Jozoway is an Earth-based writer, book artist and Daoist design specialist. His work explores the idea of the book. Binding his practice through the movement of Parkour and the wisdom of ancient Daoists.

His reductive method and meditative approach push against the constraints of both the physical and poetic aspects of his materials, eliminating the concept of limitations within his work and granting him the freedom to analyse it boundlessly.

Using printed matter as a physical way of expression. Much of his success comes from his ability to express deep truths pulled from within, through writing and publication.

IG: @jozoway

Oscar Rodriguez (he/they) is a Salvadoran American poet and performance artist based in Kingston. Avid writer since childhood, his migration to London to study Creative Writing at Kingston University was a manifestation of resilience. Escaping from a doomsday group, their poetry reflects on trauma, religion, identity, and queerness.

With their debut Sampson Low pamphlet, MOLD, it follows the downward spiral of sexual addiction and its consequent ruin on the self. Fueling the descent through abstraction, constraint poetry and visual stimulation; there is no denial of degeneracy. Laid between confessional and fictive, Mold is telling of a new wave of the sexual revolution.

His work is multimodal: from the written word to hypnotic visuals and distorted soundscapes. They use technology and software to abstract language to construct reality under a detailed eye. His art is reflective of their life experience, a unique voice telling of a life in the shadows to push conversations on class, philosophy, and the taboo. Pain is used as fuel to begin relatable discussions in poetic form.

IG: @bleedingautograph

To find out more about what these two are up to, feel free to follow the links to their social media channels and make sure to sign up to our mailing list to be the first to hear about all the exciting things coming up in the next few months.

Our Creative Talent Programme is generously funded by Arts Council England.

Our Community in Residence collaboration with WOM Collective is supported by Kingston Borough Council’s Community Resilience Fund.

You can support both Creative Youth and WOM in celebration of International Women’s Day by attending our upcoming events!

WOM X FUSEBOX inspired.

Saturday 16 March @ FUSEBOX (18:00 – 21:00)

Queen’s of the Wall 

02.02.2024 – Rapid Change

Programmed by our Young Creative, Maxi Himpe, the event introduced conversations surrounding sexuality and identity.

Oscar Rodriguez, a Salvadoran American poet and performance artist based in Kingston, stunned us with MOLD: Live Hypnosis, a piece that showcased the meaning of hypersexuality through a queer lens. In parallel, Crusty, a gender-bending performer, brought a lot of laughter and reflection with their satirical performance piece about the trans healthcare system in the UK. Next, Scarlett Stitt & Amitai Landau-Pope, a theatre-driven collab, captivated us with a unique monologue from the perspective of a box of Celebrations. And lastly, Jayran Lear, a Middle-Eastern thespian based in Manchester, enchanted us with her optimistic tale told through short stories, poetry, and mystic dance.

09.02.2024 – Liberation

“Liberation”, programmed by our Young Creative and Creative Talent Programme artist, Tanvi Ranjan, drew a focus on visual arts as a way of showcasing deep humane emotions based on personal backgrounds.

This event featured artworks from the graphic designer Takeo, who experiments with futuristic colors and contrasts used to impact viewers. We also got to see an ethereal illustration that aims to represent indigenous communities by the Fine Art undergraduate student Kitty Roberts. Moreover, Arisha, the singer-songwriter, performed a beautiful piece that explored queer and neurodiverse identity. Finally, the abstract expressionism painter who goes by the artistic name Ghost Flower, exhibited multiple vivid paintings made as a way of knocking out the stigma around mental illnesses.

16.02.2024 – Anti-Valentines

Despite its title, this Creative Sparks was all about celebrating love towards the experiences that shape us as individuals. This event was programmed by our Young Creative, Amy Lever.

Maria Telnikoff, writer, performer, and alternative comedian who embraces her experience of growing up with a trans female parent, dazzled us with her multi-layered powerful performance. As another wonderful performance, we heard Jas Nisic play and sing their original music, which seamlessly combines jazz and folk. As well as performative pieces, we also had visual artworks such as the paintings exhibited by the artist Charisa Francis, whom uses vibrant colors as an abstract medium to portray emotions. Similarly and ultimately, Natalia Bo enchanted us with her romantic paintings that reminiscent of her home and upbringing in Argentina.

23.02.2024 – Care & Healing

For our final Creative Sparks of February 2024, programmed by our Young Creative, Krati Doshi, we got to experience poetry in various unique ways, shapes, and forms.

First, the multidisciplinary artist and Fine Art student Puikeih Lam, mixed written words with prints and paint within each artwork as a way of exploring her psyche. In a similar manner, Jozoway, guided us to a metaphorical world through the concepts of books, by creating publications that represent a tangible form of expression. Moreover, the Italian freelancer and co-founder of the collective JunkJunkie, Lucia Martinez, shed light on the importance of hearing creative voices through her artistic way of storytelling, which often creates reflection about how we could improve as a society. And last but not least, Florence Grieve, the Bristol based artist, read a touching self-written piece in which she explores the urgency of inclusion for disabled people.

We are happy to announce that applications for our new Volunteer and Work Experience Manager are now live!

As the Volunteer and Work Experience Manager, you will take the lead in recruiting and managing volunteers and work experience students for the FUSE International 2024 festival and wider Creative Youth activities. This role is a gateway to developing skills in project management, administration, and communications, offering you a unique chance to work closely with young creative individuals in a fast-paced and dynamic environment.

For all information regarding this role, a full job description and how to apply please click here.

About our Artists

Puikeih Lam

Puikeih Lam is a multidisciplinary artist based in South-East Buckinghamshire and South-West London. She is currently studying BA Fine Art at Kingston University.

Lam works with written word, paint and print to explore her internal experience of the physical body. She is interested in translating the inner experience and allowing audiences to identify with the work, which is described as a symptom and simultaneously a therapy.

Instagram –  @puikeihlam

Jozoway

Jozoway, (b. 2000, Belo Horizonte). His work explores the idea of the book. Jozoway’s practice is rooted in the movement of parkour, the poetics of Five Percenter Hip Hop, and the Wisdom of the ancient Daoists.

His reductive method and meditative approach push against the constraints of both the physical and poetic aspects of his materials. Using printed matter as a physical way of expression. Much of his success comes from his ability to express deep truths pulled from within, through writing, publishing, and book arts.

Instagram – @jozoway

Lucia Martinez

Lucia is an Italian freelance artist and performer. Her main interest as a performer is to devise original and collaborative multidisciplinary pieces finding storytelling alternatives to the spoken word. She is passionate about connecting local creatives and utilising art as a commentary on societal and contemporary issues, spreading awareness on untold stories.

Co-founder of the collective JunkJunkie, she has discovered the power of working for and within a community and taken on roles such as artist liaison or performance coordinator.

Instagram — @___luce

                                  @junkjunkiecollective

Florence Grieve

Florence Grieve is a Bristol based creative whose work explores themes of identity, disability and inclusion. Her poetry has been published in Mslexia, featured as an Acumen Young Poet and broadcast on BBC Radio Bristol. She is drawn to storytelling through the belief it has the power to change attitudes. This interest in authentic representation of disabled lives extends to a love of cinema. When she’s not writing, she is developing her film curation practice, centred on accessible film exhibition, through Film Hub South West’s Beyond Boundaries programme.

@florence_grieve