We are a collective of art and culture industry experts who put class representation and diversity at the centre of everything we do.
Meet the team
Anne Louise Kershaw
Director
Founder of Instigate Arts, Anne Louise is a practicing artist and industry recognised powerhouse with over twenty year’s experience working within the arts sector. She has extensive experience in arts management and production, working closely with arts organisations like HOME and Whitworth Art Gallery to maximise their art spaces, ensuring they provide a sustainable platform and career pathway for local artists. Anne Louise was also a member of the pioneering ‘Culture Stockport – Cultural Strategy’ group instrumental in establishing the now flourishing arts scene within the borough. You can find out more about her art practice here.
Jo Byrne
Director of Development & Operations
Jo is head of operations at Salford Museum and Art Gallery with vast experience in establishing and financing arts organisations. She transformed organisations such as The Kings Arms and Inslington Mill from unsustainable cultural spaces to financially viable pillars of the regional art scene. She achieved this growth through exploring dynamic financing opportunities and extensive relationship building to create a scene and community within the arts.
Greg Thorpe
Creative Direction, Manager, Comms.
Greg is a freelance creative producer, curator, and writer. Formerly he worked as Festival Director of GAZE Film Festival; Creative Director of Superbia arts and culture programme at Manchester Pride; and in the core regeneration team at Islington Mill. Recent projects include Creative Producer on David Hoyle’s Please Feel Free To Ignore my Work at Factory International. Read more about his work here.
Dean Brocklehurst
Strategy Building and Fundraising Support.
Dean is a filmmaker who has spent his life working within the arts and culture sector. He has founded and established two cultural venues, The Nico Ditch in Ashton-Under-Lyne and The Talleyrand in Levenshulme. Both organisations are still instrumental in providing grass roots opportunities within the communities they are based. Prior to that he founded and directed internationally renowned charity The Homeless Film Festival, which worked throughout europe to highlight and confront homeless issues through creative workshops and an annual touring film festival.
Jenni Willows
Funding and Development
Fundraising and social value consultant, passionate about bringing people, charities and businesses together to deliver positive social change.
Rob Martin
Website, Content, Social, Marketing
Rob is a freelance marketing consultant, photographer and writer. He has worked in arts and culture for the likes of Manchester International Festival, journalism as the editor of Time Out Manchester, and social inclusion with Result CIC.
Visit www.robmartinmarketing.com
Board of Directors
Jo Byrne
Director of Development & Operations
See above.
Jess Coulson
Director of Music, Access & Grassroots activity
Jess Coulson is a freelance producer and festival programmer who was a core part of the regeneration of the events programme at Islington Mill and The Old Abbey Tap House, ensuring their creative output matched their ambition. She is actively immersed in the current music scene linking bands with venues and their audiences.
Dr Monica B. Pearl
Senior Lecturer and Associate Professor in Literature & Film at the University of Manchester, and co-organiser of the Sexuality Summer School, Monica writes on literature, AIDS activism, queer theory, opera, cinema, gay identity, and more. An active member of the queer community in Manchester, Monica is also a former member of ACT UP New York.
Harri Shanahan
Harri is an artist, musician, animator, filmmaker, and director with an ethos of shining a light on underrepresented individuals and groups, with a particular focus on the queer community. They co-directed and animated the ground-breaking Rebel Dykes film, currently touring the UK festival circuit and in production on their latest documentary, a film about the artist Lucy Martin. They are also part of the band, Glimmerpit.
Friends and Associates
Result CIC
Mentoring from Result CIC, a community interest, not-for-profit organisation bringing their own lived experiences of marginalisation to the realms of coaching, training and social consultancy.
www.resultcic.com
Accounting for Artists
Sound financial advice and support from accountant, Ruth Gee.
Advisory Board
Bernadette Bone
Our advisory board comprises industry experts and community leaders to guide our strategic direction, including:
Cheddar Gorgeous
Drag performer, visual artist, activist, author, Doctor of Anthropology, and icon.
Erika Rushton
Leading Creative Economist, consultant, thinker, and community oriented strategist.
Instigate Arts 