Amy Neilson Smith
Amy Neilson Smith
Publications & Performances
Amy's collection is titled Dark Matter; other publications include The Morning Star – Well Versed, Loose Muse – Morgan’s Eye Press, Artemis, Indigo Dreams (Macmillan Cancer) - alongside Carol Ann-Duffy, Leonard Cohen & Maya Angelou; she was commissioned by Live Cannon, launched at the Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A) and shortlisted by Clare Pollard for their International Poetry Prize 2017. Other performances include: The Royal Festival Hall & touring ‘Poetry Can F**k Off’ with Selina Newulu. Amy performed as a Sensory Artist at the debut disability-led Sensibility Festival in collaboration with Graeae Theatre and Bittersuite – 2018, for which she garnered a personal feature in The Guardian; Amy has acted for The Peter Hall Company, Hat Trick Productions/Diorama Theatre, BBC, ITV and The National Studio and was invited to workshop at The Royal Court.
Here, Amy Neilson Smith curates, writes, directs, and performs in Firepit Fables, with her sensory team at Sense – “connecting sight, sound and life”; Touchbase Pears, Birmingham.
Sensory Poetry Director
As an immersive poetry director Amy’s debut project was at Richmix, where ‘The Tasting Colour Collective’ performed her multi-voiced poem As if a Love Affair with Yellow was a good idea! The audience were led inside a three-dimensional world of the poem’s fodder: as dancers, musicians and poets fed the audience with the colourful tastes from the poem’s sensory landscape. “We will be taking the blindfolded audience through a love affair of colour…you will be encapsulated within a living, breathing 3D poem, in which your very own words, in a rainbow of metaphors will come to life. Your poets and musicians will feed you an array of tastes to get those words tripping off the tongue. Find out what it feels like to lose yourself inside a poem’s beating heart.”
The painting opposite was used for The Tasting Colour Collective, debut at Richmix; ‘As if a Love Affair with Yellow was a good idea!” form arranged with painted flowers on canvas.
The image below is a multicoloured, expressionistic portrait of Creative Director Amy Neilson Smith, drawn by Ana Tio, a French Resident Artist at Maison Gai Saber; Amy was Poet Resident with Ana in summer 2016.
Detailed Image Description: the artist has drawn Amy’s body without skin; we see directly inside the body, where Amy has a bright pink rose as a throat, with water pouring from it. Any has a yellow tilted heart, with bright yellow, green and veins that flow down into her arms and hips and thighs. We only see Amy’s lips. Her eyes are not shown. We see down to her thighs. Where Amy’s womb would be, is a bright pink circle, with a smaller circle with purple dots; these are encased is a bright ring of yellow. There are flowers growing round her womb and the green veins also grow leaves, like they were part of the roses stems and body. The background has delicate floating purple feathers and little speckles of stars on a black night sky background. There is a Japanese style fish, swimming up stream, up Amy’s right arm. It brings fertility and good luck! At the bottom right hand corner, the artist has written Amy’s name, is speech marks, and in capital letters. The colour pink is prominent in the portrait. Pink is round; it’s soft skin breaks with ease as life’s waters ooze out into the world.
National Press Reviews
Director David Siebert has found in Amy Neilson Smith a talented young actress who, as the blonde Doreen, is capable of giving a performance every bit as watch able and engrossing as its original star Maggie Smith. This is detailed quality acting, her body language combining gentle comedy with dramatic tension that reveals her every reaction as the nervous guest of two young men in a slightly scruffy bedsit in Belsize Park.'
- Peter Lathan, The British Theatre Guide
‘Simultaneously satirising upper-crust do-gooders and the notion of theatre as moral medicine, the play is a poisoned jest, illuminated by Amy Neilson Smith's choice performance as a vinegary, tight-lipped dissenter.’
–Michael Billington, The Guardian
‘Excellent performances from the three female principles – Amy Neilson Smith’s Jenny could be straight out of ‘The Catherine Tate Show’’
- Robert Shore, Time Out ****
Educator & Sensory Artist
Amy Neilson Smith founded the role ‘Sensory Poetry Educator’ on the Spoken Word Education Program (Goldsmiths MA) for students with vision impairment and complex communicational needs. This metaphorical 'perception of colour' creates poems from taste, smell and touch by playfully ‘inducing’ the participants with synesthesia. ‘I don’t have to see the colour, I can eat the colour.’ Their sensory anthology ‘A Blind Bit of Difference’, has glowing reviews from Michael Rosen, Extant Theatre, Sense, Jacob Sam La-Rose and Dr Lucy English. Excitingly, Amy was invited to Moscow State University to present the 'Tasting Colour' food-based arts and science Sensory Poetry practices.
