15 - Sitting down with… - Matthew Peacock MBE & David Tovey

The Soulstice Collective had the privilege of sitting down with Matthew Peacock and David Tovey. Matt is the founder of Streetwise Opera and Arts & Homelessness International (A&HI), two performing arts charities that use singing and creativity to inspire and empower people recovering from homelessness and David is Creative Producer at A&HI and founder of One Festival of Homeless Arts, which brings together art of many forms crested by people who are or have been homeless. Finding mutual inspiration, they first came across each other at a gallery in London when Matt noticed that David gave one of his illustrations to the Deputy Mayor of Rio de Janeiro. Prior to founding One Festival, David first contacted Matt to use his experience in the area. Perhaps instinctively, they picked up on their shared values and passion for change.

We won’t give away any more in the introduction but this piece will trace the deeply compelling individual journeys of Matt and David, showcase the truly special work produced within their organisations and hopefully inspire others to appreciate, and act on, the inherent value of the arts in changing lives. This discussion brought tears to my eye, had me laughing out loud and learning new lessons throughout. We hope you feel the same from this insight into our chat.

“Pulling the Positives from Negatives”:

We start at the beginning, with me having little idea of Matt’s and David’s lives prior to becoming close colleagues and friends. Matt recounts his upbringing; privileged on the surface but with deep trauma underneath both at school and home which left him “leaving with pretty much nothing.” This was coupled with an “enlightening moment realising I really cared about arts and culture.” Abandoning the conventional path of life henceforth, moving to Edinburgh and using a Yellow Pages to apply to arts colleges he “found home.”

Matthew Peacock MBE, Founder of Streetwise Opera and Arts & Homelessness International

At college, Matt trained originally to be a solo performer but realised it might not be achievable to make it, despite joking “a career highlight of singing in DisneyLand Paris on stage with Mickey Mouse.” As will become clearer throughout, Matt channelled setbacks into motivation. He moved from the stage into reviewing operas and through travelling the world, he saw homelessness everywhere which left him deeply affected. After a friend challenged him of “talking a lot but doing nothing about it” he began volunteering at The Passage. One evening a resident read an article in which an MP said “the homeless are the people you step on when coming out of the opera house.” 

“That sparked a debate about homeslessness and what the guys felt like they wanted, and it was about perception partly. One guy, Doc, said it was an opportunity - if they were in the opera house it would change people’s perception.”

Taking on board another’s moment of enlightenment, Matt got hold of the opera house for a couple of days and together they all put on an opera. More than the perception “it was the process which was a game changer; many of the guys said no one had ever congratulated them when the audience got to their feet at the end of the show.” After one go, Matt realised it had to continue. He saw “how potent the force of arts is in helping us all, making us feel good about ourselves and being real activists to make everyone feel like they have a voice.” Before handing over to David, the parting line is the driving force: “giving people access to arts and culture, a human right, article 27 of the UN Charter of Human Rights.”

David then picks up the conversation. His opening remark is core to what Soulstice seeks to celebrate in that Matt and him share almost identical  values despite such different backgrounds. Growing up in a poor, working-class but “brilliant” upbringing, he found a route out of poverty by joining the army. Earning promotions and serving round the world was curtailed at a time when being homosexual in the army was illegal. Effectively being asked to leave “had a negative impact on my mental health and getting into trouble with law.” 

David Tovey - Founder of One Festival of Homeless Arts

Despite acknowledging that he “ran away” to Australia, this enabled him to “reinvent myself; every place I’d go to I’d have a new look, image, friends. I still had the same values but I could change.” Still suffering from severe mental health problems meant he was a “coping, working alcoholic for many many years” yet balancing this with a fast-paced, aggressive job as a chef.

After moving back to the UK, this unsustainable balance led to more turbulent times. David was once head chef at the British Film Institute, had opened two pub restaurants and had escaped poverty. Yet he was still deeply suffering with a variety of issues - mental health, alcohol and trauma from the army. And at 36 years old, his body went into overdrive:

“I had a massive stroke, which was the catalyst for everything going wrong and life really fell apart. A lot of the drinking was my way of hiding all the pain I was going through with my sexuality and other issues. After the stroke, I walked away from my business, split up from my partner and lost my flat.”

After being diagnosed and admitted to hospital with the life-threatening infection neurosyphilis, David was then told he had cancer of the colon. Fortunately it was caught early meaning treatment started quickly. But after an injection was put into a splinter vein, this led to a cardiac arrest.

