What is Strike a Light? Strike a Light is a non-profit community arts and heritage organisation led by Creative Director Nicola Benge. It focuses on involving people’s life stories and local memories to engage a wide range of groups and individuals in creative and heritage activities, encouraging engagement and outreach as well as involving memories and archive material; making art to transform pu
blic and private spaces. Strike a Light was set up as a Brighton and Hove based organisation in September 2010 to promote creative arts and heritage activities in Sussex and further afield, after a need for these events were highlighted through freelance work and the demise of pre-existing projects which had been involved in this area. Strike a Light aims to strike a balance between art and heritage in a community minded way that teaches and inspires, whilst helping to revitalise public spaces. We believe in the idea of life skills and education through creativity, generating greater social inclusion by working with marginalised and vulnerable groups, alongside all sections of the community on the historic sphere, public space, murals and celebratory arts. This is the belief that all people can gain recreational enjoyment and social benefit from taking part in creative and artistic activities. We aim to generate greater social inclusion by working with marginalised and vulnerable groups alongside all sections of the community. It has received project based financial support from organisations such as Sussex Community Foundation amongst others, and through pay for activities, but with no core funding. It regularly runs reminiscence, creative and heritage activities with older people and BME groups, as well as arts and heritage workshops with children and young people, and curates heritage and arts events with clients such as Fabrica gallery. Strike a Light has previously been funded for activities of this kind by project grants from Brighton and Hove Council, The Heritage Lottery Fund, Communities First, The Scarman Trust, and EB4U as well as the Arts Council South East amongst others.
