Gorgeous Daffodils Adorn The Seaton Hospicecare Window!

04/19/2017

The residents from Thornfield Care Home (Seaton, Devon) with help from Maria, CM Artist have created a wonderful daffodil window display for the Hospicecare shop in the town centre. The Art Project has taken the residents around 5 sessions to complete and the result is marvelous, its bright, cheerful and inviting! The Major and other Councillors hope to make Seaton a Dementia Friendly Town and Maria has offered to talk about art and the benefits for those with Dementia at their next town meeting.

Maria comments… “Everyone was so pleased with how it looked, and the manager of the shop and the Thornfield manager came down to look and we were so chuffed everyone said it was fantastic. We are hoping to be invited to create more window displays this year.”

Here are some of the Art Session photo’s followed by the final window display.

This Spring window display was created by residents living at Thornfield Care Home in Seaton in conjunction with artist Maria Bowers from Creative Minds.

Thornfield specialises in dementia care and is rated “Outstanding” by CQC.

Thornfield is part of Cannon Care Homes who also own The Check House in Seaton and Silverleigh in Axminster.

Thornfield Care Home would like to thank Louisa Dayman and the staff of Hospicecare for their continued support and involvement including the Spring window display.

www.cannoncarehomes.co.uk

With thanks to Barbara Carter Thornfield Care Home for all her ideas and enthusiasm to arrange this project and Carrie Kelf – Pitts (Registered Manager)

Thanks for reading!

Intergenerational Art Sessions at Appleby!

03/24/2017

Since the beginning of 2017 Sarah, our Woking based CM Artist has been delivering weekly Art Sessions to Appleby House care home in Epsom, Surrey with one important difference; local primary school children have been in attendance too! Children from Epsom Primary School have been attending the weekly sessions to help the Appleby residents with their art and to collaborate to create wonderful Art Projects.

The intergenerational sessions have been an amazing success and its been great to see young and old generations interact with one another, creating a stimulating and engaging environment for all. “The children have become more comfortable and confident around the residents, it is great to see how some children take the lead when working with a resident and sometimes the resident will take the lead but great to see them working together. The sessions always create great discussions between the residents and children”, Jacqui the Activity Co-ordinator said.

Here are some wonderful photographs taken by our friend Gareth Pugh of a intergenerational session at Appleby House on the 1st March. The session was inspired by Matisse’s cutouts and the children and older adults had a wide selection of colourful pre-cut shapes to chose from to create their art.

Sarah, our Woking based CM Artist has delivered several intergenerational Art Sessions to Appleby House, and says “I am so pleased to have suggested we combine the Art Sessions with the children’s visit to Appleby House. Art breaks down so many barriers for young and old alike, however apprehensive either party is at first the moment the colour appears the generations melt away and young and old just share the moment. Its a joyous experience each and every week no matter what medium i offer them and that joy stays, you can feel it settle into the very construction of Appleby; its walls, the staff, the art. I hope i have the privilege of continuing to run these sessions for a very long time.”

Tracy an Activity Co-ordinator at Appleby House remarks, “The intergenerational sessions work amazingly well with the children enjoying the interaction with the residents. Sarah is brilliant because she leaves the residents and children to create for themselves, knowing when to help!”

Here are some more photo’s of some of the artwork created in the previous inter-generational sessions at Appleby House…

Stained Glass Window Art

Tree and Birds Collage

Mark Making Books

Commenting on the impact the Art Session have had on the Care Home, Jacqui says “During the sessions you see and hear lots of conversation and laughter, conversations have increased and the residents feel good and look uplifted after the sessions. The art created at these sessions will add to the existing art, which will go onto improve our environment. We are trying to put photographs onto canvas to show how amazing the sessions are and we feel the photographs capture the magic created more than words can say.”

James, the Director of Creative Minds comments “The intergenerational Art Sessions delivered to Appleby House are having a fantastic impact on the residents. It provides the residents with the opportunity to interact and communicate with the children and for the children it provides them with an opportunity to support an older adult with their artwork and in a way learn about the effects of dementia and ageing, which is important for children to have an awareness and appreciation of.”