The ensuing damage took an almost intolerable  toll on David’s mental health. The result was five attempted overdoses in one week and shortly after this, David was told he was HIV positive. My state of total shock was polar opposite to David’s matter-of-fact tone as he recalled events which to me seemed nearly incomprehensible. He finishes saying this news “was the nail in the coffin.”

Matt and David’s similar values are shown through David trying to channel this awful situation into positive action. He enrolled at university to begin a fine art degree, but at the end of first year his physical health was still fighting against him. Severe depression resulted in another attempted overdose in a park. Resuscitated, admitted to hospital and subsequently into a mental health facility, the situation continued to worsen when on leaving, the locks on his flat had been changed. David was homeless.

“After five months I tried to kill myself again in a park but got stopped by a guy called Gavin. This is where things started to get better because Gavin not only stopped me but gave me a choice. When working with the homeless, you can give so many things but unless the person you’re working with can make a choice to take the offer, it does not matter what you provide. Nothing will work.”

It is from this deep low point that David managed to make a choice and life began to improve. Using “art and his degree as my means to start rebuilding my life” was integral to recovering, he says. However balancing this with living in his car and not being entitled to any help or benefits meant that David had to drop out of university to access this help.

To say David has been drawn a tough hand is an understatement. When I put this to him, he is philosophical; “those things had to happen to make me who I am now,” he says, citing his first photographic exhibition - ‘Pulling the Positives from Negatives’ - in which he expressed this core life value.

At this point, it is me who needs a pause to digest the two accounts I have just heard, deeply touched to have listened to them both. Whilst I take stock, I witness the deep relationship between the two. “Are you okay buddy, would you like a moment?” Matt asks David. Amidst the break, one line stood out to me - Matt, confirming David “is a special guy.” “So are you Matt, so are you.”

“From Crisis comes Innovation”:

We move to reflecting on the current times and Matt points out that if we look across history “from crisis, always comes innovation. The artists and academics are at the front of the queue. This makes us energised about what’s happening and what’s to come, particularly among young people.” Matt looks at many of the larger arts institutions who have generally aimed to “survive” in contrast to grassroots organisations who have “adapted, reached out and changed.” 

“If we can hold onto the fact the arts is not just entertainment when everything else is in place but is core to us as humans and our well-being, then I think it will be so important.” Thinking about Black Lives Matter, he looks at the opportunity to change the face of leadership as a result of the societal upheaval. The conclusion is simple but true: “action is key.”

David similarly recognises the hope but is honest with his worries. He was forced to cancel One Fest in 2020, not due to covid but because of abuse from people who were angry at the arts space he was giving to homeless people. I sit in dismay listening to David describe individuals who were prepared to try and deny others this human right. Understandably, there is a fear of whether the pandemic can spur this necessary attitude shift.

Nonetheless, David appreciates how the pandemic has ensured society sees the need for art to help with their mental health because people “had time on their hands, their brains overworked and stressed. This built up and the value of the arts came in.” The concern remains for David whether institutions will fall back to how it was before. Filling spaces, getting people in and generating profit might mean this crucial time for the culture sector is not capitalised on. For David “It is vital to put art before money” as he has done with One Fest and Matt with Streetwise Opera.

“Stop. Talk to somebody. Find out who they are”

Perception. A word which has featured frequently throughout our discussion so far and I ask what must happen to change society’s perception towards the homeless community. Matt points out the “power imbalances and historical structures which keep people in their place.” Restricting true social justice is not just “laziness and historical problems with the perception of homelessness but also racism, class. “The way we approach it is to work with local governments to embed not just arts but co-creating methods with the homeless community.” Change can happen from these projects when local governments witness that “connection between arts, voice and power. It’s ambitious but you’ve got to start somewhere.”

David builds on the narrow-mindedness surrounding people’s views on homlessness. Not only the person sitting on the street; we must take into account students on people’s sofas, or young mums with nowhere to go. For David, all his work is about “changing the narrative around homelessness. The homeless are still part of society but have been pushed to the edges and for many it has never been their fault. The mass media and even many mainstream charities must change how they portray homlessness. It is sensationalised a lot. Many of the bigger organisations do this but are not even working with the homeless.”

In addition to this “starting young and going into schools to educate about homelessness, poverty, food banks and what keeps this community together.” After such comprehensive answers David finishes with the simple act of “Stop. Talk to somebody. Find out who they are and don’t be scared.” 

