Flex Lab is a space for Black women and non-binary people working in circus to connect, share practice, and rest.
The idea for Flex Lab began as part of the Sunday Brunch Club, a weekly online gathering set up by Upswing during lockdown. When restrictions lifted, the question became: what would this look like in a room together? The first Flex Lab Retreat took place in 2021, the first of its kind in Europe. Two more week-long retreats followed, in 2023 and 2024, supported by 101 Outdoor Arts. And in 2026 we held a mini one-day event at Flying Fantastic in Peckham.
The retreats are celebratory by design. Artists arrive at different career stages and with different specialisms. There’s no hierarchy and sessions are all-level. The only thing Flex Lab specifically makes space for is collaboration, exchange, and trying things for the pleasure of it.
“I really enjoyed the sharing of knowledge and practices, as well as the space to talk freely. I couldn’t pick a part that I liked more. It all gave me something to take away, whether that was physically, intellectually, emotionally or spiritually. No one thing was more valued than another, and that was powerful.”
– Flex Lab Retreat Attendee
Flex Lab has grown into something self-guided and artist-led. Upswing and Associate Artist Rebecca Solomon hold the infrastructure, and the collective holds the rest.
Read about what happened at the 2024 retreat and what slowing down has to do with creativity here.
And if you’re wondering why we keep running a residency with no sharing of work at the end, you can read about our thinking behind that here.
To hear about future Flex Labs and other opportunities for artists: