Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Bold Tendencies, Hannah Barry, walks through the Peckham arts space in conversation with Selfridges’ Will Wyness as they grapple with these questions of place and common feeling. This conversation follows from Hannah’s participation in the Selfridges Group Mapping the Future festival. Here she reflects on Bold Tendencies’ roots within Peckham, the evolution of the space over the past 16 years and it’s unwavering dedication to human-focused ‘place’ creation. With people and community at the centre of Bold Tendencies, Hannah explains that the program is designed for the benefit of all, in pursuit of education, community and play. 

The Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Bold Tendencies, Hannah Barry, founded the not-for-profit, Peckham-based project in 2007 following her graduation from the University of Cambridge. She established her commercial art gallery, the Hannah Barry Gallery, in that same year. In 2021, Bold Tendencies received the prestigious Gamechanger Award by the Royal Philharmonic Society, and in 2022, Hannah was awarded an MBE for Services to Contemporary Arts in London. Hannah currently sits on the board of Artangel and the Serpentine Contemporary Council.