Last year we launched our first zine, The Department for Wonder and Play (the other DWP), as part of the Young Artists Development Programme (YADP). We’re very excited to announce that we’ll be producing volume 2 of the DWP Zine this year, entitled Beyond Borders.

We have opportunities for 16 new creatives (8 from London and 8 from the rest of the UK) aged 14-26 to contribute. We’re not asking anyone to create the entire zine – instead, we need work that can take up a few pages. Beyond Borders will have a limited print run and will be available digitally too. You can find our first zine here.

Successful applicants will be asked to create and develop a new piece of work over a period of 8 weeks. Everyone’s work will be shared in the same zine, which will be put together by the brilliant Zoë Thompson.

We were really impressed with the range of responses to last year’s theme. We had music, dance videos, poetry, photography, textiles and much more. Some artists responded quite literally, while others took a more abstract approach. Some ideas changed through the process and what was created at the end was different to the idea at the beginning. We want to encourage each artist to think playfully and to experiment – this isn’t about making something perfect and polished – it’s about trying things out and exploring a creative idea.

This is a low pressure, supportive opportunity. There will be a chance to meet with the Touretteshero team, take part in a workshop and meet the other artists.

The theme Beyond Borders will mean different things to different people – if it sparks an idea for you, we want to know about it. You can approach the theme in any way that excites you.

Borders can be physical – like space dividers, or the edges of shapes and objects. They can also be more abstract or political – like borders between countries, or barriers that make it hard to access certain things. Borders might relate to real places, imaginary worlds, or be internal and personal to you.

The title is a guide to support the development of your ideas, and to help bring everything together within the same zine.

This opportunity is for young artists in the early stages of their creative development, so there’s no need to have done anything like this before. For most people who apply, it’s likely to be their first paid creative opportunity. We want to support lots of different types of artworks. It could be stories, poems, songs, drawings, photos, knitting, collage, sculptures, or a dance – pretty much anything that can be put into a zine. Our team can help you think about how your idea or piece of work is presented.

Each commissioned artist will receive a £400 investment in their work. This is a bursary and it can be used to pay for your time to make your work, or it could be used to purchase equipment or materials. It’s flexible and can be tailored to meet your needs.

Each commissioned artist will then contribute an artwork to feature in the zine and a short profile that describes their creative work and who they are (250 words) that will be shared on the Touretteshero website alongside the artwork.

To apply, you need to:

• Be a UK resident aged between 14 and 26. If you’re 14 or 15, you’ll need an adult to apply on your behalf who can commit to supporting you with the process.

• Identify as being disabled. We have a broad understanding of disability which includes those who are: neurodiverse, chronically ill, have a learning disability, a mental health condition or who are at higher risk from COVID. You might not have thought of yourself as disabled before but if you experience barriers because of how your body or mind works, this is an opportunity for you. We particularly welcome applications from young people from the global majority.

You can apply via our online form or you can download our application pack which contains information on how to apply. We have easy read, plain text and audio versions of the form.

The form will ask some questions about you (or the person applying if you’re helping someone else). You’ll also be asked about your idea – this doesn’t need to be a detailed proposal but should give us a flavour of what you want to create. There’s also a section on why this opportunity appeals to you, and a chance to share links to examples of previous work – if you don’t have any of these that’s totally fine. We’ll use the answers in the ‘about your idea’ section to select artists.

Please don’t submit any artwork at this stage – only selected artists will be asked to make new work for the zine.

The deadline for all applications is Friday 14 February 2025 at 6pm.

If you have any questions, or if you want an application format that isn’t already provided, you can send an email to Katie at solidarity@touretteshero.com, or call/text them on 07903 224 323.

We’re looking forward to finding out about your ideas.