First Hand

Creatives share their own experiences of working within the creative industry.

First Hand

Can joining a trade union help protect your creative future?

We explore how unions could protect creatives from exploitative industry practices and fight for a better future
First Hand

How will art funding cuts in schools affect creativity?

An arts teacher and four state school-educated creatives on how arts education influenced their practice
First Hand

Three entrepreneurs share their experiences as part of the Black Business Incubator at Somerset House

With the fourth round of applications open, recent participants share their journey and top tips on applying
First Hand

Three Muslim creatives share their experiences and advice on observing Ramadan

As Ramadan starts, Lamisa Khan, Ethar Aiem and Mohammed Amin Swaleh share their insights
First Hand

What does it take to join the Google Creative Lab 5 programme?

With applications now open, we ask five former Fivers for their advice
First Hand

Negative Space: Three women of colour share their experiences of working in photography

We share an extract from Bella Okuya’s upcoming photobook
First Hand

Battling creative paranoia and the “I’m-not-good-enough” trope

KesselsKramer art director Adam Morton-Delaney shares his experience
First Hand

Job hunting while autistic: “We have to pretty much hide our traits”

Lyla Maeve reflects on her journey as an autistic creative in industry
First Hand

“Archie Boston’s career teaches me the possibility of standing out in an industry that feels overcrowded”

Adefela Olowoselu shares three lessons inspired by design icon Archie Boston’s journey
First Hand

How to bring your full self to work

Designer Sophia Luu on the benefits of being more open at work
First Hand

“Play should be a time to switch lanes and allow your mind to wander”

Three creatives on how pressure-free ‘play’ influences their work
First Hand

“You can only go so long talking to friends about business ideas”

Emerging founder Charmaine Beneyto on the power of being mentored
First Hand

“We are learning more from each other than from uni”

Three students on what it’s like to be at art school through lockdown
First Hand

“Take internships based on values [but] don’t work unpaid!”

Should you ever take on unpaid internships? Student Daniella Chukwuezi shares her experience
First Hand

“My portfolio only had four projects, but displayed a range of skills.”

Agata Walas on her four-month long remote internship at Accept & Proceed
First Hand

“I considered leaving all the time”

Rosa Kimosa’s account of managing anxiety as a student
First Hand

“I worry the pandemic will worsen inequality”

UK students share their biggest worries, after a term in lockdown
First Hand

“It’s virtually impossible to separate how you feel about your work and yourself”

Tutor Jasper Goodall on why he decided to train as a counsellor
First Hand

“Week two into lockdown, I fell into a dizzying scroll-hole of egocentric panic”

Entry Level Activist’s Faith Robinson on social-media distancing
First Hand

Photographer Giles Duley’s learnings on isolation and struggle from the “ultimate lockdown”

Written by Siham Ali
First Hand

Meet Jack Ladow and Måns Murmark, the students who created a virtual internship

Written by Jack & Måns
First Hand

Looking back on the past three years of The Pipe, Ogilvy’s six-month creative internship scheme

Creative Lives
First Hand

How Sam Nowell made the leap from studying architecture to launching a sustainable fashion line

Creative Lives
First Hand

Insight into the world of stock imagery: How to become a contributor and its earning potential

Written by Creative Lives in Progress