Sea for Yourself
Commission Two Open Call
A major new opportunity for UK-based artists to work with Plymouth’s communities and reimagine our connection to the sea.
Plymouth Culture is inviting applications for the next major commission in Sea for Yourself — the ambitious four-year cultural programme that uses art, digital innovation and storytelling to connect people with the UK’s first National Marine Park.
We are seeking an artist or collective with expertise in socially engaged practice and experience working with digital technology to develop a collaborative, co-created project rooted in community voices.
The commission will explore Plymouth residents’ relationship with the ocean, drawing inspiration from the rich collections and archives at The Box, and working with the communities around Plymouth Sound National Marine Park.
What’s on offer
£15,000 artist fee
£75,000 project budget (administered by Plymouth Culture)
Support from Plymouth Culture’s producing team
A platform to create ambitious, inclusive work with strong local and national reach
Collaboration with partners including The Box, PSNMP Rangers, and community networks
We are looking for ideas that:
✔ Inspire communities to connect with the sea and Plymouth’s maritime heritage
✔ Embed genuine co-creation with specific community groups
✔ Use digital technology in imaginative ways
✔ Are accessible and inclusive
✔ Create visible outcomes in both community and public settings
Who should apply?
This is a UK-wide opportunity open to professional artists with at least two years’ experience (individuals, collectives, or partnerships).
We particularly welcome applications from those under-represented in the creative and cultural sectors.
You will need to have:
➤ A strong track record in socially engaged practice
➤ Experience delivering high-quality digital or tech-based creative work
➤ A willingness to spend time working in Plymouth over the project period
➤ A commitment to working with marginalised or underserved communities
Other Key dates
• Open Call Launch: 23 June 2025
• Online Info Sessions: 30 June, 1:00pm & 24 July, 5:00pm
• Deadline to apply: Monday 1 September 2025, 10:00am BST
• Shortlisted artists notified: 17 September 2025
• Interviews: 29 September – 2 October 2025
• Commission begins: October 2025
• Initial public outputs by end of 2026
• Commission complete by April 2027
Why apply?
Be part of a nationally significant programme shaping how Plymouth — and the UK — reimagines its relationship to the sea.
Collaborate with partners across art, heritage, science and community sectors.
Develop new work that combines creative technology with human stories.
Work with communities to build meaningful relationships and lasting impact.
Online Information Sessions
We’ll be hosting two online sessions to give more information about the commission. Choose from two dates to join the webinar with the Sea for Yourself team and to ask any questions you may have before making your submission. Join us for either:
Info Session 1: 🗓️ 30 June, 1pm (Online Teams Webinar)
Info Session 2: 🗓️ 24 July, 5pm (Online Teams Webinar)
How to apply
The deadline to apply is Monday 1 September 2025, 10:00am BST
Applications can be submitted via our online form (link below). We welcome submissions in a range of formats, including video/audio submission if preferred, and are committed to making the process accessible to all.
Download an Easy to Read version of the Brief here.
Download the Offline Submission Form here.
If you require access support for your application, please contact: ellen@plymouthculture.co.uk
Sea for Yourself Commission Two FAQs
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Although the brief refers to a single artist it may also be taken to mean more than one artist working in partnership.
Please note that the commission’s total allowable artist fees and budget remain the same whether applying as an individual or collective.
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The submission process aims to enable you to reflect your relevant current practice and areas of interest as well as to provide examples of recent work that will inform how you will meet the brief. We are do not expect a fully developed proposal at Open Call stage, partly as we want to respect the time involved but also as we see the value in this being developed in response to the context of Plymouth and the National Marine Park. This said, we welcome a clear understanding of your approach, and where you do have specific groups of people in mind that you feel are appropriate to the development of the work, it would be helpful to outline this and share how the engagement approach will meet the aims of the brief and correlate to our intended audiences.
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The second commission is focussed on a community co-creation process, as well as a collaboration with The Box, so we would expect a high level of engagement, and the creation of appropriate opportunities to underpin this project. To provide a comparison between the intentions/brief for the second commission and those of other projects in the programme, please see this presentation which includes a thumbnail sketch of each of the four projects as initially developed. The scope and intention of the commissions is under as the programme develops.
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This requirement is not being quantified (by number of days) in advance but given our aspirations for this work to be developed from a response to context and connected to our audiences, we will expect to agree a meaningful process for the development of work and ideas and co-creation processes. We believe this will involve a number of extended visits to Plymouth during development as well as direct involvement in a delivery phase that may include workshop or other activities and presentation of outputs, though we recognise that there may be other potentially effective ways of achieving this by activating relationships with others in the city. We are mindful of the importance of environmental impact and sustainability of our work so this engagement will need to be achieved in a way that is align to PSNMP’s values and environmental commitments.
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Legacy is very important in several ways. We see the opportunity for each commission to contribute to longer term programming whether through connecting with ongoing engagement work, or developing relationships, approaches, or assets that lasting impact. For this commission, we welcome an engagement with opportunities related to building creative capacity within communities and connecting this to our aspiration for longer-term transformation, cultural engagement and environmental action. In this way, we hope to ensure the work’s lasting impact for the city whilst also actively seeking partnership opportunities for the programme in the UK and internationally.
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The audience focus of Sea for Yourself is directly linked to priorities established for Plymouth Sound National Marine Park through an 18-month ‘discovery phase’. This identified challenges to access, piloted activity, and evaluated engagement to arrive at target audiences. The development of the SfY commissions now creates a valuable opportunity to develop more granular engagement plans. We will prioritise access and develop our work with awareness of the barriers to engagement with both art and culture and the National Marine Park actively addressing barriers that include disability, cultural and socio-economic background, digital literacy and access and more.
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More information about this may be found in the Creative Industries Plan which refers to growth areas for Plymouth and the size of the subsectors: Creative Industries Plan - Plymouth Culture
Invest Plymouth also has a page and fact sheet about the tech/digital sector: https://www.investplymouth.co.uk/digital
Sea for Yourself is a four-year programme led by Plymouth Culture, supported by Arts Council England and The National Lottery Heritage Fund, in partnership with Plymouth Sound National Marine Park and city-wide cultural partners.