We hope that this will be the start of what will be many intergenerational Art Sessions delivered to care homes across the country. Watch this space.

Brightening up Care Homes with Marvelous Murals!

03/08/2017

Our Creative Minds (CM) Artist’s visit a huge variety of care homes and other venues every month reaching over 1000 participants in their Art Sessions. Lots of artwork is created by the participants and so we try to encourage all of the care homes and other venues we work with to display the artwork on the walls to help create a vibrant and stimulating environment. All of the care homes that have displayed the residents artwork on their wall have noted not only the positive impact its had on the residents but the impact its had on the care environment, giving the home more vitality. Care homes are now looking at other ways they can liven up communal areas and corridors and the staff at Hammonds Care Home in Bognor Regis decided to approach Jenny S, their CM Artist based in Chichester about painting a mural to brighten up their entrance and hallway. James Hodge, Manager of Hammonds Care Home, explains to us the thought behind the wild flower mural project and how the home has reacted to their fabulous custom artwork!

What made you decide to have a mural at Hammonds Care Home?

“Hammonds is a residential and respite service for adults with learning disabilities. Hammonds has a lovely homely and fun feel to it and we like to keep the place looking bright by displaying the art of the people that live or stay with us here. We have always felt that the entrance and hallway to the home didn’t reflect the atmosphere of the home being quite cold and dull with brown doors to cupboards and noticeboards. It looked more like an office than a home.”

“Jenny S, has been coming to us delivering Art Sessions with some of the people that live here and we discussed what we could do. The Art Sessions participants started off by making `Welcome to Hammonds’ bunting. This looked great but then really got us thinking about doing something more. It then just happened quickly. We looked at some designs, a bit of base painting and hey presto we were underway….and now we have a lovely wild meadow instead of a dull hallway. The Art Sessions group are going to paint some meadow animals and insects to really give it a 3D effect.”

How have the residents and staff reacted to the mural?

“Everyone loves it, visitors, staff and residents. Every time someone comes through the door they comment on it and how much they like it. It seems like everyone has a favourite flower. I find I am often in the hallway with people picking out our favourite ones. One lady has just done her own drawing of her favourite `the daffodil’.”

James asked another resident who lives at the home and they said, “I just like it. I like the colours and it looks much nicer.”

What’s your opinion on the artwork?

“I am a great believer in the influence of environment on people and this has a really positive effect. Our entrance and hallway now reflects the positive and welcoming atmosphere of the home. It gives everyone a lift, is a talking point and it makes me smile every time I walk through the door. The mural is better than I could have hoped for as is the response to it. I had high hopes for the mural and even with these I have been surprised just how much a difference it has made.”

James Hodge Manager, Hammonds Care Home.

“I had a lovely time working on the mural at Hammonds Care Home, the staff and residents were so on board about wanting a piece to brighten up the space. The flowers work so well and It’s great to give them a piece of art that welcomes both them and visitors.”

Jenny S, CM Artist.

We’ve seen a rise in the number of care homes requesting mural’s and this is a service that our community of experienced CM Artists are more happy to provide.

Thanks for reading,

Kayleigh.

Full of Life Fair 2016!

12/06/2016

On the Friday 7^th October 2016 we experienced our first Full of Life Fair at Twickenham Stadium in Twickenham, London and what a fantastic busy event it was! The Full of Life Fair is held at a venue every year and is run by Richmond Council to connect local over 55’s with over 75 local business in the area. The event was a roaring success with over 1200 residents and carers attending the annual event and James and Elaine we’re there on behalf of Creative Minds!

As part of the Creative Minds contribution to the event James and Elaine delivered a morning and afternoon Art Session to 30 participants with many more spectators walking around the table, chatting and watching the artists at work. The participants had a choice between British landscapes and flowers and the choice between using soft pastels or watercolour for their artwork.

Have a look at the wonderful artwork created…

Everyone who attended our sessions by the café thoroughly enjoyed themselves and were keen to attend Art Sessions in the local area. At present, we don’t currently deliver sessions to residents in the Richmond area but watch this space! In early 2017 we hope to be able to deliver regular sessions in the Richmond community with the help of local partners.

