Bright Sparks Mentors

Fred Manson OBE
Fred is the former Director of Regeneration and Environment at the London Borough of Southwark 1994-2001, where he oversaw economic development, planning, property management, environmental management, regeneration, leisure and community services. He is a registered architect and a member CABE’s design review panel, a trustee of London Open House and the Foundation for Allergy Information and Research.


“I personally enjoy not knowing where these projects will end, and following and guiding the passion and interest of the artists and creative practitioners we support. Mentoring a research project, rather than an art project which needs to conclude in an exhibition or artwork, also allows for far more intimate and focused discussions, connecting the awardees with other bodies of knowledge they can use in a far more creative way, rather than concentrating on the success of a final work.”

Darryl Newport
Darryl is the Director of Sustainability for the University of East London where he has worked for 10 years on a wide range of research initiatives relating to Sustainability within the Built Environment. He manages the Manufactured Aggregate Research Centre (MARC), is a member of Associate Parliamentary Sustainable Waste Group (APSWG), Environmental Technology Research Centre for London (ETRCL), and National Industrial Symbiosis Programme (NISP) London Area. Through Darryl, Bright Sparks has secured co-funding from Knowledge East.

“Bright Sparks is one of the few opportunities where the arts and sciences really come together. I came on board to provide my expertise, but increasingly I am finding that these projects are developing ideas and paths that can really influence the thinking and debate surrounding sustainability.”

Andre Dekker
Andre is an artist who lives and works in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. He is the founding member of Observatorium, an artist led organisation which has worked for councils, governments, art institutions and companies since 1997 and dedicates itself to art in relationship to architecture, communities and landscape. Its motto is: time and space for focusing attention. Their large structures, in a variety of spaces including parks, prisons and motorway verges, act as connecting devices between separated groups of people, separated areas or separated organisations. Andre is also the chair of the Open Air University since 2006, using a slag-heap in Germany as a campus where students can study the exciting possibilities for open spaces.

www.observatorium.org

“We need new ideas, enough is being done. We need time to allow ourselves to stand still. The Bright Sparks awardees are given
that time.”