""Working Arts Club was always going to exist outside of London because class issues in the art world are systemic not geographic," founder Meg Molloy, who works in London as a freelance communications consultant for the art world. "The need for what our network can do is widespread and going to Northern England felt like a natural next step in our operations.""
"Almost 1,200 art world professionals have registered for the free club since WAC's launch in mid-2024. Regular events aimed at connecting and empowering members, range from social gatherings to gallery tours and panel discussions and have proved extremely popular-the group's most recent talk with Kate Bryan, the art director at Soho House, sold out in under four minutes, according to Molloy."
"Barriers for working class Northerners in the art world can be ubiquitous too much like an author statement without a source, have made it like a quote - please confirm that works, Molloy says. Northern people working in the arts in London often report accent bias, with one anonymous WAC member previously noting that they were "told not to answer the phone" in their Northern accent."
The London-based Working Arts Club (WAC) is launching a Manchester chapter on 24 March and will deliver regional and online programming. WAC is an independent organisation supporting people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds working in the UK art scene. Almost 1,200 art professionals have registered since mid-2024. Regular events include social gatherings, gallery tours and panel discussions; a recent talk with Kate Bryan sold out in under four minutes. Working-class Northerners report ubiquitous barriers including accent bias. A Greater Manchester report found over half experienced class-based discrimination; respondents described museum and gallery roles as 'out of reach' and being 'talked down to.'
Read at The Art Newspaper - International art news and events
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