In the near future, Amy will also be collaborating with renowned deafblind Russian poet Irina Povolotskya, in live improvisational performance, Irina performed at The National Theatre with our very own Lead Artist, deafblind poet and actress Zara Jayne, with the fabulous Graeae Theatre, directed by fantabulous Jenny Sealy!
Isobel Cox, Head of The Whitfield Academy Trust, had this to say of working with Amy:
"We are extraordinarily lucky to have Amy working with us. The creativity unleashed […] is a testament not just the talent of the students, but also her talent for helping them express it"
National Educator’ Status
and cross-cultural arts engagement
with British Afro-Caribbean, Nigerian and Asian Artists
Amy Neilson Smith was trained as an educator under the directorship of internationally renowned, British Nigerian Spoken Word Artist and Educator Indigo Williams; during her residency at St Gabriel’s College, with a 90% black and Asian community, Indigo and Amy developed a project exploring new narratives exploring the theme of ‘Home’. Amy was selected as National Educator alongside Indigo Williams, promoting and celebrating the Betjeman Poetry Prize, alongside Carol Ann Duffy, exploring this theme of ‘Home’. Amy was commissioned to write and record an ‘educational’ poem on the theme, aimed at 10 - 13 year old’s; Amy titled it ‘Brighton Hearted’, exploring themes of gratitude for our life on this precious Earth, whilst reflecting on the story of a young black student who was shot dead, and the tempestuous emotions that arise from such a harrowing event.
Amy was then given a training role herself, educating and supporting the black British Nigerian poet Theresa Lola, in her first school’s placement. Theresa was Young Peoples Laureate soon after, published her first collection ‘In Search of Equilibrium’ (Nine Arches Press) and currently studies a Poetry Masters at Oxford University. Amy and Theresa collaboratively created and ran a school’s poetry slam, in which Afro-Caribbean, Nigerian, and black students performed new narrative poems about their mixed cultural heritage and black British histories. Amy also taught drama extensively in Bermondsey, London, in a ‘challenging inner city school’; drama and ‘role play’ subjects included weapon crime and drug use, empowering positive intervention and prevention.
Portait photograph of Indigo Williams’ head and shoulders. Indigo is a black woman with dark brown eyes and long straight black hair, which falls down over her shoulders on her white jumper. The photograph is framed by a brown circular border, like looking through a keyhole. She is looking into the camera and smiling slightly.
This is a closeup of a newspaper cutting, featuring black British Nigerian poet, Teresa Lola. Theresa wears a yellow jacket with a red top underneath and has a black afro and large silver earrings. The headline above her reads: “Arts and Culture. Young People’s Laureate Theresa Lola on the power of verse. Pages 32 – 33.”
Sensory Research
Multidisciplinary, Crossmodal and Sensory Research
Amy Neilson Smith being celebrated internationally in Symposium!
Amy was invited to Russia to share her innovative and “groundbreaking research” (Dr Lucy English, of Bath Spa University). Symposium Organisation; The International Association of Synaesthetes, Artists, and Scientists (IASAS); Symposium Content: Synaesthesia: Cross-sensory Aspects of Cognition across Science and Art). The International Association of Synaesthetes, Artists, and Scientists (IASAS); Synaesthesia: Cross-sensory Aspects of Cognition across Science and Art, Moscow, Russia.
Amy has presented her research at The Royal College of Art, at The Crossmodalism Symposium under the directorship of Prague’s leading Sensory Film Artist Dr Tereza Stehlikova; at The London Institute of Philosophy for Open Senses Festival (in collaboration with Sense/deafblind charity, and Performance Poetry ‘Graf-Mythology’ – a kaleidoscope of modern reinvention of classical Shakespearean women and their ‘broken’ voices, at Maison Gai Saber/France, under the collaborative directorship of Philosopher Horst Hutter and The Nietzsche Circle, New York.
A.B.B.O.D in Brazil!
The voices of the future from the UK (VI) community were celebrated in BRAZIL! Their debut film ‘Tasting Colour – A Live Multisensory Book Launch, The Albany Theatre’ was shortlisted for one of the world’s biggest disability arts festivals; they created sensory poetry with plates of food in hand “Brazil-style!”/Dec, 2019, at Assim Vivemos, St. Paulo – sharing their poetical wizardry & celebrating ‘disabled voices’, across the globe!
Below are a few shots of the action and Creative Director Amy Neilson Smith in live Sensory Workshops! Brazil foodie-styleeeeeee!
