Artist development commission - Daby Obiechefu
Urban Wilderness CIC supported the Stoke-on-Trent People’s Parade as part of the city’s centenary celebrations, produced by Stoke Creates. The parade brought together hundreds of residents, artists, schools and community groups to celebrate 100 years of Stoke-on-Trent, with creativity, resilience and collective pride at its heart.
As part of this programme, Urban Wilderness CIC delivered an artist development commission to support local artist Daby Obiechefu in extending our Blooming Longton theme for the parade. Through our creative team, Urban Wilderness provided artist development, production support and mentoring, working closely with Daby to develop new designs and adapt existing floral costumes originally created for the Pig Walk Parade for use within a large-scale outdoor procession. This process translated ideas from Daby’s personal arts practice into vibrant, wearable parade elements, supported by teams of creative volunteers who helped make and wear the costumes alongside the Urban Wilderness team during the People’s Parade.
The commission supported the creation of 30 new costume pieces for pupils from Clarice Cliff Primary School to wear in the People’s Parade. These costumes built on Urban Wilderness’s established visual language of flowers, growth and renewal, while offering young participants a joyful, shared identity within the procession and a meaningful way to take part in a landmark cultural event.
Alongside design and production, Urban Wilderness worked collaboratively with artists and creative volunteers to adapt designs into three-dimensional forms suitable for outdoor performance. This included hands-on making sessions, testing materials, refining structures and preparing costumes for use on the day, ensuring they were both visually striking and practical for young performers.
Urban Wilderness artists were also present during the People’s Parade itself, providing costume support for participants and performing within the procession. Despite challenging weather conditions, hundreds of people took part, and the event demonstrated the power of large-scale participatory arts to bring communities together in celebration of place.
The People’s Parade marked a significant moment for Stoke-on-Trent, and Urban Wilderness was proud to contribute through artist development, school engagement and creative production, supporting young people and local artists to play an active role in the city’s centenary celebrations.