FRESH ART@ 2018

EVALUATION REPORT

Fresh Art@ 2018 Evaluation Report

Thematic Analysis by Sarah Gilmartin

Photos & Design by Natasha Beesley

Contents Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 3

About Fresh Art@ .......................................................................................................................................... 4

Partner Organisations .................................................................................................................................... 4

Fresh Art@ 2018 ............................................................................................................................................ 6

Project Structure and delivery ....................................................................................................................... 6

The Evaluation Method and Process of Analysis – (What we did and why) ................................................. 7

Data Collection – (How we gathered the information used) ........................................................................ 7

Wellbeing Scale .............................................................................................................................................. 7

The Thematic Analysis ................................................................................................................................... 8

Subthemes ................................................................................................................................................... 10

Themes and key factors ............................................................................................................................... 14

Discussion .................................................................................................................................................... 16

Conclusion .................................................................................................................................................... 16

Reference List .............................................................................................................................................. 18

Biographies .................................................................................................................................................. 18

Appendices .................................................................................................................................................. 19

Executive Summary Fresh Art@ is an established creative wellbeing project for people experiencing a range of mental health challenges which are significantly affecting their lives and wellbeing. It effectively utilises the expertise and offer of its partners to support participants to explore and develop new creative skills and techniques which they can take forward with them to new opportunities beyond the project in their communities. Participants celebrated their journey and achievements through two different exhibitions which added to their sense of pride as well as enabled them to feel they had given something back.

The Fourth Fresh Art@ Project was run in 2018. Partners wished to evaluate the project in a different way to harness the participants’ voices, to test elements of the emergent theories and find clear ways to present them. A thematic analysis of the data collected was undertaken which highlighted 3 key success factors which enabled the 4 main themes.

The project provided structure which enabled people to connect. Inspiring choices offered opportunity for people to feel valued resulting in a sense of pride, which built feelings of confidence and self-esteem. All of these moved towards next steps as participants had developed a wide range of skills from artistic to social assisting participants moving forward to new interests and opportunities, which will also support their wellbeing (see Fig.2).

This evaluation has highlighted an additional measure in the fact that Fresh Art@ clearly delivers the New Economic Foundation’s five ways to wellbeing. This is a useful model to identify and relate the various elements of the project and the outcomes which ultimately support people to improve their wellbeing both during the course of the project but also as they move forward.

Sarah Gilmartin March 2019

About Fresh Art@ Fresh Art@ B&NES is an innovative project which aims to harness the power of creativity to make a real difference to the lives of people who have been experiencing mental health challenges and social isolation. The project is a partnership between Creativity Works, AWP & Bath Museum Partnership.

The Fresh Art@ Bath project began in 2015 with the aim of creating inspiring new art for the walls of clinical NHS environments. Each year a group of project participants donate up to 30 pieces of artwork which are displayed on NHS walls. Projects like Fresh Art@ respond to prevention initiatives and create long-term savings in social care and health services whilst supporting people through periods of transition in their lives. Participant’s ideas are taken forward and in similar projects have enabled the set-up of new self-run creative peer support groups increasing creative community opportunities.

Fresh Art@ gives participants a unique opportunity to explore their creativity, improve wellbeing and increase independence and cultural connections. The Fresh Art@ participants meet for 2 hours each week in museums around Bath during the approximately 12 week course to create artwork inspired by the museum collections. They receive a wealth of knowledge and enthusiasm from experienced museum staff, as well as guidance and support from a socially engaged artist and other passionate members of the Fresh Art@ team throughout.

Being able to come together as a group in a safe, supportive and inspirational environment enables participants to express themselves, develop meaningful relationships with one another and explore creative processes. At the end of the project, the Fresh Art@ participants donate some carefully selected pieces to be framed and exhibited in a public exhibition, which is displayed as part of the Bath Fringe Festival. The artwork then takes it’s proud place as part of the Fresh Art@ collection, which is rotated around and displayed in the otherwise clinical NHS environments, enlivening the space and allowing participants to give something back.

Everyone involved in Fresh Art@ believes that creativity can make a significant difference to people’s lives by inspiring and supporting them to have fun & be creative, learn new transferrable skills, improve health and wellbeing and connect with their surroundings.