Photograph of the 'Assim Vivemos Disability Film' festival crew, in St Paulo Brazil. Creative Director Amy Neilson Smith kneels down in front of the five other crew members. Amy wears a red polka dot dress with white spots and a red cardigan, both match the large red fabric box-sculpture behind them, containing an extravagant, white, historic ballroom gown, behind a mesh or vermillion fabric. One crew member wears a bright blue 'Assim Vivemos' T-shirt, with white letters. All crew hold two publications in their hands, displayed for the camera - our 'A Blind Bit of Difference' Sensory Poetry Anthology and the 'Assim Vivemos' festival program; Amy holds a larger braille version of the festival program. Everyone looks joyous, with big smiles!
Here, we see a Sensory Poetry Workshop, live, in action! There are a large group of people gathered round a table, covered with a lush array of Brazilian foods: bright yellow melons - some cut open, coconut drinks with straws, carved from fresh coconuts, as the cup, enormous bright red and green tomatoes, several plates of pale, traditional Brazilian cheese, vibrant red watermelon, cut open, with green stripey skin, lemons, and 'Tasting Colour' instructions written in both Brazilian and English. There are images of UK disabled artists spread on the table, and several copies of 'A Blind Bit of Difference', with its bright rainbow colour painted cover. One man is tasting some cheese, another is pouring some water; to the left there is half of someones black afro, and to the right the Brazilian camera woman holds the camera directed at the sensory action. Watermelon magic: "Red is soft, melts in my hands - a cool lava, oozing"; "green is smooth and round, the world in my hands".
Here, Creative Director Amy Neilson Smith, kneels next to a black woman in her wheelchair; behind them stands the light-skinned, male Artistic Director of the Disability Film Festival Assim Vivemos; both Amy and the Artistic Director wear the bright blue festival T-shirts, with white letters. The woman seated in her wheelchair is a poet and artist who is wearing a "traditional African outfit with a perfectly matching headscarf!" (her words), as it matches the patterns on the brown patchwork-style dress. In the background, the same extravagant, white, historic ballgown dress, glows behind the red fabric box-sculpture. All three people have big smiles!
This image is bluuuuured! As it is a long-distance shot of the big cinema screen at Assim Vivemos, Brazil! On the screen are six people on stage at the 'A Blind Bit of Difference' live multisensory launch, lined up for the 'company bow'. Creative Director Amy Neilson Smith holds a bouquet of yellow and red flowers; she is smiling and looking at the line of disabled artists. There are silhouettes of the audience members in their cinema seats in the foreground. The big black screen is raised towards the ceiling; the bright light from the screen reflects on the shiny black ceiling.
In the video below, Amy is interviewed by a Brazilian Educator, inspired by Paulo Freire; they discuss the educational system failures in the UK and how creative educator roles should take the lead!
Photograph of Amy neilson Smith and Dr Marianna Lopez. This full length shot, has Dr Lopez to the left, holding an 'A Blind Bit of Difference' book, with a bright rainbow coloured cover, and Creative Director Amy Neilson Smith to the right, also holding the same book; behind them is a large banner, which reaches above their heads, with 'EAD - Enhancing Audio Description' the font is black, and part is blue. The conference sponsors also feature, scattered underneath the main title: University of York, ITV, Dolby and RNIB.
On return from Brazil, Creative Director Amy Neilson Smith was invited to present collaborative work with Accessible Filmmaker Kate Dangerfield, Head of Accessibility for 'A Blind Bit of Difference', at the 'Enhancing Audio Description' Conference
As part of the UN International Day of people with Disabilities: "I was honoured to present and discuss two films, one a film-interview with the badass queer, blind, activist, aerialist, performer & academic Amelia Cavallo. https://vimeo.com/310369820 (also available to watch below!). This was R&D for the Audio Description, for ‘A Blind Bit of Difference’ live spoken word show and poetry publication in Oct (Arts Council and Alba Publishing). The inspirational Kate Dangerfield, created both. The first ‘The Accessible Film Project’ (BFI/ Sense) first screened at the V&A for Open Senses Festival (Creative Director Stephanie Singer) and included an incredible sequence in which one disabled user, created film for the first-time using police PlayMobil & a hand-held camera, working from hand scribbled story-boards! ❤️ - inspiration from years of The Bill! His fav program! Obs!"
York described the collective of the artists & Kate’s films as “cutting edge work on accessibility & the concept of accessibility in films” - Dr Marianna Lopez - Chair of Audio Engineering Society.
Kate’s main 'accessible focus' was exploring Audio Description close up to the speakers faces, so as not to draw the eye away to the bottom - instead staying close to the central focus and also setting up a format in which we both described ourselves and our surroundings throughout - allowing very personal details of word choice and our personalities to be described by us and not added as an impersonal afterthought by an external source.
Here is another of A Blind Bit of Difference's 'Access to Arts' docu-interviews, with Sarah Houbalt. https://vimeo.com/359736910