Magnificent mosaic delights residents at Cloverdale Court!
10/01/2019
CM Artist Kirsteen has been delivering art sessions at
Cloverdale Court Retirement Flats in Wallington for around 6 months. This year
they are celebrating 55 years since opening, so the manager got in touch with
Kirsteen and commissioned her to work on a project with residents to highlight
this. They decided they wanted to create a giant mosaic piece to be displayed
on the garden wall.
Kirsteen chatted to the residents to see what they all
wanted to feature in the mosaic. They all agreed on a forest theme, which would
include woodland wildlife. Kirsteen then took the time to create a beautiful
design for everyone to work on, and over the following 4 weeks residents came
together to work on this engaging project. Kirsteen provided all the materials
and they were each given their own piece of the mosaic to create. They were so
pleased to see it all come together in the final week, and the staff were
absolutely thrilled with how it turned out!
The manager at Cloverdale Court said;
“The residents really loved working on the project – in fact they didn’t want it to end! All were delighted with the final outcome, and it looks wonderful on display in the garden. The residents got so much out of working on this project.
“Many of their flats look out into the garden where they can enjoy seeing this wonderful piece on display, and they couldn’t be more proud. It’s great to watch the residents stopping to admire it. Visitors have paid loads of compliments on the mosaic too!”
Charmaine, Arnold House’s shining star!
10/01/2019
For two and half years, CM Artist Hanna has been running art sessions at Arnold House, Leonard Cheshire, a facility for people with profound physical disabilities. During that time she formed a strong bond with one resident, Charmaine, who’s sheer determination and strength of character never ceased to amaze her. Charmaine has cerebral palsy and is unable to move from the neck down. Despite her physical challenges, she is always enthusiastic and willing to give anything a go.
When they first met, Hanna gently encouraged her to
try holding a paintbrush in her mouth and experiment with
mark-making, as she held out the paper for her to paint on. At the
end of her first session she was thrilled with what she had achieved. Since
then, Hanna has been delighted to see Charmaine’s confidence in
her creative ability blossom. Each week she loves learning about different
creative mediums and is always enthusiastic to try something new.
Charmaine attended our recent workshop at the Tate
Exchange and really got stuck in, painting feathers for
a peacock sculpture and flowers for the installation.
She couldn’t have been more excited to see some of her own creations on
display at the Tate. The look of pure joy and happiness at what she
had achieved at the end of the day was absolutely priceless!
CM Artist Hanna commented; “Charmaine is such a vibrant, fun and happy person. She is like a shining star and always makes me feel incredibly humble.”
The Tate Exchange project took place from Wednesday 15th to Friday 17th May and was a huge success! Thank you again to all of the CM Artists and their clients that attended.
Residents at The Millings excel with CM Artist Lily!
08/21/2019
Lily,
CM Artist based in North Yorkshire has been
delivering regular art sessions at The Millings Care Home
in Bedale. Some of the residents have
been displaying remarkable talent since getting involved in Lily’s sessions and
the Managers of the home are thrilled with what they have achieved.
During
the 1970’s and 80’s, resident Ivy used to be an avid painter, and enjoyed painting ceramic
plates. Unfortunately personal circumstances prevented her from continuing
her passion and she hadn’t picked up a paintbrush since. A
year ago she moved to The Millings, and jumped at the
chance to join Lily’s art sessions, and was surprised to
discover that she could still paint!
When
Ivy attends the sessions she becomes really
absorbed in her work; it gives her great pleasure and a huge sense of
pride, and Lily has been thrilled to see how much her confidence has
grown. Lily says; “Ivy is a delicate Yorkshire woman and is always so
happy to learn new techniques. It has been a pleasure working with her and
getting to know her.”
On 28th June Ivy made
local press and was featured in the Darlington and Stockton Times for all she
has achieved since getting back into her creative activity.
Eric another resident has shown incredible talent since Lily encouraged him to start painting. Eric says “It’s never too late to start a new hobby” and at nearly 94, he painted his first watercolour painting in a session with Lily. He enjoyed sketching as a young man and during his school years, so was thrilled at how his painting turned out. He’s been creating beautiful watercolour paintings ever since!