Partner Organisations Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership (AWP) NHS Trust – many of the participants are users of AWP mental health services and feel empowered to 'give something back' by donating their artwork to AWP environments at the end of the project. AWP holds the Fresh Art@ collection, which is on rotation around the hospitals and Community Mental Health Services including Bath NHS House, Hillview Lodge, Swallows Mental Health Centre and Ward 4 at St Martin’s Hospital Bath.

Creativity Works – A creative charity specialising in delivering outstanding creative projects with communities, Creativity Works' support the artist and volunteers and their expertise makes running the Fresh Art@ project possible and connects individuals with groups, activities and artists in their local area.

No1 Royal Crescent, The Holburne Museum, The American Museum – The museums offer participants the opportunity to connect with their heritage and cultural community through the rich history of the collections. Drawing on the wealth of knowledge held by the museums and their staff, inspiration for the Fresh Art@ starts here.

People involved in the Fresh Art@ Project

Participants – Fresh Art@ works closely with Avon & Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership (AWP) NHS Trust to take referrals from professionals working with individuals who could benefit from creative community engagement. Participants can also self-refer on to the project, which is open to those who have been experiencing mental health challenges and would like the opportunity to learn creative skills, socialise and make new friends.

Fresh Art@ Worker – a support worker provided by AWP, helps the transition between mental health services and engaging in creative community projects. This essential support also ensures that the exhibitions of artwork are displayed in the community and within AWP. This role is a unique facet of the project which enables participants to feel safe and supported during the sessions and makes it accessible to individuals who may otherwise feel unable to attend due to anxieties around managing their mental health.

Community Artist – a local socially engaged artist, providing quality art materials and expert guidance, directs the sessions. This inspires participants to learn, develop and grow their artistic practice.

Volunteer – A previous participant is offered the opportunity to join the team the following year as a volunteer, bringing their experience and giving valuable insight. The volunteer is able to work alongside the participants, offer their knowledge and support throughout the project whilst enriching their own confidence, self-esteem and group facilitation skills – gaining valuable experience.

For more information visit www.creativityworks.org.uk

For more info email philippa@creativityworks.org.uk or call 01761 438852 or natasha.beesley@nhs.uk

Fresh Art@ 2018 Who was involved?

12 participants - either referred onto the project through AWP services or self-referred.

Lead artist: Manages creativity and social engagement, supports participants to explore creative processes and grow as artists. Enables group interaction.

Fresh Art worker: Supports the artist and supports participants to access the group and stay engaged with the project.

Volunteer: A previous Fresh Art participant helps with supporting the group.

Museum staff: Help to support the group and provide invaluable knowledge about collections.

MH support worker:

Has knowledge and training to support group with mental health needs should they arise, is able to support difficult and complex situations.

Project Structure and delivery The Fresh Art@ project enabled participants to connect with their creativity in safe, supportive and inspirational environments within their local community with 14 community sessions in total. The group visited each of the three museums (No1 Royal Crescent, The Holburne and The American Museum) for 4 weeks at a time, where they were supported by the Fresh Art team and able to take inspiration from the collections there as well as use the space to create artwork. By the end of the project, the group had produced a large body of high-quality artwork and were supported to select pieces to donate to the Fresh Art@ collection. The 27 art works donated were then framed and with the involvement of the participants curated into a public exhibition at Bath Artist’s Studios during the Bath Fringe Festival. Participants took pride over their work and invited friends and family to the Private View event. The artwork is now displayed in the corridors and meeting rooms at Bath NHS House and will be rotated around AWP environments along with the existing Fresh Art@ collection.

The Evaluation Method and Process of Analysis – (What we did and why) The data was collected via interview and questionnaires from participants and staff who participated in the Fresh Art@ project 2018. The aim was to ensure the participants’ voices were heard throughout the evaluation as well as to add to the quantitative data collected and to ensure a rigorous evaluative process that could inform future planning and delivery whilst also identifying, highlighting and celebrating the project successes. The evaluation was undertaken by an evaluator not involved in the project or tied to any partner organisation to minimise bias and followed the thematic analysis approach as set out by Braun and Clarke, 2006. Thematic Analysis techniques were used to identify themes and patterns across the qualitative data set, due to the flexibility and rigor of this method to provide a detailed and rich account of the data.

Data Collection – (How we gathered the information used) The Fresh Art@ worker gathered quantitative data for evaluation via registers and well-being questionnaires to create the wellbeing scale (fig 1. Below) and some qualitative data via oral feedback (appendix 4). The data set used for the thematic analysis was collected via a series of questions (see appendix 1) set by the partners and collated by the evaluator. Questions were put to participants in a recorded interview environment with their support worker, the evaluator and transcriber and via written format with the professional artist and volunteer. This material was collated to form the data set. It is acknowledged that the data set was limited by potentially only capturing those ‘well enough’ to attend the additional meetings rather than embedded in project delivery and this has been discussed further in future recommendations.

