Dig Where You Stand Dig Where You Stand

Dig Where You Stand is an archival justice movement made up of artists, archivists, educators and local community members.

Read more about DWYS and its origins

Welcome to the Archive

Explore past and present stories, events, exhibitions, artists, and more involved with DWYS
artist 01 Jan 2024

Patricia Bugembe

A photograph of the Black artist Patricia Bugembe smiling broadly and wearing a colourful yellow top A photograph of the Black artist Patricia Bugembe smiling broadly and wearing a colourful yellow top

Patty B is a self taught artist, Ugandan by heritage, born and raised in Ethiopia and now based in Sheffield, UK. Moving around a lot throughout her lifetime Patty B has found a sense of home by creating art that explores her roots. With a signature mixed media style she creates images that journey further into the history, the beauty and the power of the Black culture, discovering identities and making sense of her experiences. Since her debut exhibition "Her Story Remained Unfinished" at the Abbeydale Picture House, Sheffield, Patty B has continued to display her artwork in exhibitions around the country, on billboard campaigns and has had a special features in NowThen's Magazine.

A photograph of the Black artist Patricia Bugembe smiling broadly and wearing a colourful yellow top A photograph of the Black artist Patricia Bugembe smiling broadly and wearing a colourful yellow top
artist 01 Jan 2024

Seiko Kinoshita

A close up photograph of Japanese artist Seiko Kinoshita looking into the far distance A close up photograph of Japanese artist Seiko Kinoshita looking into the far distance

Seiko is a Japanese artist who lives and works in Sheffield. Based in her studio at Persistence Works, Yorkshire Artspace, she creates large installations, sculptures, and films often using traditional textile and craft techniques. She also loves working on Public Realm projects that are socially engaged and focus on the hidden stories of local people and their heritage. In her practice, she is interested in how slow and dying craft techniques have a future and keep its cultural value within our ever-changing fast-paced society, and how those old traditional techniques can exist within the contemporary art arena. In recent years, she enjoys collaborating with other professionals such as scientists and sound engineers on challenging projects in new creative directions.

A close up photograph of Japanese artist Seiko Kinoshita looking into the far distance A close up photograph of Japanese artist Seiko Kinoshita looking into the far distance
artist 01 Jan 2024

Eelyn Lee

A close up photograph of East-Asian artist Eelyn Lee looking directly into the camera A close up photograph of East-Asian artist Eelyn Lee looking directly into the camera

Eelyn Lee is an award winning artist and filmmaker of Hong Kong-English heritage who has shown work at Barbican, Tate Modern, Whitechapel Gallery, National Portrait Gallery, Palais de Tokyo and at international film festivals. Her art practice combines collective research, performance and filmmaking to create frameworks for collaboration. With ‘organising’ a key aspect of her practice, Eelyn has convened a range of community building projects including the Social Art Summit [2018] - an artist-led review of socially engaged arts practice, and the ESEA Artists’ Futures Town Hall [2023] - a place to imagine new landscapes for East and Southeast Asian artists in the UK and beyond. Her ongoing body of work, Performing Identities is a collective reimagining of ESEA identities through the creation of new mythical characters and their cosmologies.

A close up photograph of East-Asian artist Eelyn Lee looking directly into the camera A close up photograph of East-Asian artist Eelyn Lee looking directly into the camera
artist 01 Jan 2024

Kedisha Coakley

A black and white photograph of Black artist Kedisha Coakley looking into the distance A black and white photograph of Black artist Kedisha Coakley looking into the distance

Kedisha Coakley is a London-born, Sheffield-based artist. Her practice spans sculpture, photography, and printmaking, predominantly casting in bronze, through which she interrogates Black histories and experiences. Investigating the overlooked, she remixes aesthetics, techniques, and cultural refences throughout her work. Process, hybridity, and materiality are important strands of her practice. Coakley’s work begins as a personal investigation of self, childhood memories and ritualistic practices in the lives of Black communities, and what they signify universally in the world. Making visible suppressed or express meaning by looking hard at what exists in the world of cultural objects, exploring the unconscious of culture, maintaining the integrity of their origins.

A black and white photograph of Black artist Kedisha Coakley looking into the distance A black and white photograph of Black artist Kedisha Coakley looking into the distance
artist 01 Jan 2024

Najma Heybe

A close up photograph of Somali artist Najma Heybe smiling broadly at the camera A close up photograph of Somali artist Najma Heybe smiling broadly at the camera

Najma Heybe is a creative artist from Sheffield. Her passion for writing and poetry is driven by a deep desire to express herself and connect with others through her writing.

