Spotlight on Our New Intern: Morgan Love

Morgan is a 23-year-old creative freelancer. With a focus on community engagement, particularly youth engagement, advocacy for the importance of heritage and place for people, and a passion for ensuring that equability and opportunities exist for people experiencing poverty and deprivation.

In the last year, Morgan has worked with various creative and socially engaged organisations. She emerged into the creative industries through the Stove Network’s Creative Spaces programme last May, which aims to engage 16-30-year-olds with arts and culture through a ten-month programme of events, workshops and creative opportunities. She also directed and produced three short documentaries, highlighting the creativity that exists in the hospitality industry in Dumfries, showcasing three chefs – two of which were under thirty – while exploring themes of passion, creativity, sustainability and the post-Covid climate of the industry. This project is set to launch in late summer. Currently, she continues to work on The Stove’s Creative Caerlaverock project, a collaborative endeavour with Historic Environment Scotland exploring heritage, representation, creative exploration, and curiosity. This project took her region-wide and allowed her to discover a passion for community engagement and heritage, which has become a key focus in her practice. Morgan will be working on creative production as the project progresses into its next phase.

As well as her work with the Stove, Morgan is also undertaking a role with Dumfries Music Collective this year, which will see her carry out a study on the barriers that young people in Dumfries and Galloway face when it comes to participating in and accessing music. Finally, Morgan works with LIFT D&G, a not-for-profit, community interest company, based in North West Dumfries, which aims to create positive change within the community. In this role, Morgan is carrying out a local history project, which aims to collate and present the stories within the community. She will also be reinstating the youth group, which aims to empower young people to have their say, gain new skills and experiences, and support them with their next stage in life.

Through the Catstrand’s Young Creative Programme, Morgan will be taking on the Youth Music Coordinator Role, working with tutors, practitioners, and students to ensure the smooth running of the delivery of the programme.

Young Creatives Programme Lead, Catherine Campbell and Youth Music Co-ordinator Morgan Love

Morgan says:

“I’m excited to be joining the Catstrand team to work on a tremendous programme of events.

As someone who believes that all children should have the opportunity to engage with music,

it’s inspiring to see how many opportunities are being made available to children living rurally through the Young Creatives programme. I am thrilled to be able to have a role in this project, and I can’t wait to see what we can make happen.”