Wellbeing Scale Participants were asked to complete the 7-point WEMWBS (Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scales) at the beginning and end of the project. The results are shown in the graph (Fig.1)

The graph shows that there has been an increase in all areas, in particular feeling relaxed, able to make decisions and connecting with others.

The Thematic Analysis Process of Analysis (How we looked at the information)

Representatives from all the partners were invited to attend including all staff and participants involved in the project. An oral and written copy of the data set was circulated in advance of the first meeting.

Seven people participated in the thematic analysis over three meetings, evaluator, project staff (as above), a Creativity Works representative, a AWP representative, the project volunteer and participants (now all to be referred to as members). There was no representative present from the Museums.

It was decided in advance to start by members immersing themselves in the data set before selecting individual data that stood out to them and coding it with a word or phrase that they felt it related to or that made it stand out. Code words would then be discussed to form a series of sub themes that had arisen through the coding process. The words or phrases selected were then cut out and arranged into subthemes to be able to see the crossover and different interpretations of the data to form the basis of discussions and this resulted in Fig 3. The sub themes would then finally be brought together to form a small number of overarching themes.

Epistemological assumptions (Positioning)

Members of the group were all asked four positioning questions before beginning the analysis. Their answers were not shared or analysed until the final themes had been reached.

It can be concluded from the collected responses (Appendix 2) the members of the group all attended with a positive interest or experience in the project and appear to have wanted to take part in the evaluation to ‘understand participants’ perspectives as well as to make sure participants’ voices were heard in the evaluation.

The group also wished to learn from the project and have clear actions moving forward to implement for @Fresh Art@2019, with a desire for it to continue, make it better and be successful. As well as to have a clear and concise representation of the benefits Members identified what they believed some of the benefits to be from their experience working or participating in Fresh Art@ these included; Multi agency partnership working, Creative mental health and wellbeing support project, Quality of resources, staff and venues, team/staff/1:1, Inspiration available from the venues and choice of skills and materials, Increase in confidence, safe environment, value of having art work framed and exhibited particularly in clinical spaces.

Themes which had already stood out to members from reading and listening to the data set were;

Museums, Exhibitions, Progression, Skills, Supportive, Proud, Quality, Trying to understand others opinions, difference it had made at a vulnerable time.

‘Fresh Art@ is unique, not like any other wellbeing creative course. It’s high needs mental health support, makes it accessible - promotes social inclusion, acceptance and social belonging’

Coding

All Members immersed themselves in the whole data set and highlighted and coded specific words and phrases they felt important. Once complete the different codes used were discussed to find agreed crossover and their context until a series of 14 sub themes were agreed upon. Each member then assigned each of their coded data to a sub theme (Appendix 3).

The data collected into each subtheme was then discussed. Due to there being 6 copies of the data there was repetition within themes but also different interpretations of particular aspects which meant they appeared in different sub themes.

Through looking at the connections between the repetition and the meanings behind the sub themes, what quickly emerged was what looked like on paper and felt like a journey through the data from what the project provides to what it supports and enables (See fig.3).

Fig 3

Choice - Inspiring venues, quality materials and teaching, Opportunities to select work and exhibit, learn and apply new techniques and skills, explore different ways of creatively expressing yourself.

Empowerment to explore ideas and take the lead, all within a supported as well as structured environment and project.

This it emerged supports the project participants to feel;

Inspired – due to the different immersive and inspiring environments, the quality of the materials, the artist as well as from each other, both in being in a group, sharing ideas and offering peer support. As well as to look forward to what next, beyond the project.

And

Connected – The supportive environment provided by staff and volunteers, working as a group, helping and supporting each other, learning and experimenting together, sharing ideas, the sense of giving back

Which in turn had enabled in terms of outcomes for participants;

Pride – through exhibiting their own work, giving back to the clinical environment, ownership, confidence, forming new relationships and connections, feelings of self-worth and positivity, new skills, and looking forward to the future with a desire to learn more, explore other ideas and look for other opportunities.

