James Steventon
Director
james@fermynwoods.org
James Steventon is Director of Fermynwoods Contemporary Art, having previously been Education Officer for the organisation for many years. James is an artist, writer, and runner, based in Northamptonshire; an experienced Lecturer at The School of Art, Architecture and Design at London Metropolitan University; and an External Examiner for arts courses across the UK.
In 2021 James was nominated as a Fellow of the Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures and Commerce in recognition of his support of young contemporary artists through his work at Fermynwoods Contemporary Art, his championship of innovative, emerging and impactful arts practice, and his participation in training and advocacy work through Engage as Digital Special Interest Representative. In 2025 James was invited to a garden party at Buckingham Palace in further recognition of his work with Fermynwoods Contemporary Art.
Abbie Canning
Education Curator
abbie@fermynwoods.org
Abbie Canning is Education Curator for Fermynwoods Contemporary Art. Abbie is an interdisciplinary artist, often working with digital technology, based between Rutland and The Peak District, and is East Midlands Representative for Engage. Abbie is passionate about the impact that the arts and spending time outdoors can have on wellbeing and is often found out walking her very smelly dog.
In 2020, Abbie was selected as part of ‘The National Lottery’s 2020 Portraits of the People’ which honoured 13 artistic champions across the UK for making a significant difference during the pandemic. Abbie was subsequently nominated as a Fellow of Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures and Commerce in recognition of her work supporting disabled young people to gain confidence, self esteem and develop essential life skills through engagement with contemporary art.
Jack Halford
Visual Arts Youth Worker
Jack Halford is a Visual Arts Youth Worker for Fermynwoods Contemporary Art. Jack is a multidisciplinary artist based at Two Queens Studios, Leicester, with an interest in perception, the intersection of exercise, subverting toxic masculinity, and mental health.
Jack encourages people to ‘just do’, using his youth and community work to teach artistic process in clear, accessible ways while challenging elitism and opaque art writing by modelling open, practical approaches to art criticism, theory, and learning through doing.
Alyda Khengere
Visual Arts Youth Worker
Alyda Khengere is a Visual Arts Youth Worker for Fermynwoods Contemporary Art. Currently a third year Childhood, Youth and Families student at University of Northampton, Alyda successfully completed a work based learning placement with Fermynwoods Contemporary Art, supporting our weekly Alternative Provision programme.
SUBTERRA – Marie-Chantal Hamrock & Astrid Björklund
Fermynwoods Podcast Curators
subterra@fermynwoods.org
SUBTERRA are curate and edit the Fermynwoods Podcast. Otherwise known as Marie-Chantal Hamrock and Astrid Björklund, previously collaborating for Aerial Community Radio, Aberdeen, SUBTERRA “navigates speculative narratives of the chthonic (of relating to or inhabiting the underworld) through text, poetry, soundscapes and music.”
Stuart Moore
Digital Consultant
Stuart Moore is a Digital Consultant for Fermynwoods Contemporary Art. Stuart is a tech artist (a.k.a. creative technologist) living in Milton Keynes. Stuart used to describe himself as a sound artist that worked closely with technology and his microtonal work explored the intersection between perception of the involuntary soundscape and purposeful human composition. Over time however, the tech itself became the focus.
His current work in technology is driven by the belief that there is no true separation between tech and nature and that machine perception provides a unique opportunity to understand a huge array of other human and non-human ways of perceiving. Stuart has developed a number of unique microphones and a range of organically inspired machine vision techniques. He is currently studying a Masters in A.I. and his Studio – The Floating Bear is a riot of untidy wiring.