Job Summary
The Community Brain, in partnership with South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust, is inviting artists and creative practitioners to become part of a creative programme for the new Tolworth Hospital. This brief is for the Primary Arrival opportunity. There are 3 live opportunities.
Job Description
Rather than simply commissioning artworks for predefined spaces, we are seeking creative responses that can help shape the identity, atmosphere and everyday experience of the hospital through art, collaboration and making.
Across the building, a series of creative opportunities will respond to different places and experiences, from moments of arrival and orientation to shared social spaces, wards, circulation areas and outdoor courtyards. These opportunities will intentionally operate at different scales and in different ways. Some may result in significant permanent artworks, while others could involve artist residencies, changing collections, digital work, participation or creative interventions that develop over time.
Primary Arrival
Commission: £18,000
Location: Main Entrance and adjacent entrance/connecting spaces
Application: Proposal submission
The Primary Arrival provides the opportunity for the principal permanent artwork within Art for Tolworth.
Located within the main public entrance to the new hospital, the commission centres on a prominent double-height space adjacent to reception and will be one of the first creative encounters for patients, visitors and staff arriving at the building.
We are looking for an artist or creative practitioner to develop an ambitious permanent artwork that establishes a strong sense of arrival and contributes meaningfully to the identity and atmosphere of the new hospital.
While the main entrance provides the focal location for the commission, we are interested in how the artwork might establish relationships beyond a single space. There is an opportunity to consider whether elements, ideas, materials or visual relationships could extend into adjacent entrance, circulation or connecting spaces.
Job Requirements
Creating with and for people with lived experience, patients, staff, carers and the wider Kingston community is central to Art for Tolworth.
Participation and co-creation should be embedded within the development of commissioned work, with artists encouraged to create meaningful opportunities for people to contribute ideas, experiences, knowledge and creative responses as the work develops.
For Art for Tolworth, we understand:
Co-production as working in partnership with people who use mental health services, carers and communities, involving lived experience from the early stages of development.
Co-creation as bringing together people with different lived and professional experiences to participate meaningfully in the creative process.
Co-design as developing aspects of the artwork and the engagement process collectively.
We are not looking for artists to arrive with a fixed artwork and use participation simply to validate an existing idea.
Job Responsibilities
We want proposals to demonstrate how artistic ideas can evolve through listening, exploration, collaboration and exchange, and how participants can meaningfully influence the development of the work.
The artist remains responsible for the artistic direction, professional delivery and realisation of the commission. Co-creation does not mean removing the artist's creative voice; rather, it means allowing the knowledge, ideas and experiences of participants to have a genuine influence on the process and outcome.
Different opportunities will naturally involve different forms and levels of participation. This might include workshops, conversations, skills sharing, collective making, selection processes or other approaches proposed by the artist. We welcome practitioners who can develop methods appropriate to their practice, the particular commission and the people involved.
- Job Title: Art for Tolworth: Co-creation artist commission for Tolworth Hospital - Primary Arrival
Key dates and information
Online artist Q&A: Thursday 8 October 2026 at 2:00pm UK time
Applications close: Sunday 1 November 2026 at 11:59pm UK time
Questions: artfortolworth@thecommunitybrain.org
#J-18808-Ljbffr
The Community Brain employer: Arts Council England
Arts Council England is an exceptional employer, offering a supportive and inclusive work culture that values flexibility and employee well-being. With a focus on professional growth, employees benefit from generous annual leave, a final salary pension scheme, and opportunities to lead innovative digital projects in a collaborative environment. Located in Manchester, the role allows for hybrid working, ensuring a balanced approach to work and life while contributing to meaningful organisational change.