A close up photograph of Somali artist Najma Heybe smiling broadly at the camera A close up photograph of Somali artist Najma Heybe smiling broadly at the camera
artist 01 Jan 2024

Jacqui Hilson

A selfie photograph of Nigerian artist Jaqui Hilson who is smiling at the camera A selfie photograph of Nigerian artist Jaqui Hilson who is smiling at the camera

Jacqui Hilson is a self-taught textile artist and speaker who has developed a machine -based technique using Mola (Reverse Applique). Jacqui's art explores motifs taken from nature that are found in many cultures. Her work draws inspiration from her Nigerian background and her Yorkshire surroundings. A strong interest in colour and the part it plays in evoking and depicting emotions is a large part of her craft, as is the texture and layers of fabric. The technique of Reverse Applique involves taking sharp scissors to to cut through layers of fabric revealing what is underneath. The technique is not dissimilar to the one employed by historians to unearth the stories that have been covered by layers of time.

A selfie photograph of Nigerian artist Jaqui Hilson who is smiling at the camera A selfie photograph of Nigerian artist Jaqui Hilson who is smiling at the camera
artist 01 Jan 2024

Ellis Walker

A black and white photograph of a Black woman A black and white photograph of a Black woman

Ellis Walker is an early career researcher specialising in black British literature. Her main interests centre around black authored speculative fiction, the British publishing industry and the intersections of race and space in black British literature. Her PhD entitled ‘The Reception and Representation of Black British Authors in Contemporary Britain’ from the University of Sheffield was completed in September 2023.

A black and white photograph of a Black woman A black and white photograph of a Black woman
artist 01 Jan 2024

Rosa Cisneros

A close up photograph of Roma artist Rosa Cisneros smiling at the camera A close up photograph of Roma artist Rosa Cisneros smiling at the camera

Rosamaria Cisneros is a dancer, choreographer, dance historian, critic, Roma scholar, sociologist, flamenco historian and peace activist who graduated from UW- Madison and went on to complete her MA in Dance History & Criticism from UNM-Albuquerque. Her PhD in Sociology focused on Roma women, intersectionality, dialogic feminism and communicative methodologies. At the moment based in the UK, she is an artist- researcher at Coventry University’s Centre for Dance Research. She is also an independent artist, dancer, curator and teacher who has organised various festivals and exhibitions. Her dance films have screened in the UK, US, Colombia, Mexico, Greece, Cyprus and Germany and her latest documentary won best of the UK in 2016.

A close up photograph of Roma artist Rosa Cisneros smiling at the camera A close up photograph of Roma artist Rosa Cisneros smiling at the camera
artist 01 Jan 2024

Dal Kular

A black and white photograph of South Asian artist Dal Kular outside in nature looking into the distance A black and white photograph of South Asian artist Dal Kular outside in nature looking into the distance

Dal Kular is a Sheffield born and based writer, mentor and facilitator of creative writing, nature-allied and multi-media arts for healing and liberation. Leaving school at 16 years old with 3 O-levels and being told she could never be a writer, Dal returned to the power of words and writing in her late forties, gaining an MSc in Therapeutic Writing. Her debut poetry book (un)interrupted tongues is published by Fly on The Wall Press. Shortlisted for Wasafiri New Writing Prize and Class Action Nature writing prize, she’s been a recipient of an Arts Council England Developing Your Creative Practice Grant and has contributed a chapter on nature and healing for the forthcoming anthology ‘Wild Service, to be published by Bloomsbury 2024. She loves making zines, botanical journals and roaming the Peak Ditrict in her tiny campervan.

A black and white photograph of South Asian artist Dal Kular outside in nature looking into the distance A black and white photograph of South Asian artist Dal Kular outside in nature looking into the distance
artist 01 Jan 2024

Cole Morris

A photograph of Cole Morris stood in front of green bushes and smiling broadly at the camera A photograph of Cole Morris stood in front of green bushes and smiling broadly at the camera

I am a 22-year-old multi-media artist, fine art student at Liverpool John Moore university and musician of Caribbean / British descent, living in Sheffield. I’m very much influenced by my family, our histories and my location. My interests are animation, film and soundscapes. My last shadow puppet film earned an innovation award from the British Animation Short Film Festival 2023, and currently making a new shadow puppet horror short film “Mortis”.

