Artist Researcher / Project Assistant Opportunity

Written By Lora Aziz

Blue Steps Along the Saffron Trail – Feasibility Phase (2026)

I’m excited to share that applications are now open for an Artist Researcher / Project Assistant to join me for the first phase of Blue Steps Along the Saffron Trail - a new cultural-ecological project supported by the Essex & Suffolk Water Bluespaces Feasibility Scheme.

This feasibility stage lays the foundation for a much larger multi-year programme (2026–2029) exploring the 70-mile Saffron Trail: its water crossings, habitats, histories and communities. Together, we’ll map where the Trail meets rivers, brooks, springs, wetlands and estuary edges - and imagine how creativity, ecology and community knowledge can shape its next chapter.

This phase (Jan–April 2026) includes:

  • re-walking and mapping the Trail

  • biodiversity assessments

  • archival + ecological research

  • community workshops & engagement

  • creative documentation

  • developing a major delivery plan for 2026–29

About the Role

Artist Researcher / Project Assistant

Fee: £6,000

Day rate: £234/day

Contract: Freelance (approx. 25 days, Jan–Apr 2026)

Pattern: ~1–2 days/week (flexible)

Location: Essex (Chelmsford, Uttlesford, South Essex, along the Trail)

Applications close on 8th December 2025 at 10am, Interviews to take place on 15th + 16th December

This role sits at the heart of the feasibility phase of Blue Steps Along the Saffron Trail. As the Artist Researcher / Project Assistant, you’ll work closely with me across the creative, ecological and organisational strands of the project. It’s a hybrid position for someone who is both creatively curious and practically grounded: part field-based research, part community engagement, part documentation, and part project support. You’ll help walk and map sections of the 70-mile Trail, contribute to ecological and archival research, support 3–4 workshops, and help craft the early creative and narrative foundations for a major multi-year cultural ecology programme launching 2026–29. This role requires someone attentive, organised, collaborative, and excited by the intersection of art, ecology, place and community.

By “artist researcher,” this role involves creative field inquiry and interpretive research - documenting landscape, analysing patterns across ecology and culture, and translating material such as biodiversity surveys, site observations and community input into narrative, visual and conceptual forms for the stakeholder presentations and a report.

This hybrid role mixes:

  • creative research

  • field documentation

  • admin/project support

  • community-facing engagement

  • creative production support

You’ll play a meaningful part in shaping a landmark cultural ecology project in Essex.

For more details on the role and how to apply here

Lora Aziz