Subthemes The 14 Subthemes (Appendix 3) clearly emerged through creatively writing them all up on the wall to find the cross over. One entitled Advice to Project, the members decided was not a subtheme and should be dealt with separately within recommendations but the data has been included in Appendix 3. The repetition of data has not been included within each subtheme. These subthemes are written up and discussed in no particular order.

Connectedness

‘Helped me challenge my anxieties, build confidence and self esteem as well as develop my inter-personal skills;

There is a sense across the data of the project supporting people to feel connected not just to each other, but also to the community and to the project itself through the continued contact and support afterwards.

The project also invites participants to take notice of the world around them, explore new places, be inspired by what they find around them while they discover new skills and materials.

Working together as a group, meeting staff at the museums and project staff and feeling supported all appear to have enabled participants to interact, share and support each other to feel more resilient, valued, confident and build self-esteem, which in turn helped their sense of wellbeing.

‘I found the social interaction really good and helped my well-being’

Choice

‘We could do whatever we wanted it was our choice to do whatever’

The different environments and collections the range of museums offered (No.1 Royal Crescent, The Holborne Museum, The American Museum) as well as the different quality materials, techniques and skills the artist presented, gave participants a wide range of interesting choices to make and creative ideas to choose to explore, whilst providing the expert support to help and guide them through this. It appears to have encouraged participants to try new things and to take risks. The quality of all of these choices and opportunities also appears to be important, participants appear to have felt valued in being offered quality options.

‘A lot of people choose different ways to produce their work. It is really really different all the work produced.’

Participants were also offered the opportunity to select work they had created to be exhibited to two different spaces, which again offered different rewards, as their work was shown in an artist space – Bath Artists’ Studios and a clinical settings at AWP in Bath. Being given autonomy to make the choice of which piece of work they wanted exhibited and to give to Fresh Art supported the sense of ownership and pride.

A repeated theme was around structure, too much or too little and this came up with regards to choice, too much choice it was felt can feel overwhelming, however it seems overall that the support and guidance offered by the team led by an experienced artist did provide the necessary balance which enabled and empowered participants to take risks and try new things while providing a breadth of inspiration, ideas and skills that meant participants could engage with what interested them.

Process/Structure

‘Everyone is different…some people might just want to come in and do their own thing, where as others might want or need more structure.’

Structure was talked about quite a lot across the data but actually features as only a small sub theme, appearing instead to have been spread across all other sub themes and crosses over with the concept of process. Specifically the process of making art work and selecting what art work to exhibit. Potentially this references the overall structure of the project as participants move from exploring new spaces, forming as a group, learning new skills and being inspired to creating works of art and having them displayed. This lead to lengthy discussion to try to define structure and support and where they intertwine, as well as when structure is required to provide guidance and security particularly for participants with mental health issues and too much structure which potentially inhibits creative exploration. The conclusion was that because everyone is different this needs to be flexible but in general more structure towards the start of the project as the group is forming and people settle into understanding the project and the new environment structure alongside support is required.

New Skills

‘It was collaborative, it was good, it was good to try something new’

The artist offered a wide range of materials and techniques to try and explore and taught participants new skills as well as ways to approach their work. Participants have all appeared to have arrived with different levels of experience as well as different interests and ideas about art and the project. The issue of the balance of structure also features here, but overall there is the sense that learning new skills and using them in a range of ways was a positive experience and that they could use the skills they had learned in the future. It also inspired conversation about the future and which direction people wanted to take their skills and interests in.

Creating Well-being

‘Not only do the participants improve their own personal wellbeing, they connect within their communities, build relationships and develop emotional resilience through creativity. The positivity of

the project is infectious’

Creative wellbeing appeared across the subthemes, which is possibly unsurprising based on the project aims. Looking at the New Economic Foundation’s Five Ways to Wellbeing, this projects seems to provide all five elements, Keep Learning, Giving, Being active, Connecting and Taking Notice, which are all identifiable in this sub set. Appearing to support participants’ wellbeing as Dodge, Daly, Haydon and Saunders (2012) describe wellbeing through helping individuals ability to balance challenges faced with their resource pool, by providing both supported opportunity and inspiration with new skills and a supportive environment.

Pride

‘Throughout the project and more specifically with the culmination of the exhibition I gained an immense sense of pride’

There were a number factors that appeared to result in ‘pride’. The word itself was used a lot by participants across the data but also included feelings of achievement and a sense of self-worth. The idea of giving back in a number of ways also seems to have felt rewarding and contributed to these feelings, both through supporting each other or in exhibiting in clinical environments. While learning new skills, including communication and social interaction as well as creative skills have appeared to build confidence as well as a sense of ownership, enabling participants to look to the future and how they will utilise these new or awakened skills.