Back in springtime, Lily
decided to work with residents and managers from The Millings along with a selection
of local schools and nurseries to put together a community art exhibition at
the home. Residents got to showcase the beautiful artwork created during their
Creative Minds Art Sessions. Then children from local pre-schools, infant,
primary and secondary schools all created their own work for the exhibition to
the theme of sunflowers and rainbows.
The exhibition opened on the
12th July, and the home was decorated in beautiful artwork running
all the way from the front door through to the back of the house. There was an
excellent turn-out on the day and the event brought together people of all ages
to come and enjoy the results of their creative efforts whilst enjoying a glass
of Prosecco with the residents.
Sandy, the Activity
Coordinator at The Millings said; “Our residents have really excelled with Lily
from Creative Minds. She really motivates, stimulates and enthuses our
residents!”
Care Home Open Day 2019
08/21/2019
Care Home Open Day is an annual event across the country and
encourages care homes to open their doors and celebrate a different theme each
year. The key values at its heart are friendship, making connections and
celebrating older and vulnerable people. This year’s event fell on Friday 28th
June.
We were thrilled when we found out that the theme for this
year’s Care Home Open Day was the Role of the Arts in Care. It couldn’t be a
more fitting theme for Creative Minds! It was the perfect opportunity for many
Care Homes to showcase the work created during Creative Minds Art Sessions, and
on the day many CM Artists ran sessions in Care Home so that residents and
visitors could have fun getting creative.
CM Artist Karen worked with residents at Kingsleigh Care Home in Woking to decorate these pretty flower pots for the garden. On the day, they were visited by school children, who sang and recited poems. They also celebrated the work that Karen has been doing in the home and awarded her with a card and bottle of bubbly at the end of the session to show their thanks!
CM Artist Sarah Jane created a striking sealife installation
with residents at The Hyde in Bridgeport, using local Bridgeport net. They had
great fun painting tropical fish and creating starfish.
CM Artist Hanna had a busy day at Bentley House in Hertford
where she worked with residents to create these two stunning canvases which
they proudly displayed alongside some smaller painted boards. All were
delighted with the outcome of the session, and so proud to see their work on
display!
Then on the run up to their open day, residents at Kew House in Wimbledon worked with CM Artist Kirsteen to create this vibrant, colourful sign. It was used on the open day to direct visitors to the home to their garden. It looked stunning hung up on the wall, and they had great fun working on this communal collage exploring a variety of different artistic mediums.
CM Artist Kim worked on a huge project with residents at Appleby House. On their open day they revealed a series of new garden sculptures titled “The Pillars of the Community.” Local groups and individuals were invited along to design a section of the pillar, exploring topics that were close to their heart. During their art sessions, the residents worked on each section of the pillars using clay. These pieces were later installed onto each of the pillars.
The unveiling took place on the open day, and all were delighted to see how the finished sculpture garden turned out. Many people came along to visit on the day including children from local primary and secondary schools, the Mayor of Epsom, NAPA, Care England, plus local paramedics and police! This had been a massive project for both residents at Appleby House, staff and CM Artist Kim and we are all incredibly proud at the outcome! Take a look…
Creative Minds at the Alzheimer’s Show 2019
07/15/2019
The Alzheimer’s Show is an annual event held at London Olympia and is the UK’s leading event for dementia help, advice and information. The show is attended by family carers, healthcare professionals and members of the public who want to learn more.
We exhibited at this year’s event on June 7th & 8th and ran a number of art sessions for attendees to come along and get involved. Participants had the opportunity to create drawings using soft pastels and have a go at print making using cardboard blocks. There was also a giant communal canvas, which people could come and add their own mark to. It was a great opportunity for people to come explore their own creativity whilst finding out more about what we do, and the benefits that our art sessions have on those in care or living with dementia.
