People

Director

Mary Jane has a background in social and visual arts and has held senior roles in several public arts institutions in the UK. She is interested in exploring alternative structures for sustaining and connecting artistic practice, civic engagement and knowledge exchange. During her career, Mary Jane has been privileged to commission and produce new artworks with early-career artists and eminent practitioners, such as Larry Achiampong, Marcus Coates, Yunchul Kim, Agnès Varda, Bill Morrison and Steve Reich. She has also collaborated with international partners such as Arts at CERN, CCCB and lieu le unique.

In addition to the arts, Mary Jane has worked in social policy, with a particular focus on youth employment within the creative industries, and social finance for common good. She also established and co-led an environmental art collective, which connects the practices of artists, scientists, and researchers with an emphasis on ecology and environmental sciences.

Outside of her work with the foundation, Mary Jane has an independent creative studio and consultancy focused on art-led social, cultural and environmental development, currently working with Greenpeace UK. Mary Jane is an Honorary Fellow and Advisory Board Member of the University of Liverpool Science and Literature Hub, and a member of The Association of Women in the Arts (AWITA).

Project & Development Manager

Sophia Hinton-Lever is an academic, writer and producer. Her doctoral research investigates the complex relationship between artists and the contemporary art industry. It utilises queer theory, post structural feminist philosophies, and cultural studies theories to approach questions of creative labour, embodiment and fetishisation. Sophia has presented and lectured at University of the Arts London, Central Saint Martins, University College London and in various conferences internationally and in the UK. Her research is heavily influenced by her creative academic background, she holds a BA English Literature from Goldsmiths and MA Global Creative and Cultural Industries from SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies).

Alongside her research, Sophia is a creative producer and has curated large scale projects for major organisations including UP Projects, Culture Liverpool, Somerset House Trust and Almeida Theatre. In 2019, Sophia led on the delivery for Naiza Khan’s participation in the 58th Venice Biennial, ‘Manora Field Notes’. Within all her projects, Sophia holds a specific interest in opening access to the art sector for marginalised groups through sustained community engagement.

Sophia also has an active creative writing practice. Her short stories, ‘The Pleasure of Living’, and ‘Y2K’ have been long listed for the Brick Lane Short Story competition in 2021 and 2024.
Originally from Liverpool, Sophia now lives and works in London.