Exhibiting

‘It was very nice, felt proud of myself, felt I had achieved something, had never done anything like this before, so it is a good feeling’

Exhibiting does not seem to have been something participants were particularly aware of at the start of the project but really valued as they felt they had achieved something and found they had created a piece of art work they were proud of. The idea of exhibiting their work and inspiring others and passing it on was in itself inspiring. They were able to select work they were proud of and their feelings of pride seem to have been increased by two different places and people believing it was worthy of putting on display. Particularly in the NHS spaces this appeared to feel in contrast to how participants sensed they were spoken to and the stigma they felt as ‘mental health patients’ in this space.

Confidence

‘Helped challenge my anxieties, build confidence and self-esteem as well as develop my interpersonal skills’

Working with a group, socialising and supporting each other was seen to have built confidence, with the opportunity to come back and support the project as a volunteer supporting the continued development of confidence building beyond the project. Participants also had the sense of the creative powers being unlocked and the artist in them being allowed to flourish which all support their sense of worth and self-esteem. Once again exhibiting work they had created themselves and it being ‘worthy enough’ to be exhibited appears to have really supported confidence and self-esteem building.

Inspiring

‘It has definitely given me inspiration and unlocked creative powers’

Participants appear to have been inspired across all areas of the project and that feels like a powerful driver in the project’s success. The beautiful spaces, art works, artefacts and the opportunity to work with them with excellent materials and support all provided a wide range of inspiration, the variety of these was also important as ‘everyone is different’ and each participant was inspired by different aspects and elements which could be said is clear in the variety of the final pieces. The artist and volunteer having also been through the project as participants added an additional layer of inspiration as well as hope for the future.

Learning

Keep learning is one of the five ways to wellbeing and appears to be important to participants, the opportunity itself as well as all the quality materials to experiment with, environments to learn in and be inspired by and expert guidance of the experienced artist, who along with the volunteer appears to have provided the right level of support to enable people to take control of their work, feel empowered and creative while helping them to learn new skills and improve their techniques, reflected in their sense of pride in their finished pieces.

Support

‘It was very collaborative I think it is good to be with people. We have got to know each other. It was good to feel part of a group’

Fresh Art@ clearly provides a supportive environment in which participants can feel safe and get to know each other, form as a group and then be able to take risks and learn new skills.

This appears to be thanks to the staff at the museums as well as the project staff. Participants appear to have valued their knowledge and support both during and after the project. It seems for many participants attending a group, and all that entails is extremely challenging and can easily become overwhelming so the high level of support Fresh Art@ offers is essential to their participation and the post project contact supports their continued feelings of wellbeing after the project – and the structure and support it has provided over 3 months comes to an end.

Environment

‘helped my wellbeing…safe environment to be in and have nothing to worry about’

It seems each museum was felt to be very different and everyone has a favourite. There was a desire to spend longer at each and a sense that they made participants feel special, trusted and privileged. The time and support all staff and volunteers offered seems to have helped participants to feel ‘worthy’ as well as their collections providing inspiration. There was a sense of participants being immersed in each environment and the power of being fully focused and inspired as well as safe. The different exhibition spaces also came into this sub set and both seem to add layers of benefit to the participant’s feelings of achievement and giving back to their communities as well as pride in their achievements which the exhibitions enabled them to share with friends and family.

‘Environments’ also brought up the locations, from inner city to rolling countryside, they took people out of their comfort zones, to places they had not gone before or would not have dared to go and encouraged them to walk, use different forms of transport, pushing themselves to take a risk, trust and explore. All of which are potentially huge challenges for participants but can also provide great benefits.

Next Steps

‘I go to Art-iculate every other Friday. It was posted in Sainsburys (Do you think you would have done it without FA?)No I would not have had the confidence to do that. So that’s definitely a benefit’

What stood out to the interviewer and comes across in this sub set is that all participants had a clear idea of ‘what next’, (although that might also be a reflection on the participants who were able to

attend the interviews), but each was looking to future activities, had ideas or had already found the next things they wanted to attend, do or try. This confidence and interest will hopefully support them to manage their mental health and wellbeing going forward.

