Brentford Arts Works

Cultural spaces such as Theatres, Arts Centres, Music venues and the like are one of the few places that have the power to bring people together. Somebody once told me that at the start of a live show, the audience is made up of individuals, but by the end a community has been born around that fleeting, unique live experience. I have seen it for myself, in the foyers and bars of Theatres up and down the country where audience members linger after a show to connect with strangers and share their own stories or reflections. It’s difficult to think of many spaces where this happens habitually and sadly, we’ve seen it become more and more difficult for these spaces to continue to thrive in recent years.

The outcry and depth of feeling around the closure of Watermans Arts Centre in April 2024 showed me that my neighbours across Brentford were not willing to accept the loss of another space where people come together. It was this that first motivated me to get involved in the campaign to ensure Arts & Culture weren’t lost in Brentford and to work to protect these precious spaces. As our society continues to battle deep division, it strikes me that Culture has a critical part to play as we search for ways to heal societal divides. 

In fact, I think Cultural spaces are incredibly well placed to deliver this work. To work in Arts & Culture is to be naturally collaborative. Stories are told, shows are created and live performance happens on stage as a result of a creative and collaborative process. People are not just bought together in auditoria, but across every facet of a cultural organisation. It is this openness and willingness to work collaboratively that is often our biggest strength but can also be an impediment when looking to work alongside other sectors or industries who sometimes have a different methodology. 

With this in mind, I was deeply reassured when I met with local cabinet members from LBH to discuss the future of Culture in Brentford. Although our conversations are in their infancy, a collaborative relationship is forming and it has become clear that Brentford Arts Works shares a number of objectives with our local authority, who see the value of Arts & Culture and are working on ambitious plans to bring focus to this across the borough. This work will take time, but Brentford Arts Works is committed to continuing our work to protect Arts & Culture in the shorter-term. 

At the time of writing, the future of the buildings at 40 High Street remains in the balance, but there is another opportunity on the horizon to animate spaces across Brentford for live performances that will- once more- bring people together. We are committed to that work and look forward to sharing our exciting progress in due course.

Steve