Pollination residency

Do you have an artistic idea that you are keen to develop but always lack the space and time to kickstart? Our artist residency programme is back with more to offer! Join us this year to experiment with your ideas with more support and longer periods, and a potential sharing opportunity, supported by BOLD Theatre.

The program is open to Hong Kong artists in London, or artist groups with at least 30% of their members from Hong Kong.

There are 5 residency slots available for artist groups/individuals. As always, we welcome all sorts of art form, but we do prioritise multidisciplinary ideas that require a live audience engagement (e.g. performances, workshops, interactive installations etc.) to get feedback from.

One of the slots will be allocated based on the theme “bridging communities” and will be mentored by Benjamin Sin from Bishop Ho Ming Wah Association and Community Centre, a charity based in Covent Garden promoting social connection and community spirit amongst Hong Kong migrants and the local community. It is up to you on how to interpret the theme.

What you get:

A 3-14 day residency at BOLD Theatre - depending on what you are aiming to get out of the residency
Social media shout-out before or after the residency
£600 production support
Personal sessions with Creative mentor based on your needs
Work-in-progress sharing event at St.Margaret’s House (24 January 2026)

Residency periods: (available Monday to Friday, 10am to 5pm)

w/c 20 October

w/c 27 October

w/c 8 December

w/c 15 December

w/c 12 January 2026

w/c 19 January 2026

The space:

BOLD Theatre, 21 St. George’s Road, London, SE1 6ES

(Nearest tube station: Elephant and Castle)

Space: Undercroft or the Herd (depending on availability)
Access to WiFi, kitchen
The Undercroft is 10 steps down from ground level, Disabled access is available
There is sound spill from/to the Undercroft
There is no theatre rigging/stage setting available, you can always bring your own equipment if you wish to.
The general rule of thumb is you should return the space to how it was before you entered.

Programme timeline:

21 September 23:59pm - Applications close

25 September - Applicants to be informed of your results

20 October - 23 January 2026 - Artist residencies at BOLD Theatre (5 artist groups)

24 January (Saturday) - Work in progress sharing event at St.Margaret’s House

Apply now

FAQ

Q: Do you have any priorities?
A: As the resources are limited, we are prioritising submissions that:

(1) can benefit the most out of the given time and space;

(2) need initial support to kickstart an ambitious idea;

Proposed activities should not include any commercial activities.

Q: How do I decide how much time I need? How will the residency timeslots be allocated?

A: It might be tempting to use up the full 2 weeks that is on offer, but we recommend that you think through what are the crucial elements of the work you want to get tested and assess how much time you need for that. It is also important that you consider how far can the cash production support help you, because you should compensate your collaborators (and yourself) fairly. We will only offer a maximum of two 2-week slots. Depending on the submissions and final curation of residency artists, we may suggest a shorter or longer residency period based on your application.

Q: Can I apply for both the unrestricted residency and the “bridging communities” strand?

A: Yes, and we recommend that you apply according to the original idea that you have, and try not to adjust your project based on the theme.

Q: How will my application data be used?

A: We try our best to make sure all personal data is strictly confidential and only collected and used for the selection of residency artists. Please read our GDPR policy here.

Q: Can I put this as in-kind support for my Arts Council England project grant?
A: Yes! In fact we encourage you to, but please only include us after we have informed you of the results.

If you have any enquiries, feel free to contact us at amy@amy-sze.com.

SIN, Chiu Hang Benjamin Benjamin obtained his Master of Social Work degree from the University of Hong Kong in 2002 and has committed himself to community development for 22 years. He has a strong devotion to empowering resilience in underrepresented communities, building sustainable cities without poverty. Taking a strength-based approach, he strategises social service models, cultivates and utilises internal assets of ecosystems, and has brought substantive impacts aimed at achieving equity and inclusion. He launched the transformation of community spaces into extended living rooms for families living in substandard housing and successfully advocated for changes in public policy to alleviate poverty. His other foci include building age- and labour-friendly culture, enabling well-being in neighbourhoods, conserving historical settlements, and authoring award-winning oral history collections. He is currently based in London, diving into the adult social care system.