Care Home Open Day 2016!

08/15/2016

On Care Home Open Day (CHOD) last year, we opened the amazing Appleby Tate gallery at Appleby House Care Home in Epsom, arguably the first art gallery in a care home setting, along with other Art Sessions taking place across the South East. Since then our community of artists has grown dramatically and so this year CHOD was even more eventful and jam packed! We had various Art Projects taking place throughout May and June in preparation for their unveiling on CHOD and Art Sessions taking place across the country on CHOD itself.

Here’s some of the wonderful artwork created by the residents in our Art Sessions for CHOD 2016…

Jubilee House Care Home (Care UK) in Godalming, Surrey celebrated Care Home Open Day in Wonderland, creating a fabulous Alice in Wonderland display! The residents enjoyed creating all the elements of the display with the help of Sarah, our experienced Creative Minds Artist. The residents had a wonderful array of activities running throughout the day, everyone enjoyed a BBQ lunch and it was great to see the staff in costume. The Director of Creative Minds, James Cropper and the Mayor of Waverley, Councillor Chris Storey dropped by to admire the display. Congratulations to Totka the manager and the team for organising such a fantastic event.

The residents at Wellesley Road Care Home (Shaw Healthcare) in North London created personal story pictures using images sources from the internet. It was great for the residents to reminisce about their childhood and the bygone days of the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s. All the artwork created by the residents in the sessions was put on display for CHOD for visitors and relatives to see.

Sunrise of Fleet (Sunrise Senior Living UK) in Fleet, Hampshire had some very productive and fun sessions making artwork and props for their “Best of British” theme for Care Home Open Day. All the residents were involved in creating different elements of the display from the bunting to a life size figure of a Grenadier Guard. The “Best of British” themed day was a great success and enjoyed by all who visited the home on CHOD.

The residents at Grosvenor Park Care Home (Bupa) in Bexhill, East Sussex had a big tea party planned for Saturday to celebrate the Queens 90th and Care Home Open Day so they made a collage using pictures of the Queen through out her life. The residents made little crowns our of felt and sequins and stuck on union jacks to further decorate their pictures. Everyone was very impressed with what had been achieved and no sooner had the picture been finished it was on display for all to see.

The residents at Puttenham Hill House Care Home (Bupa) in Guildford, Surrey enjoyed creating the props for their ‘Day at the Races’ Theme for Care Home Open Day. They loved decorating their hats, making felt brooches and flowers for the winner’s enclosure, as well as a large horse and jockey sculpture. Everyone worked really well as team to create all the props for CHOD and from what we’ve heard they had a lovely day!

Finally all of the artwork created by the residents at Greys Residential Home in Woking, Surrey was framed and put on display for CHOD for all the visitors and relatives to admire. What an amazing variety of work they’ve created!

All of the residents featured in this blog post have given their consent.

Alice in Wonderland

04/13/2016

Its January and its another grey and dreary day in Woking and all I can think about is the tropics, joy and colour for my clients and the creation of a wonderful spring garden indoors!

Then I start thinking about my daughters wedding in May and the hen party I need to organise. She’s an English teacher and loves literature and here we are in the land of Alice, Lewis Carrol was born in Guildford and the world is currently celebrating the 150^th anniversary of Alice in Wonderland being written. Thus what started as an idea for a little window garden display led us down the path to Alices garden!!

In for a penny in for a pound I put forward my idea to Katie at the Park Barn Centre in Guildford, Surrey: An Alice in Wonderland display in time for Easter and what about a Mad Hatters Tea Party?

Yes why not!!! She said.

And so began the transformation of my sitting room into cardboard construction sight and my family never quite knowing which character they would be sharing tea with!

When I proposed the idea to the wonderful folks at the centre they were thrilled and ready and willing to get stuck in to whatever I set before them. Whether it be 5ft cardboard trees; lime green flamingos, pink grinning cats, soldiers made of playing cards, flowers with lion and tiger faces, not to mention all the main characters encountered in the curious of world of Alice in Wonderland, all destined to make up our display.

