.
Tutorials
Participating artists will benefit from hour-long in-depth, one-to-one tutorials with a new Artist Mentor each session. This is an opportunity to scrutinise your practice, ask questions and hear fresh insights from established artists. These tutorials are a rare and invaluable way to gain honest and informed feedback and to dedicate time to reflect on your practice. 15 minutes of each one-to-one tutorial will be dedicated to your Think Tank project.
Group Crits
Over each weekend, the mentees will be split into 3 groups, with a lead tutor, to discuss each other’s work. Here, participating artists will gather radical perceptions on their work, revealing how external audiences may interpret it. The group will explore every stage of the work: what is informing it, the effectiveness of chosen materials and processes, and how it’s presented and shared with audiences.
Exhibition Planning
Between sessions 3 and 4, participating artists will send an exhibition proposal with images and ideas to us and then have a one-to-one Zoom call with lead tutors to discuss how it can best be realised in the final exhibition. By questioning what you want to achieve and how to best use the venue, you gain constructive experience for future shows, proposals and applications.
The Exhibition
The Mentoring year culminates with a group show in an impressive public gallery (co-curated by Jesse Leroy Smith, a guest curator and technicians). Participating artists will engage in all aspects of publicity, artist writing, funding, revenue and audience development.
Our Mentoring exhibitions have gained a reputation over the past twelve years, attracting those who want to see fresh, dynamic talent. Throughout the exhibition weekend, participating artists and mentors will be discussing the artworks and encouraging visitors to participate. These conversations will inform written reviews of your work, to be paired with professional photographs of the show, and equip you with vital resources for applying to further shows and opportunities. We will have 3 days together preparing for the show, with group talks about the curation, evening meals, and tutorials.
Alumni
Newlyn School of Art Alumni have gone on to win respected national art prizes, undertaken prestigious residencies, joined galleries around the country, collaborated for exhibitions and public projects, and have had their work covered in the press, TV and national newspapers. Our alumni have also been accepted as members of well-known art societies and studio complexes. Most continue to maintain relationships with fellow alumni, mentors, and the arts community based here in Newlyn.
Our Mentors
Whilst our mentors are exhibiting nationally, internationally and undertaking residencies, they are also often responsible for initiating projects that explore new forms of curating, collaboration, education and professional support. They are proactive in stimulating a wider approach to the Arts and are ideally placed to share their knowledge and help emerging artists foster their own paths.
Exhibitions have included;
'Unstable Monuments’ 2022 residency and exhibition at the Courts, Bristol, curated by Jesse Leroy Smith and Matthew Benington.
Over 50 artists, from Young Creatives from across the city to Artists with International Reputations and over 12 Mentoring alumni Artists, created an immersive show of Film, Painting, installations and Performances.
‘Rapture’ 2023 Regency Heritage Town House, Brighton. Co-curated by Jesse Leroy Smith, Lucianna Whittle and Emily Stevens. With over 20 Artists showing in 4 themed shows.
‘Prey’ at Fabrica Art Centre and deconsecrated church in Brighton. A 40 ft frieze painting made by Jesse Leroy Smith and the Rapture team. With an Easter Banquet for 100 guests with Q and A, music and live painting.
Mentors we have worked with in the past include:
Dr Ginny Button, Mercedes Smith, Andrew Litten, Sam Bassett, Jessica Cooper, Jacques Nimki, Liam Jolly, Dan Pyne, Marie Claire Hamon, Nina Royle, Matthew Benington, Lucianna Whittle, Emily Stevens, Seamus Moran, Mona Osman, Donna Mclean, Carlos Zapata, Sarah Poland, Laura Porter, Kate Reeves Edwards and visiting artists with international reputations.
Funding Support
One young artist, aged 18-35, per year is supported by the Toby O’Brien Foundation.
Find out how to donate or apply for a grant here.
Programme price: £3,200.
Successful applicants are required to pay a deposit to secure their place. Payment may be made in a maximum of 3 equal instalments prior to the start of the programme.
Please Contact Us on 01736 365 557 to find out more.
2025/26 dates have now been released, please see the sessions below;
Session 1 Friday 28th - Sunday 30th November 2025
Location - Newlyn School of Art
Session 2 Friday 20th - Sunday 22nd February 2026
Location - Brighton
Session 3 Friday 29th - Sunday 31st May 2026
Location - Bristol
Summer Online Tutorials with lead tutors
Session 4 Wednesday 9th - Sunday 13th September 2026
Location - Tremenheere Gallery, Penzance
We offer everyone interested in applying for the course a free 45-minute one-to-one Zoom call with the Lead Tutor. Simply fill in our Application Form embedded below and we will contact you about arranging an informal interview. Alternatively, if you have any questions you can get in touch via Contact Us.
To see some previous Mentoring end-of-year show catalogues and other materials, please see the below links:
EPOCH 2023/2024 - Mentoring Instagram page
PULSE 2022/2023
RHIZOME (short film), 2021/2022
PANDEMONIUM (short film), 2020/2021
XVI 2019
AQUARIUM 2018
RAW RICH 2017
CANOPY 2016
COLLIDER 2015
SHOWROOM 2014
Click here to view all Year Long Courses
