Tony Heaton appointed as Shape Chief Executive

 

Pauline Tambling, Chair of Shape’s Board of Directors said “We are delighted that Tony is joining Shape as Chief Executive.

 

Tony is widely recognised as both a pioneering leader in the disability arts sector and as a practising artist. He is uniquely placed to realise Shape’s ambitions to ensure that disabled and deaf people participate fully within the arts and cultural sector in London and beyond.”

 

Tony said “I’m very excited to be joining Shape, an organisation with an excellent history, and to lead it through its next set of challenges and opportunities “

 

Tony has been the Director of Holton Lee in Dorset since 1997. In that time he has established the gallery at Faith House, the Stables artist’s studios and a contemporary arts and education programme. He was also instrumental in the development of the National Disability Arts Collection and Archive (NDACA).

 

“I hope my own experience will drive Shape to provide even more innovative and relevant services to disabled or deaf artists, audiences and participants” said Tony.

 

Tony Heaton will be working with Shape from May '08

 

Pauline Tambling Chair, Board of Directors

 

Shape

Shape is a unique organisation working with deaf and disabled artists, audiences and participants in the arts and creative sectors.

For 30 years Shape has been at the forefront of change, aiming to achieve access to the arts for disabled and deaf people and empowering people to enrich their lives through enjoyment of the arts and active participation. We have a long history of working with cultural venues and artistic organisations by providing training, events and resources.

 

Shape’s key aims are:

• To increase participation of disabled and deaf people as audiences for the arts, culture and creative industries;

• To increase the amount of disabled and deaf people employed or taking a leading role in positions of influence in the arts and cultural sector;

• To support creative and cultural organisations to achieve best practice in participatory work with deaf and disabled people;

• To support and promote the presentation of quality practice by disabled and deaf artists.

 

For enquiries:

Website www.shapearts.org.uk

 

Tony Heaton, Bio

 

Tony is the Director of Holton Lee, a short stay residential centre for Disabled people and carers with an exhibition/gallery space, dedicated artists studios and the home of NDACA (the National Disability Arts Collection and Archive).

 

Tony is a Sculptor and Performance Artist who interweaves Disability issues into traditional and discarded materials.

 

He won the Art-Plus Art in Public Places Award with Dada South, this £50,000 award will create work, including the sculpture, “squaringthecircle?” to be sited at the university of Portsmouth in 2008.

 

Tony has been active in the disability arts movement since the 1980s. He has been a member and chair of a range of organisations including Full Circle Arts, EQUATA, Dada South, Tate Modern’s Access Monitoring Group, Arts Council of England’s Diversity Task Group as well as the Kew National Archive User Advisory Group and Leicester University’s Research Centre for Museums and Galleries.