Art & Culture
Call out: Royal Docks Originals x Cable Car
We are are looking for three creatives to make new work with passengers travelling on the IFS Cloud Cable Car. As part of the first edition of a new biennial festival, Royal Docks Originals, we are commissioning a composer, a poet and a visual artist to create instant world-premiere pieces of art and music. This will take place on Saturday 27th September, from 10 - 5pm.
Creative Brief – Composer, Poet, Visual Artist
The details of the role are as follows:
- to co-create new music, poetry or visual art creations with groups of passengers travelling on the IFS Cloud Cable car, working with passengers ‘ideas and suggestions
- To showcase the new works created on the Cable car as part of the live entertainment of the day
- To provide a fun, uplifting experience to passengers on the cable car
The successful candidate will:
- Be able to demonstrate a significant track-record in their art form
- Have extensive experience working in a participatory context, and be comfortable and confident working with individuals and small groups of people
- Be comfortable composing new material within a short amount of time
- Be based in, or evidence a connection to, Newham/East London
Dates:
All activity will take place on Saturday 27th September, from 10-5pm
Fee:
The fee is £300 which breaks down as follows:
- £200: Delivery
- £100: Planning
Dependant on need, a small additional materials budget can be made available
Your proposal
To submit your proposal, please complete this form by midnight on Sunday 13th July 2025, and send it to the e-mail address below, alongside a CV or a link to a website that lists your credits. We will aim to inform successful applications by Tuesday 22nd July.
Please note – we may contact applications for an informal phone conversation between Monday 14th and Monday 21st July.
If you would like to discuss your proposal before submitting, or if you need assistance to complete the form, please email RoyalDocksEvents@london.gov.uk with ' Royal Docks Originals x Cable Car ' in the subject line.
About Royal Docks Originals x Cable Car
Each of the three festival weekends has a specific geographical focus. The middle weekend – 27th and 28th September – will be focused on the City Hall area and a vibrant array of creative activity will be on offer, headlined by a world-class fire and water installation.
The IFS Cloud Cable Car, an iconic asset to the Royal Docks, will become a travelling stage for music, poetry and art. We are commissioning three artists – a composer, a poet and a visual artist, to travel in the Cable Car and collaborate with passengers to create new works of art, in under 10 mins.
We envisage that the composer would co-create a short musical phrase/song, that the poet would create a new poem and that the visual artist could do a swift drawing session/workshop, or a crafting activity – but we welcome all ideas!
About Royal Docks Originals
A brand-new festival from London’s Cultural Engine, Royal Docks Originals will present world-class arts, spectacular new installations, and premier performances for three weeks in Autumn 2025. Launching on 15th September, more than 50 events will respond to the Royal Docks stunning land and waterscape. The festival will enable artists, Londoners, and visitors to explore the area’s past and future through the lens of transformation, revealing the stories, history, heritage and aspirations of the Royal Docks and its diverse community.
The theme of Royal Docks Originals 2025 is transformation, and the programme will reflect the evolution of the area and its pivotal role, past and present, in London’s complex story as a global city. Built over 100 years ago, the Royal Docks heritage includes its role as a part of the industrial revolution and British colonial trading. Today as London’s only enterprise zone, with one of the youngest and most diverse communities in the UK, it stands as a beacon for more sustainable, inclusive, and equitable growth.
Royal Docks Originals is a movement, not just a moment. More than a one-off showcase of incredible projects made by Royal Docks creatives. Royal Docks Originals is a biennial cultural collaboration that involves the whole Royal Docks community. 2025 is the first edition and residents, workers, and students from across the area are joining together with leading Newham creatives and businesses to make Royal Docks Originals 2025 into a fantastic celebration of the area’s heritage, people, and places, and to stake a claim in shaping the area’s future.