Attendees really got stuck in, and the gentleman pictured (with the daisy drawing) had never worked in pastels before in his life! After being diagnosed with early onset dementia, he attended the show with his daughter. He said he’d been advised to try some creative activity as it would be beneficial to him, so he bought a book on art but found it too much information. He also bought an adult colouring book, but never used it. Then when he attended the show, and visited our stand he plucked up the courage to attend our art session – he went on to produce this beautiful daisy drawing! Every participant at the session couldn’t believe he had never drawn before and all wanted a photo of him with his artwork. He was so proud and emotional by the end of the session.
CM Artists really enjoyed attending the Alzheimer’s Show too. CM Artist Laura commented; “What an amazing experience! Getting to meet so many caring people all wanting to help others, it was just so humbling. The response was brilliant, one lady said to me it was the best part of her day! The soft pastels went down a storm with lots of great work. Everyone was so pleased with their efforts. It was a very rewarding session!”.
Many industry professionals visited our stand during the day, and one of the tutors from the Reigate School of Art commented that our art sessions gave them loads more ideas and inspiration on how they can do more work to engage the local community.
We are also delighted to announce that following the Alzheimer’s Show, we have formed a partnership with a wonderful organisation, MindForYou, who run holidays for people living with dementia to enjoy with their nearest and dearest. Holiday goers will be able to enjoy fun, relaxing and therapeutic art sessions during their UK breaks, ran by our specially trained artists!
CM Artist becomes Artist-In-Residence for KRAN!
07/15/2019
CM Artist Rhiannon was thrilled to have recently secured National Lottery funding to run weekly art sessions at KRAN (Kent Refugee Action Network) for the next 12 months. She spent time living in the Middle East a few years back, and upon her return home, she felt inspired to help those who had traveled to the UK to seek refuge.
She began running art sessions at KRAN in October 2018, and was running them once a month. The sessions were a huge success, and participants really engaged with their creative activity. Now the funding is in place, she has been made their official Artist-In-Residence and will run a weekly art club at KRAN.
Many of the refugees are teenagers who have had little or no access to art education. Each week she will be providing a variety of different mediums for them to explore, whilst teaching them new artistic techniques. Rhiannon is also planning on running a number of Art Trips to local galleries to help them learn more about the work of famous artists.
Rhiannon has also secured an exhibition next summer at the
Beany Museum & Gallery, Canterbury to showcase the artwork created by the refugees.
She is making plans with a local school in Canterbury so that the A-Level Art
pupils can work with the refugees at KRAN on collaborative pieces for the art
exhibition next summer. We can’t wait to
see how it all comes together!
Here’s some examples of some of the projects they’ve worked
on so far…
They recently redecorated the reception area at the centre
and wanted it to incorporate patterns from the various cultures of refugees at
KRAN. Rhiannon cut out the shapes and they decorated each one in a traditional
cultural pattern. Each of the colourful pieces were then tessellated across the
reception desk to give this lovely vibrant finish. Everyone loves the end
result!
In another session Rhiannon got them to have a go at
observational painting. They studied images of birds, which they then recreated
in paint. Rhiannon was astounded at their level of creativity and some
beautiful paintings were produced.
In another fun session Rhiannon encouraged them to create
more abstract work. In this session they created geometric portraits where
prints of faces were placed over watercolour and tissue paper-bleed
backgrounds. These vibrant colourful works looked really striking, and they had
great fun trying out this new technique.
Rhiannon says; “I really enjoy working with the refugees at
KRAN. There is so much talent waiting to be wriggled out of this bunch. They’ve
been creating some amazing work and I’m excited to see them grow in confidence
over the next year.”
‘The Museum of Things That Don’t Stand Still’ – Creative Minds at the Tate Exchange
06/25/2019
We were sad to see the end of our 3-day project at the Tate Exchange which ran 15th – 17th May in collaboration with MA students from the University of Westminster. The project was themed around “movement” in response to the current exhibition at The Tate Modern by Jenny Holzer. This has inspired the project to explore ideas surrounding migration, flight and reflect on the way in which we all move through life. The project brought together a diverse range of people, young and old to explore their creativity and add their own piece of art to our interactive installation “The Museum of Things That Don’t Stand Still.”