A photograph of Cole Morris stood in front of green bushes and smiling broadly at the camera A photograph of Cole Morris stood in front of green bushes and smiling broadly at the camera
artist 01 Jan 2024

CJ Simon

a close up photograph of Black artist CJ Simon laughing directly at the camera a close up photograph of Black artist CJ Simon laughing directly at the camera

CJ Simon is a writer and academic whose dynamic work finds a way to balance both the scholastic and poetic. As a playwright, spoken-word artist, essayist, videographer, and podcaster, CJ's work endeavors to use mulidisceplary approaches in creating politically engaging and challenging work. His writing has been performed across the UK from the Southwark Playhouse in London to the Birmingham Hippodrome and beyond, with work currently being developed at Sheffield Theatres' and Theatre Deli. CJ is taking his next steps as a freelance writer and creative with his new theatre company Fire and Folie Theatre pushing to produce research-led and impact-driven art, making this work with Dig Where You Stand well-timed and incredibly exciting.

a close up photograph of Black artist CJ Simon laughing directly at the camera a close up photograph of Black artist CJ Simon laughing directly at the camera
artist 01 Jan 2024

Asma Kabadeh

A close up photograph of Somali artist Asma Kabadeh smiling into the camera with her head slightly tilted A close up photograph of Somali artist Asma Kabadeh smiling into the camera with her head slightly tilted

Asma Kabadeh is a creative producer and programmer with an extensive background in collaborative arts initiatives. Working across arts, community development and research her work is primarily centred on facilitating diverse creative voices in multimedia forms with a strong focus on uncovering untold stories. Asma has produced 10 short films with local filmmakers, screened by Sheffield DocFest Exchange, and Migration Matters festival.

A close up photograph of Somali artist Asma Kabadeh smiling into the camera with her head slightly tilted A close up photograph of Somali artist Asma Kabadeh smiling into the camera with her head slightly tilted
artist 01 Jan 2024

Otis Mensah

A photograph of Black artist Otis Mensah in amongst tree branches looking into the far distance A photograph of Black artist Otis Mensah in amongst tree branches looking into the far distance

Otis Mensah (recipient of Jerwood Arts Live Work Fund & Arts Council England's Developing your Creative Practice) is a musician and multidisciplinary artist exploring the intersection of poetry and experimental music(s). Taking influence from the rhythmic and expressive freedom of Jazz, Otis’ work uses aesthetic language as an instrument to solo through themes of race, identity, gender and the body. Since being appointed Sheffield’s first Poet Laureate in 2018, Otis has sold-out their debut poetry collection Safe Metamorphosis published with Prototype in 2020, debuted at Glastonbury, & We Out Here Festival, as well as performing with the likes of Moor Mother, Nightmares On Wax, Benjamin Zephaniah and Little Simz.

A photograph of Black artist Otis Mensah in amongst tree branches looking into the far distance A photograph of Black artist Otis Mensah in amongst tree branches looking into the far distance
artist 01 Jan 2024

Wemmy Ogunyankin

A selfie photograph of Nigerian artist Wemmy Ogunyankin looking to the side of the camera with her head slightly tilted A selfie photograph of Nigerian artist Wemmy Ogunyankin looking to the side of the camera with her head slightly tilted

I am a visual anthropologist/ethnographer who specialises in photography, documentary and poetry. My work concerns a deep exploration of the lived experiences of minoritised and underrepresented groups. As a Black woman, I look to challenge the co-opting of storytelling, to uncover hidden stories, do grassroots work with local communities, decolonise the lens, and in turn contribute to intersectional feminist creative practice.

A selfie photograph of Nigerian artist Wemmy Ogunyankin looking to the side of the camera with her head slightly tilted A selfie photograph of Nigerian artist Wemmy Ogunyankin looking to the side of the camera with her head slightly tilted
artist 01 Oct 2021

Désirée Reynolds

A photograph of Black writer Désirée Reynolds smiling at the camera A photograph of Black writer Désirée Reynolds smiling at the camera

Désirée Reynolds, (she/her) a South Londoner up North, was brought up in Clapham, London to Jamaican parents and now living in Sheffield. She told her Mum, at about 8 years old, that she was going to write a book and has been writing ever since. She started her writing career as a freelance journalist for the Jamaica Gleaner and the Village Voice. She has gone on to write film scripts, poetry, flash fiction and short stories.

A photograph of Black writer Désirée Reynolds smiling at the camera A photograph of Black writer Désirée Reynolds smiling at the camera