As the Arts Network, we are here to help you feel supported as a creative student. We want you to be equipped, inspired, and encouraged in your creative craft as well as in your walk with Christ.
We believe that a key way this can happen is through small groups or hubs of students coming together to support one other in their creative practices and faith.
We recognise that Arts Network groups around the UK will be totally different to each other - there is no one size fits all! We celebrate this diversity; knowing that we are all made differently and in variety of context.
We hope that this resource will help you to think through what it might mean to set up and run an Arts Network hub where you are.
Many groups look very different from the outside, but they all have similar function. It is helpful for your Hub to have these four elements at the heart of what you do, and to translate this into your termly or monthly plan.
1. Creative Community
To build a diverse, creative community that encourages and sharpens one another in faith and practice.
Arts Network hubs should be places where every member is committed to helping each other to grow, both spiritually and in our arts practices.
This means taking time to get to know one another, being proactively and prayefully invested in one another, and committed to meeting regularly. It may also mean inviting older Christians working within the arts to help encourage and support you.
2. Biblical Understanding
To grow together in understanding the creative arts and our creative giftings in light of a Biblical Worldview.
Arts Network hubs are about digging into the Bible and exploring how God's Word helps us to live out our creative gifts with joy and for His Glory.
This means opening the Bible regularly together and reading books and resources that help you to think through a Biblical understanding of the arts. We want to recognise that God's words should be shaping our thoughts and discussions together.
3. Critical and Creative Engagement
Equipping ourselves to anayse and to engage in the art world and its concepts, proactively investing in our culture.
Arts Network hubs should be actively engaged and interested in the world around us, holding this together with our Biblical Worldview. This means taking the time to listen well to what is going on around us - this could be through gallery visits, film-watching, reading a piece of creative writing or poetry together, seeing a theatre/concert or listening to an artist talk.
Active cultural engagement helps us to sharpen our own practices and create work that is interesting and relevant to those around us. It also helps us to enter into a meaningful dialogue with our fellow creatives.
4. Hospitality and Sharing
To grow in sharing Jesus authentically with creativity in the Arts
Arts Network hubs should be active and passionate in giving everyone the opportunity to hear and respond to Jesus. This means offering good hospitality to our peers as we invite them to join our meetings and events. Try your best to create an environment that feels warm, friendly and welcoming to all.
Arts Network hubs, and the events you host, can be a unique opportunity for creatives to consider how the Bible speaks into areas of life that are particularly important to them. So be brave and create opportunities for your friends and course mates to hear about Jesus.
It is good to try to keep the group as open as possible whilst still being clear about your purpose.
Hubs should be a space to grapple with what it means to be a faithful Christian as a creative, to pray for one another, spur one another on, and to deepen in your understanding of what the Bible has to say about your subject area.
However, it is also important that your group have a missional view. This means creating additional opportunities to host creative evangelistic events, encouraging one another in your conversations with coursemates, and importantly making your group welcome to those who are asking questions about the Christian faith!
Your hubs will all look different... here are some examples of what it might look like to start a hub
Small Creative CUs
You may be a small CU in a creative campus or University that already functions similarly to an 'Arts Hub', we hope we can support you with resources to bless your meetings. If this is you, you may find that once a month you break off from your normal CU activities to host a special arts focused event or discussion.
Creatives from across the City
You may be in a city where there are many creative courses across multiple different Universities - Arts hubs can be a great opportunity to connect with a variety of different creative students, grow new friendships, and learn from one another. You may consider hosting these meetings monthly or termly in a location that is fairly central and easily accessible by those in different Universities.
Creative Minority in a Large CU
Perhaps you are a creative minority within a large CU who want to spend time each week meeting together to chat through a book, or a study. In this case, meeting on campus during the day time can be a great way to invite your coursemates to join you in a neutral and familar space.
And many more...
Whatever your situation, we recommend establishing a regular rhythm of meeting, whether that be weekly or monthly. It is also important that you consider meeting somewhere that is comfortable, welcoming, and easily accessible for all (consider any additional needs that your group members might have when choosing where to meet!).
Need more help? Check out our guide to planning your time together.
We are growing our online resources to support you in hosting events and discussions in your hubs. Our resources include arts studies and discussion guides, book recommendations, creative event outlines, and much more.
Your CU Staff Worker will also be an important source of support as you get your Hub started. They can help you think about how an Arts Network Hub fits in with everything else going on in your CU, and help you launch your new Hub to other students in the CU. They’ll also help you think about how to pass the Hub on to new leaders well when you move on!
The Arts Network Coordinator will be another source of support, providing resources and advice for running your Hub and checking in each term to help you make plans and answer any questions. They’ll also keep you informed of what’s going on in the wider Network so your Hub can hear about events and resources to make the most of.
If you are interested in starting a Hub, please get in touch! Email arts@uccf.org.uk and we would love to help you as you think about what it looks like to host Arts hubs in your area.
Now you’re ready to get started! Check out our resources page and figure out what works for you!
Got questions about Arts Network Hubs that this article hasn’t answered? Get in touch by emailing arts@uccf.org.uk and we'd love to help.