In the run up to the event at the Tate Exchange, the students joined a number of our artists for their sessions, and created pieces of work as a starting point for the installation. Delicate origami birds were created during these sessions, plus piles of pretty hand-crafted flowers. We gained access to the venue at the beginning of the week, and all hands were on deck. CM Artists worked hard with the students, and the installation began to take shape ready for the project to open to the public on Wednesday the 15th May.
A number of our clients joined us for the event, and people visiting the gallery dropped in to take part. They had the option to create feathers to add to our giant wings, Percy the peacock, or flowers and leaves to add to a walk-through passage.
Alternatively people could come and create their own pair of
super-powered shoes. Imaginations ran wild as people had fun deciding on ways
in which they could power them up!
Participant Derek Kingsleigh said: “It’s an incredible
place with all the our flowers and leaves we made. You did so much with the
space. I’m not just impressed I’m very very impressed.”
Christine, aged 102 really got stuck in and left the session
saying: “Amazing, I’ve had a wonderful time. I’ll come again!”
By the close of the event at the Tate Exchange, you could walk down a colourful passage beautifully decorated with flowers and birds. Percy the grand peacock stood proud and tall with beautifully decorated feathers in his train. Our open wings sculpture looked vibrant, with all the pretty feathers participants added to it. The finished display of super-powered shoes looked remarkable, and included shoes that allowed you to explore the galaxy, bring light into people’s lives, shoes that spread happiness and shoes which meant they could live that day again at the Tate!
We loved each individual’s unique and imaginative take on
the themes.
Our artists thoroughly enjoyed themselves too…
“It was so wonderful to see people connecting while making.
People who’d never met before from all over the world! It gave them a space to
play, contemplate and be in the moment.” Sarah Jane
“This was another example of how art elevates humanity. I
got a huge satisfaction from seeing participants so profoundly happy to be
creating art in such an amazing setting.” Hanna
What a thoroughly uplifting experience, which brought
together people from all walks of life to enjoy the benefits that communal
creative activities can bring.
At the end of the day CM Community Manager Sarah, who has been project managing the event, received this heart-warming feedback from one attendees: “I was so deeply moved by today’s event. Combining creativity, art, imagination and giving to others. It was extraordinary! You should feel extremely good and at peace in your heart.”
A Day In The Life of Creative Minds Artist: Laura Novak
06/25/2019
When did you join Creative Minds? October 2018
What attracted you most to the franchise opportunity? The opportunity to combine my love for helping people with my love for art, all in the time my children would be at school.
Tell us what you’ve been up to today… Today I have been running my Mini Makers art session at the Whale of a Time Soft Play in Bar Hill, Cambridgeshire. They have a perfect party room that runs along side the soft play, decorated with a fun mural. The children can come to me and go crazy with all my art materials, having lots of fun and parents don’t need to do any tidying up! I always set up paints, stickers, pastels and bring a various amount of tools to paint with. The most popular being wheels to roll with, mixed with glitter! Each week I will also bring new ideas and mediums to experiment with.
I absolutely love drawing animations so I often ask the little ones who their favourite character is and we draw it together, they can then experiment with different mediums to finish off their artwork! I encourage mixing up the colours, playing around with lots of mediums and just generally having lots of fun!
How do you fit work around your two young boys and busy family life? Being a Creative Minds Artist fits really well around family life. I am still able to do every school run, which I want to do while my children are young. Being mummy is and will always be my most important role in life. I plan my art sessions in advance and prepare anything that needs doing before the session either in the evening or a day I’ll have at home for administration and playing with my equipment.
What inspires the themes that you run in your art sessions? It could be the time of year with what season it is, or if it’s Christmas etc. We have a wonderful Creative Minds network, where the artists share their art sessions and ideas. This is very inspiring. I also ask the participants if there is anything they would like to try in the next session.
What do you like best about being a Creative Minds Artist? Seeing the joy and happiness on participant’s faces during an art session. It’s the most rewarding feeling in the world!
Are
you passionate about art and working with vulnerable people? Are you looking
for a career change or something that’s flexible around family life? If the
answer is YES! Then becoming a Creative Minds Artist could be the perfect opportunity
for you!
Creative
Minds is a social enterprise and community of over 40 artists who deliver fun
and therapeutic art sessions to people of all ages in venues across the country.