Matt and David have worked tirelessly to change this perception around the homeless community through the arts but there are two sides to this. The art structures must be proactive in welcoming these efforts. Matt points out that many spaces are becoming aware that their role must involve “community and social change” but that running projects in cultural environments is about “involvement, not just access. This is when the stuffiness dissolves a bit and projects become curations of the whole community”. David points that many larger institutions are public buildings so “not only does everyone have rights to use those spaces but equal rights to be shown and have their work in them.” Citing examples not just from art by the homeless community but also by the disabled and BAME communities, David hammers home the importance of community arts in empowerment, involvement and for him personally, his life.

“Showing what’s strong about people not wrong”

Moving on from the structures and institutions, we arrive at an area where their work overlaps with Soulstice: grassroots work. Matt started with the focused project of Streetwise Opera but by 2016, was working on a cultural project at the Rio Olympics, having already been involved  in London 2012. Growth is good, but it also means letting go of the focus and longevity of Streetwise. At London 2012, being given such big platforms - collaborating with over 30 organisations and over 300 homeless artists - meant it was possible to deeply change perception and show “what’s strong about people not wrong.” 

Fast forward to 2016, Rio opened up so many doors to discover new methodology and projects. “We realised that so much can be gained from connecting, amplifying and strengthening people globally. A lot of the global south have worked with each other in a way that is more progressive and we can learn from that in the north.” To change perception around stigmas, there is a dual responsibility that sits with both grassroots activists and social institutions.

With One Voice launch in Rio, July 2016

I ask Matt about the risks of this growth over the past decade, mentioning Soulstice Festival and controlling the urges to grow exponentially each year. “Everything is about meeting some sort of need.”  At Rio 2016, that need was connecting a fragmented 300 projects around the world, which brought together and celebrated the tireless and special work of each person. Contrast this to the needs of the pandemic, which have been mostly independent work. “This year we have worked individually with more people than the last three years put together. We are always working too much, always spread thin, always feeling like we are failing. But what you can use to guide yourself is your instinct and your values. You don’t always get it right but that’s normal.” The concluding statement is one which Soulstice has borrowed frequently since first hearing it:

“In a seaside stick of rock, you have the word ‘Brighton’ written through all of it. Wherever you break that stick of rock, you see Brighton. A really healthy company, social enterprise or anything, if you have that writing as your values then that is your guide. If the decisions you make are founded on kindness or social justice, you can’t go too far wrong.”

David started the One Festival for Homeless Arts with a focus on individuals. “I was trying to change someone’s life by showcasing their work. Whenever I’ve seen my work on a wall, I get a warm feeling and it makes me proud of myself like I’ve achieved something. I wanted to give that feeling to someone else.” Giving opportunities to those that otherwise wouldn’t is that value through the stick of rock. Reflecting back on his first photo exhibition David points out that “it is not about the numbers but the people who are actually there. They are the ones who are going to make a difference.”

“Enabling people to show a different side of themselves”

Since it’s conception, integral to Soulstice has been to create special memories; the festival has been the vehicle that allows us to do this. I am keen to find out if it is even possible for David and Matt to pick one special moment amidst  years of creating memories and moments for themselves and others. Both struggle to whittle it down, but David fondly thinks back to the last One Festival where four amazing folk musicians performed: 

“On the day of the concert, we didn’t get as many people as we’d like. But out of the 20 odd, there was one really, really important person… Stevie Wonder’s manager. Months later, I met him in a pub and that moment where he came over to me and said he’d been there, it was amazing. It was special for me to give that opportunity to the four musicians. He’d only come down because one of the singers had just handed him a card.”

Matt thinks all the way back to a Streetwise Opera project in the North East:

“All the homeless workers said this guy won’t get involved, he’s a drinker, he’ll sit in the corner but we could tell he was quite interested. It took us about six months, admittedly because opera in a homeless centre can be a bit of a hard sell, but this guy decided to work backstage. On the night of the show, his two daughters, who had not seen him in ten years, and granddaughter, who had never seen him ever, all came. Her first interaction with him was seeing something positive.”

______

After a Soulstice discussion with two truly special individuals, it is even greater to hear David round off by saying “I’ve got the best job in the world. I’d fight people over it.” It was a touching way to finish the conversation hearing about both their lives, work and ideas. Both Matt and David are living proof that whatever your background or what you’ve experienced, good values can transcend these and unite people.

When we say the words ‘arts’ or ‘activism’, they are broad terms with so many facets. It was inspirational to speak to two people who have found their niche in both of these and are changing the world for the better each day.

Members of one of the Rio Homeless Choirs sing at the Municipal Theater in Rio (Photo Lorena Mossa)