Emma Cairns

I’m an artist based in Southampton, and I work freelance as a specialist in Artist Support, helping other creative people with their work. Drawing on my 20+ years experience as an animation director, creative business owner, university lecturer, and work with local and national arts organisations, I provide one-to-one advice and support with: finding opportunities and building networks planning a project or activity feedback on your work making an application for funding managing work-life balance I also run workshops, deliver training and host panel discussions events and crit groups, and I provide access support for funding applications. I’m happy to meet in-person or online. Feel free to get in touch if you’d like to know more.

I deliver learning, engagement, interpretation and digital comms. My website has examples of what I can deliver. I work in a couple of ways – Off-the-shelf – I have existing packages I can tweak to meet your needs if you’re looking for work around reminiscence, training or family workshops. Bespoke – if you’re looking for support with a project or new activity including exhibition text, trails, consultation etc. Coming from a land-based background, I have a particular interest in rural communities and issues around land-based occupations, community and heritage. I have a portfolio career made up of freelance work, a part-time job, and 3 part-time, freelance clients. #portfoliocareer #manyhats #freelance  

I am an audio-artist that uses music hardware (no laptop) to create music which I adapt live- effectively remixing my own music in real time. I tend towards the techno genre but relish the challenge of creating site-specific music such as I did as part of the Q121 project- playing music live in the historic wind tunnel in Farnborough to a paying audience. I also like to create unique sounding instruments or sound sources using contact microphones or by “circuit-bending” older electronic toys. By creating unique instruments this way- old, unwanted toys can be sustainably given new leases of life and become both sonically and artistically pleasing or interesting. I like to collaborate with other artists.