Contemporary And (C&)
Making contemporary art and thought more discoverable.
I led strategy and communications for a proposed digital living archive for C&, designed to make contemporary art from Africa and the global diaspora easier to explore, understand and access.
Big idea.
C& holds a rich and growing body of editorial, educational and archival material. The opportunity was to make that knowledge more visible and useful - not simply through a better search function, but through a digital experience that encouraged people to discover connections, ideas and artists in new ways.
The project needed to remain rooted in C&’s principles while creating a realistic route for a complex digital transformation.
Simply told.
I defined the strategic ambition, led research and planning, and scoped the project.
I developed the concept for C&Cyclopedia: a platform that combined focused search, faceted filters and exploratory browsing. I identified the structural, financial and technical considerations required to take the idea forward.
I also coordinated and facilitated more than 50 stakeholder engagements, established governance, delivery workstreams and decision-making processes, and set out a phased plan for implementation.
Lasting impact.
The strategy led to new funding opportunities, including Patreon. In May 2024, C& secured £1 million in further funding to deliver the project developed from the original report.
C& gained a clear, evidence-based route towards a more accessible and discoverable digital archive.
The work created the strategic, operational and governance foundations needed to develop C&Cyclopedia in phases—helping C& widen access to contemporary art and thought from Africa and the global diaspora.