The Park Barn Four Seasons dementia centre were not to be ignored and embraced the mess and challenges of creating the foliage for the garden, rolling papier mache caterpillar segments and even making crockery for the Mad Hatter himself.

Every session had jubilant reactions for those participating to onlookers, as different characters and parts of the display were completed. There have been wonderful jovial shakes of the head from passers-by at the absolute absurdity, it is Alice in Wonderland after all.

Even the Park Barn Centre staff got involved in the project and throughout the process amongst the organised chaos of tissue paper, acrylic paint, pipe cleaners, clay, card, glue, fabric and fur, Cornelia and I have tried to capture moments from each session as the concept grew. Meanwhile Amanda and other staff continued with cutting hearts and building an army of playing card soldiers and Four Seasons participants soldiered on with creating colourful pompoms, an essential part of wonderland.

After many sessions working on the project the Alice in Wonderland display is now been complete and was launched at the Mad Hatters Tea Easter Feast on Wednesday 23rd March and will be available for all to appreciate in the following weeks.

It was even featured in the Surrey Advertiser…

Some comments from those involved and at the event…

“At our social centres we ensure that visitors have the opportunity to enjoy a whole range of fun and interesting activities. Arts and crafts are very popular and this Easter project provided a brilliant theme for everyone to take part in. The mural is a testament to the creative work of older people and I would like to thank Creative Minds for their involvement in such a worthwhile project.”

Quote from Cllr Tony Rooth, Lead Councillor for Housing and Social Welfare.

“Sarah’s Creative Minds is a wonderful addition to the activities on offer at Park Barn, particularly the long term Alice project that has kept all the service users/clients engaged.”

Amanda, Support Officer

“A year ago you would never have convinced me I would enjoy doing art but now im thoroughly enjoying it.”

Barbara (service user)

Thanks for reading,

Sarah.

The Appleby Tate!

10/04/2015

On the 19th June 2015, Appleby House Care Home in Epsom, Surrey held an open day where the Mayor and Mayoress of Epson and Ewell officially opened the ‘Appleby Tate’ gallery.

The ‘Appleby Tate’ is an stunning gallery space within the care home, which is used to display all the fantastic artwork created by the residents in the Art Sessions. The Appleby Tate gallery provides a therapeutic space within the care home where the residents can relax, admire and meet with their relatives and visitors. It also provides a talking point for residents, encourages a social atmosphere, creates a lovely environment for the residents to live and seeing their artwork on display gives them a real sense of achievement and we believe empowerment.

Undoubtedly one of the most impressive pieces of art in the exhibition is the huge pastel landscape (picture featured) that took the residents five Art Sessions to complete; it is now beautifully framed and proudly on display for all to admire. James Cropper the Founder and Director of Creative Minds, has been delivering Art Sessions to Appleby House, part of Care UK, for over a year and the residents have created a vast amount of artwork during the sessions exploring different mediums and materials.

James said; “The Art Sessions are hugely popular at Appleby House and all of the residents that participate create fantastic artwork, and really immerse themselves in the creative process. An important aspect of the Art Sessions is their accessibility, but we also want the residents to have fun, relax and feel supported with a professional artist on hand. When I saw the Appleby Tate it brought a tear to my eye, it is the most incredible exhibit of the resident’s artwork I’ve seen.”

Shona, Manager at Appleby House, commented at the opening; “James sees the creative potential in everyone, but what makes the difference is that he makes the art sessions easy, fun and engaging for residents, all of whom are living with different types of dementia and at various stages of the condition. We were so proud of what the residents had created that we began removing pictures from the home’s walls and replacing them with their paintings, so we’ve now launched the Appleby Tate.”

It is known in health care that participation in an array of activities in care homes is vital in maintaining an individual’s health and wellbeing. Our Art Sessions provide a relaxing environment for the residents to explore their creativity and feel engaged and empowered through the use of various materials and mediums to create works of art. Residents, staff and family members have noted that our sessions help to reduce agitation, improve mood, dexterity, social cohesion and boost levels of self-esteem and confidence. In addition, residents regularly produce beautiful artwork, which can be displayed just like the Appleby Tate, throughout the care home.