As a Creative Minds Artist you can manage your own time and deliver art
sessions around your other commitments, making this an ideal lifestyle business.
After
3 years building a successful Creative Minds franchise in Enfield, North London,
CM Artist Hanna is relocating and with regret she has had to put her business up
for sale! She has 9 regular clients, operates her business on a part-time basis
and generates £1,500+ in income per month.
Hanna with the residents of Chiswick Care
The clients are based in the following locations: Enfield, Knebworth, Ware and Hertford, therefore the interested buyer would likely have one of three franchise territories to choose from in North London or Hertfordshire based on their location.
This
is a fantastic opportunity for any local artist to start earning from day one,
inheriting all of Hanna’s clients and making a very quick ROI (Return on Investment)!
If this opportunity is of interest to you please complete aFranchise Application via our franchise page: http://159.65.94.31/franchise/
We
look forward to hearing from you!
Magnificent murals are becoming a huge hit!
05/29/2019
Murals are becoming a popular commission for many CM Artists, proving to be a huge hit with residents, staff, families and friends. Here are some of the murals that have been completed by CM Artists across the country…
On a warm summers night last year, whilst
residents at Tilsley House in Weston-Super-Mare slept, CM Artist Susannah
quietly set up her equipment and painted this lovely tree on the living room
wall – much to everyone’s surprise the next day! Since then, during her regular
art sessions, the residents work on different woodland creations to add to the
scene. It has become a seasonal project, and an interactive area for residents
to display artwork created in their sessions.
Last summer residents created tropical birds,
flowers and butterflies to decorate the tree.
As summer drew to an end, residents enjoyed
creating red and golden leaves, squirrels and an owl to give the tree a lovely
warm autumnal feel.
On the run up to Christmas, Susannah created
this cute fawn as an addition to the display. Stars, robins and festive
lanterns were added to give it a wintery feel.
During recent weeks the display has taken on a
fresh new springtime look, with pretty cherry blossom, tulips and bunnies.
Zoe, Manager at Tilsley House says; “This
really brightens up the lounge and residents love admiring each other’s
creations. They love the personal touch of seeing their own artwork on display,
and enjoy identifying the seasonal elements of the mural.”
Meanwhile, down in Sussex, CM Artist Sarah,
brought together residents and staff at Saxonwood Care Home in Battle. Along
with the help of some little ones, all worked together to create this striking
mural of the Severn Sisters – one of Britain’s most iconic sea-views. It was
great to have such a mix of people getting involved and each adding their own
stamp to this beautiful piece. Resident Derrick, a talented artist himself,
oversaw the whole piece, and added some finishing touches at the end. Staff and
residents are absolutely thrilled with the end result, which has really
brightened up the corridor.
Roxy, Deputy Manager said, “This was such a
wonderful project that involved so many people. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed
working on it. It is lovely to see so many residents admiring and interacting
with the finished piece. In fact, the project was such a success that we are
already in talks about creating more murals around the home. We love the idea
of creating a ‘Nightime Promenade’ scene next!”
CM Artist Karen recently completed a ‘Pet Corner’ mural at Kingsleigh Care Home in Woking. The home has a number of pets, and the residents loved the idea of seeing some of the animals on the wall. So Karen created this beautiful mural in response, and the residents were overjoyed!
Manager
Kelly says, “The residents are delighted with the new mural! It really
brightens up the area, and they love chatting about it. They were thrilled to
see their suggestions come to life and were so excited to see the finished
piece! Karen is just incredible – she adapts to any requests the residents have
and they all absolutely love her!”
CM Artist Tracey, based in Yorkshire has created a “Wishing Tree Mural” at Beech Hall in Armley, Leeds. Again residents decorate the tree according to the seasons and Tracey spent time recording everyone’s wishes, which are printed, decorated and added to the wall. The residents love this personal element and see it as a symbol of hope and positivity. In fact the mural has been so popular that the home requested Tracey to create a second one upstairs on the first floor. This was recently completed and is part of an indoor garden, which will include various interactive features for all to engage with. We can’t wait to see how this murals commission develops this year!
