Bartle Bogle Hegarty London has teamed up with fellow ad shops Wieden & Kennedy London, Leo Burnett, Lucky Generals, Mother and New Commercial Arts to form a collective designed to foster, work with and celebrate emerging creative talent.
Dubbed the Unsigned Union, the collective is the brainchild of BBH. It builds on the agency's Unsigned annual showcase of artists, which launched in 2018 and has nurtured creators who have gone on to work with the likes of Black Sheep Artists, RSA, East Photographic and Academy Photography.
In its new, multi-agency guise, the Unsigned Union will promote emerging creative talent including photographers, directors, animators and illustrators, giving them access to opportunities to develop their skills for employment in the advertising industry. Support will include a calendar of regular exhibitions, talks, events and mentorships.
This year's BBH Unsigned will take place on 25 November. As well as featuring creators from across the world, it will mark the official launch of Unsigned Union.
From that point, representatives from Unsigned Union's member agencies will meet on a monthly basis to discuss and organise initiatives, events and exhibitions, while individual agencies will host their own Unsigned events during the year, take part in the Unsigned mentoring scheme and help unrecognised talent. BBH and its fellow collective members are actively encouraging other agencies to join.
Stephen Ledger-Lomas, BBH's head of production, said: "We started Unsigned with the singular ambition of putting diverse talent on the radar. We wanted to look outside of the traditional channels and elevate the most exciting emerging talent to bring it into the spotlight.
"This year's Unsigned could not be more crucial, and the team have worked tirelessly to ensure that we are shining a spotlight on some of the most vital creative voices working today.
"Unsigned has now also expanded its reach beyond the BBH's annual showcase with the formation of a broader Unsigned Union, which aims to dismantle some of the barriers which have prevented us from moving forward collectively as an industry."
People who have benefited from BBH's Unsigned include photographer and director Denisha Anderson, who described its mission as "powerful – as it gives space to be seen and meet people within the industry you wouldn't have access to normally".
For anyone interested in attending the Unsigned showcase, email unsigned@bartleboglehegarty.com