It is our aim as a growing community is to enrich the lives of as many people as possible through our empowering and enhancing Art Sessions across the UK every day!

photo credit and addtional article: http://www.careukgroup.com/news/care-home-showcases-residents-art-skills-in-new-gallery

Hydon Hill get creative!

02/08/2015

James has been been visiting Hydon Hill, a Leonard Cheshire Care Home on the edge of Godalming for nearly 2 years now, and in that time they have created some fantastic artwork and sculptures together. The residents whom mostly have physical impairments and handicaps absolutely love and look forward to the Art Sessions delivered by James.

“We like to explore as many different mediums, materials and ideas as possible” says James, “At Hydon Hill I am very lucky to have some amazing staff like Robbie to help support me and the residents to create lovely art”. In the time that James has been visiting Hydon Hill they have created a lot of art in the Art Sessions and have completed some spectacular art projects. The most recent art projects completed at Hydon Hill have been some Halloween sculptures and a large Christmas Tree advent calendar.

Leonard Cheshire kindly posted an article about Hydon Hill and their creative efforts on the staff intranet for all to see! Take a look… ere it is….

“Its fantastic that the residents at Hydon Hill have been given some well deserved recognition” stated James. Well done to all residents and staff at Hydon Hill and James for this fantastic feature!

Thank you for reading.

Giant Flowers Project!

05/24/2014

Whilst starting various Easter Projects at the end of February including the Easter Bunnies I also decided to prepare for the Spring months by start Spring Projects with some of the care homes. I quickly decided with a couple of the care homes that I visit that we were going to make some giant flowers to see in Spring and Summer. The Art Projects were called The Giant Flowers Project and this has been one of my most ambitious ideas and Art Projects to date!

Below are some of the giant flowers made entirely out of cardboard!

* The picture in the top left is at the beginning of the project and features the petals of the daisy and the Rose made of rolled cardboard.

*In the top right is the tulip made from thin sheets of card bent and fixed into shape using masking tape and hot rubber glue.

*Bottom left is a picture taken during the Art Session where we had constructed the daffodil and daisy and started covering them with paper mache to make the structures more rigid.

*And Bottom right are some of the complete giant flower heads from both of the Giant Flowers Projects.

Once the flowers were covered in paper mache, dried solid and had been primed it was time to paint them in bright colours! Once they had been painted we covered them in a thin coat of gloss varnish to give them a nice shine and then they were ready to be fixed to the plastic coated bamboo stems that I had bought.

So here is me, the residents and staff with one of the finished Giant Flowers Project’s below consisting of a yellow Rose, blue Pansy, pink Tulip and a Daisy! 🙂

Here’s pictures of another completed Giant Flower Project at a care home in Guildford!

More projects to come, hope you enjoyed reading!

James.

The Easter Bunny!

05/24/2014

From February right thought to April I did various Easter related Art Projects with the residents in care homes. Two of the Art Projects in particular involved making a giant Easter Bunny out of recycled materials covered in paper mache!

Both Easter Bunny ‘s were built entirely out of recycled materials including boxes, cardboard, plastic packaging and bottles. Masking tape is important in binding all the different recycled materials together to build the sculpture. Once the sculpture has been built and was sturdy and secure we then started to cover the entire structure with 2/3 layers of paper mache (See image below).

Once the Easter Bunny had been covered in paper mache, dried thoroughly and primed it was time for me and the resident’s to give him some colour. As you can see in the image below we decided to paint him a mousey brown colour whilst tailoring a nice jacket bought from the charity shop for him. To secure the jacket we used drawing pins and then a staple gun to fix it in place.

After 4/5 Art Sessions we had finally completed the Easter Bunny in time for Easter. We added lots of details using a mixture of acrylic paints to his face. We used some cotton wool buds for his ears , white felt for his belly and pipe cleaners for his whiskers. And to finish him off a paper daffodil in his pocket! The finished sculpture was about 3.5ft tall!

As you can see he is surrounded by Easter eggs (made and painted by the residents in the Art Sessions) and some little lambs making a lovely Easter display for all the residents and visitors to the care home! 🙂

More Art Projects to come from myself and Creative Minds. Thank you for reading! 🙂

James.