‘In My Shoes’ – the showcase of the Associate Leaders, 2024-25

In April 2022, Arts & Homelessness International launched the Associates’ Leadership Programme which is a year-long cultural development programme for artists who are, or who have been, homeless. It is the first of its kind in history and offers tailored practical and emotional support to each new associate developing their artistic practice. Over the last three years, we have worked with 24 exceptional creative leaders and artists who all have a diverse range of artistic practices, including photography, film directing, visual art, theatre, writing, producing, and more. 

‘In My Shoes’ is an evening of live performances, dance, rap, ‘Shedding Light Through Puppetry’, photography, visual art, illustrations, personal storytelling, workshops and open discussions, all curated by our Arts & Homelessness International 2024-25 Associates: Anonymous Associate, Calum Perrin, David Sparkes, Jodie Cole, Julia Markovic, Omy Kolawole, Sandy Fajuyigbe & Sarah Hough – a powerful showcase of creativity, art, resilience, and leadership. 

Friday 28th March, 5-8pm at Old Diorama Arts Centre, London, NW1 3FE

Everyone is welcome. 

RSVP for free tickets here. 

Huge thanks to ODAC for supporting this showcase and thanks to our Associates Leadership Programme funders: The Linbury Trust, David Wise, The Albert Hunt Trust, Our Agency and the Arts Council England. 

You can view a PDF of the full event programme In My Shoes –

If you have any questions, please get in touch with samra@artshomelessint.com 

 

Biographies of the Associates and Programme – (in alphabetical order)   

 

1 Anonymous  | Shedding Light Through Puppetry: To Be or Not to Be  

They are Mixed-media artist. They aim to use their craft alongside their lived experience to shed light on the complex issues surrounding homelessness. They are interested in building a resource for civic and social action to focus on supporting communities that can regenerate individuals and communities. 

This artist will showcase explores how puppetry brings hidden stories to life, revealing resilience and humanity beyond the surface. Join them as they uncover the transformative impact of this art form in shedding light on homelessness and shared human experience. 

Puppetry is more than storytelling—it’s a powerful medium for connection, empathy, and change. Having they experienced homelessness, they’ve embraced puppetry as a way to illuminate its emotional, mental, and physical complexities. 

Location: Studio 1 

  

2. Calum Perrin

Calum draws on music, performance, installation and documentary-making traditions to create projects which explore the intersections between subject and sound; fact and fiction; concrete and abstract. Calum is London based. 

Calum created three channel video and five channel audio installation in response to Capital (1990) a series of painting by the artist Mark Wallinger. This piece explores representations of homelessness as members of the AHI cohort stand outside of financial institutions in the city of London. 

Location: Installation Studio 3 

Studio 1: In conversation with Calum Perrin  

 

3. David Sparkes

David Sparkes is an Artist, poet, engineer and performer. Currently working for and supporting an ever-increasing number of community-building organisations in the Plymouth, UK area. David is Plymouth based.   

David will present a monologue show on Darcy Sparkles. The esteemed Professor of Applied Liminal Geometry at the Institute of Studies will discuss their most recent experiences investigating the curious natives of Squareland and the potential wider social implications of their findings.  Professor Sparkles has had great success using models of penguins and lobsters to reinforce traditional models of monogamy and social hierarchy and, it is hoped, will make similar inroads into the topical, but problematic, fascination with neuro-diversity and alternative identities. 

Location: Studio 1 

4. Jodie Cole 

Jodie Cole is a working-class choreographer, facilitator & lead artist at Jodie Cole Dance. She runs workshops & movement sessions for institutions across the UK & is trained to level 3 British Sign Language. 

Why is the British seaside making a comeback? Choreographer Jodie Cole moved there to find out. 

Join her for Beach Babe, a dance theatre show about escaping to the coast, falling in love in Margate, and wondering if the sea can truly heal us. Mixing movement, storytelling, and humour, Jodie explores emotions, creative expression, and the joys of feeling “glitzy.” 

Expect new writing, dance experiments, and a feedback session. 

Joyous, thought-provoking, and full of disco spirit.
Trigger warnings: Themes of trauma & suggestions of violence. 

Location: Studio 1 

5. Julia Markovic

Julia Markovic, under the creatrix name Julia Peculiaa, is a Mixed-Media artist, self-taught clothes Designer/Maker, and Silversmith, as well as a public speaker/educator.  

Her work, influenced by 90s styling, the free party ethos, punk, and streetwear, is driven by sustainability and anti-consumerism. She transforms discarded plastic waste materials and textiles into compelling, vibrant expressions of identity and individualism, designed to evoke the joy of the wearer and beholder. 

Julia’s creations focus on celebrating joyfulness and the uniqueness of each individual, mirroring the individuality of her pieces. They also serve as a reminder that the effluent of overconsumption and overproduction represents an endless resource for creativity, all while she manages unseen mental health and physical limitations that significantly affect her daily quality of life. 

Currently unhoused, Julia’s practice is her medicine. She constantly attempts to create order and beauty from the chaos and ugliness that is homelessness. In the last year she has had to relocate her workshop / studio SEVEN times!  Despite these hardships, her creativity remains a vital force, a form of self-preservation and a pathway to reclaiming some semblance of stability and sanity.  

Recently, she successfully self-funded and completed a two-week solo exhibition in Suffolk and was selected for the International Women’s Day exhibition at Fox Yard Gallery. 

Driven to further explore her practice, Julia is currently seeking a residency or collaboration with an organization that shares her commitment to sustainability and anti-consumerism, offering a platform to amplify her message and refine her unique vision. 

Defiantly not allowing her situation to stop her creativity or define her, and determined to follow her creative path, with the goal of being able to have a home of her own through her successes and struggles… she continues to create as her medicine.

Location: Fashion installation Foyer 

Presentation in Studio 1. 

 

6. Omy Kolawole

Omy Kolawole is an aspiring photojournalist with a background in photography, media and communications. His focus is in portrait, landscape and event photography. He worked in Kenya, Uganda as well as the United Kingdom shooting for weddings, birthday parties, Music festivals and charity events.   

His aspiration is to make short films and documentaries. Omy’s goal is to one day have his own company that will help and support young people in the creative industry. Omy is Kent based.   

 

 

 

7. Sandy Fajuyigbe

Sandy Fajuyigbe, or ArtistandSpace, is a mixed-media creative practitioner based in London. They hold a postgraduate degree in Illustration and a bachelor’s degree in Business Management and Marketing. Sandy has a unique approach to creativity as a neurodivergent individual with ADHD, autism, dyslexia, and dyspraxia. 

Title: Choosing You 

A digital illustration exploring identity, survival, and self-affirmation. This piece reflects on the experience of growing up in turmoil, losing oneself, and searching for light in the dark. It is about finding alignment, stepping away from imposed expectations, and reclaiming the power to choose yourself. 

Medium: Digital illustration display material using Procreate on iPad.  

Trigger Warning: Mental health struggles, coping mechanisms, and art therapy. 

Age Guidelines: No restrictions. 

Location: Foyer & Studio 1 

 

8. Sarah Hough

Sarah raps, produces her own music and writes lyrics/poetry. She creates music videos using effects. Sarah has made several other podcasts for Groundswell about homelessness, mental health, multiple disadvantage and Woman’s health. Sarah is London based. 

Killing the Stigma Productions presents an audio showcase challenging stigmas through storytelling. 

Sarah will share projects from her time with AHI, including live rap performances and audio clips from her recent work.

Trigger warning: Explicit language in rap. 

Location: Studio 1 

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