Appleby House ‘Renaming Ceremony!’

06/16/2017

What an exciting year its been for Appleby House Care Home in Epsom!

As you may know we’ve been delivering art sessions to Appleby House for over 2 years now, and the sessions have had a profound impact on the home, staff, residents and relatives. Early this year, Shona the manager announced that in honor of their commitment to the arts they would be renaming all of the suites in the home after famous artists!

The ‘Renaming Ceremony’ took place on May 9th, to officially rename the suites. James Cropper (our Founder and Director) and Sara Hurley were invited to the ceremony, along with Sylvie (Director of Napa) and Jacqui White (Marketing Director for Care UK) who helped cut the ribbon (pictured: credit to Care UK).

James was pleased to tour the house and visit each of the five newly named suites after famous artists, Pablo Picasso, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Claude Monet, Vincent Van Gogh and Leonardo Da Vinci. The entrance to each now features a plaque in the shape of an artist’s palate with the printed surname. (pictures). After the tour James and everyone enjoyed a buffet lunch and glass of wine as a harpist played a beautiful melody at the other side of the room.

The art sessions at Appleby House began with James over 2 years ago, before passing the sessions onto Sarah and Sara our Woking and Ascot based CM Artists. Since the beginning of the year CM Artist, Sarah has been delivering weekly inter-generational art sessions at the home, involving residents and children from the local Epsom Primary School. The sessions are widely praised and highly popular at the care home and the ‘Renaming Ceremony’ has been yet another example of the homes commitment to art and the belief that it can have a transformational effect on peoples lives. You can read more about Appleby House in our previous blog posts here:

http://159.65.94.31/intergenerational-art-sessions-at-appleby/

http://159.65.94.31/the-appleby-tate-one-year-on/

http://159.65.94.31/the-appleby-tate/

The ceremony was a huge success, and a good time was had all round. We feel honored to have had this positive impact on our clients, and privileged to work with such an inspiring team.

Thanks for reading.

Creative Minds.

Joyce Shares Her Artist Story

04/19/2017

We encounter so many residents with incredible life stories like 97 year old Joyce Cheverton, a resident at Nightingale Hall Care Home in Richmond, North Yorkshire. She’s an inspirational artist and is still creating wonderful artwork today! Here’s Joyce’s artist story including photos of her artwork.

Born in Harrow in 1920, Joyce showed remarkable artistic talent from an early age, producing saleable oil paintings while still at primary school. She studied for three years at Harrow College of Art and stayed for a further year as a tutor.

During the war years she taught art at the girls convent school in Willesden. When the sirens went she took her class to Willesden underground station which served as an air raid shelter. Joyce’s shelter sketches are some of her most poignant works.

Joyce met and later married David Cheverton, a young RAF officer, in a class of RAF officers she was instructing in the art of camouflage. David became an architect after the war and later a vicar. Joyce supported his ministry with her art.

Throughout her life Joyce was prolific in many forms of art – oils, water colours, posters, engravings, Lino cuts, wood block printing from blocks she carved herself, book illustration and cover design. She painted a huge four wall mural for a London cafe and designed a lounge for a Cunard liner. David and Joyce retired to a bungalow he designed in Preston-under-Scar. Their son Mark and his wife Lottie founded an Art College in Leith which flourishes to this day.

Here are photo’s of Joyce’s art over the years, her artist story…

Lesley (our CM Artist based in Middlesbrough) commented…”I am always amazed at the beautiful art that the residents at Nightingale Hall Care Home produce. Every session is individual and inspiring; not only do the artists excel but those who have never painted before have a breakthrough in something new and lasting.”

“The residents have already created beautiful soft pastel birds, abstract watercolour Kandinsky Circles, acrylic cherry blossom trees. Last week we used an intense pigment called Brusho and made some stunning bunny bunting to hang across the fireplace. I look forward to many more special moments at Nightingale Hall.”

We look forward to seeing more wonderful artwork created by Joyce and the residents in their Art Sessions. You can see some of the artwork Lesley mentions on our facebook page www.facebook.com/creativemindsan

Thank you for reading, we hope to inspire you with many more resident artist stories!

Nightingale Hall Care Home is owned by Wellburn Care Homes, see their website for more details: www.wellburncare.co.uk/

The Appleby Tate, one year on!

08/17/2016

Its been over a year since the opening of the Appleby Tate art gallery at Appleby House Care Home (Care UK) in Epsom, Surrey, which was officially opened by the Mayor and Mayoress of Epsom on Care Home Open Day 2015. The ‘Appleby Tate’ is an incredible gallery space that has been created to display all of the fantastic artwork created in Art Sessions by the residents. We have been delivering Art Sessions to Appleby House for nearly 2 years now, and the residents most of whom have dementia, have created wonderful art, crafts and sculpture over that time.

James the founder of Creative Minds use to deliver Art Sessions to Appleby House, which inspired the manager Shona Bradbury and the activities team to transform the space. He explains; “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. The Appleby Tate started out as a vision to display the resident’s artwork by utilising unused wall space, but with the hard work of Shona and the activities team they have transformed it into an amazing gallery space to showcase all of the resident’s artwork. Its awe inspiring to see and it doesn’t stop at the seating area it continues down the hallway!

The Art Sessions have had a profound effect on Appleby House and will continue to do so as the artwork displayed in the gallery is rotated. Recent changes include the brightly coloured gallery walls and the creation of giant flowers on display near the seating area.

The gallery has also had a profound effect on the care home environment, Shona, Manager at Appleby House, comments; ‘The art sessions have had such a positive impact on the home that we were also inspired to have vibrant feature walls that have carried on to all the suites. With each phase of our growing appreciation of art and colour we see at the same time increased wellbeing for the residents and staff. One GP recently said “What’s happened to the home, the residents used to sit around and now they are all so lively”. We are so inspired by the effect of the art that we are renaming the suites in the home after famous artists. The residents are currently creating a signature art piece from each of their chosen artists to be displayed in the suites. This is part of our commitment to becoming a home driven by artistic and creative therapies. The look on visitors faces is priceless and we love to tell them that we like to focus on what people living with dementia can do and not what they can’t. Our recent CQC inspection awarded us as ‘Outstanding’ for all our activities and they were blown away by the Appleby Tate and the artwork.”

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 well-being. 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 their 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, like the Appleby Tate, throughout the care home.

In the Appleby Tate’s case the display of the artwork increases its impact not only on those who participate but other residents in the home, James comments; “We’ve proven that our Art Sessions empower and enhance the lives of the participants and I think displaying the artwork as Appleby House have done amplifies that impact, reaching those who haven’t participated in the sessions, the staff, the relatives, it enhances the whole care environment.”

The Appleby Tate is a testament to the impact that the Art Sessions can have on a care home and an indication as to how they can impact other types of venue. Our goal is to continue to nuture and encourage the venues we work with to display the artwork created by the participants, and we’re certain more Appleby Tate like art galleries will emerge as a result.

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.