‘@Fresh Art is a high needs stepping stone in the community, supporting participants to safely engage in creative workshops so as to develop confidence to manage their own mental health; leading to wider

social engagement and personal wellbeing.’

Themes and key factors Two subthemes immediately stood out to the members, the first ‘Creative Wellbeing’ it became clear is the starting point of Fresh Art@ and felt to be what the project is and its key aim rather than a theme and therefore overarching all aspects. The second ‘Advice to Project’ has become recommendations formed from this sub theme as well as the process of the evaluation.

While overall the sub themes were felt to have easily formed, it was harder to narrow them down to 3-4 themes. What emerged was another layer to the story which we believe is what makes Fresh Art@ different to other projects and what makes it successful on so many levels. So while the emerged themes of Inspiring Choices, Connected, and Pride tell the journey of the participants’ experiences, the importance of the structure, the quality and range of opportunities and the sense of feeling valued have emerged as what we have called Key Factors. In that members feel these factors are what makes the project stand out from other offers, as well as significant in enabling participants to participate and achieve the project’s aims.

‘Next Steps’ featured across all three themes of Inspiring Choices, Connected, and Pride which highlights its importance to participants and in the project’s success, so has formed the fourth Theme. (see fig.2)

Inspiring Choices – Opportunity

Fresh Art@ offers a wide range of inspiration, ideas, support, spaces, materials and skills which participants have the opportunity to engage with and explore.

The importance of the range and quality of inspiration and choices available feel clear from the discussion. What then emerged was the opportunities these offer and how these provide the chance to engage, embrace or discard all or none of them, which in turns supports individual leadership and sense of empowerment and the freedom to explore what is of most interest to each individual. Each participant has their own journey, creative exploration and expression.

These opportunities also offer the chance to support each other’s very different work, offer non-judgemental and incomparable feedback and to share interpretations of creative works.

Furthermore Fresh Art@ enables people to give back through the opportunity to show work in different spaces but also to inspire other people struggling with mental health problems as well as employed staff in clinical otherwise bland uninspiring spaces.

‘The exhibition was a good idea it made me feel valued and important as an individual’

Connected – Structure

It seems clear that the project helps people feel connected, to each other, to the world around them through the different museum environments and their wider communities through the exhibitions. They felt connected as a group and in their shared experience, supporting each other as they took risks, experimented and learnt together. This enabled people to feel valued, more positive, build relationships and communication skills and develop their sense of self-worth.

It was felt that the structure of the project in terms of weekly routine was important as well the tailored structured and supported approach to creative learning, skills development, exploring, being invited to take notice and be inspired away from stigma was a key factor.

The structure and support created a safe environment for people in which they felt valued and trusted.

The fact that the project contact and connections continue beyond the project adds another layer of structure and support, which has enabled participants to join new groups and seek new opportunities. Participants know they can approach partners for advice and direction and are supported as they seek new opportunities or continue their journeys with Fresh Art@ through the structured support model, which has enabled people to move from participant to volunteers, support worker to lead artist.

Pride – Feeling Valued

Pride feels to be made up of a number of different elements or emotions as seen in the diagram above, mainly self-esteem, positivity, confidence, giving back and looking forward to the future. Mainly there is the pride in oneself to have made connections and new relationships, to have explored new places and learnt new things and having created something that each individual is proud of. Finally to have them worthy of being exhibited in two very different spaces offers different ways to celebrate that achievement and offer the opportunity to give back adds to the sense of pride and compassion for oneself.

What seemed powerful is the idea that Fresh Art ‘flips the stigma of mental health’ on its head, which suggests therefore a strong sense of pride, self-worth and feeling valued.

It seems that this journey to achieving a sense of pride is underpinned by the feeling of being valued as a person, worthy of the museums time, trust in handling their collections open and generous approach to each individual, worthy of the artists 1:1 attention, quality materials and teaching. Participants being valued enough to exhibit and staff and volunteers valuing each individual enough to support them to participant but also beyond the project.

Next Steps

The sense of looking forward and what next? Felt clear throughout the process. All members felt inspired by the project which it felt was carrying them to look to continue to move forward and remain engaged either with creative activities, the different museums or to keep learning and developing their skills. The fact the project also provides the vital sign posting and support participants need potentially helps participants to feel this is possible and to make it a reality. The additional level of support in creating peer groups or going on to support the next Fresh Art@ project are all felt to be extremely valuable opportunities.

Discussion In addition to the clear themes and success factors of the project it feels the quality of the choices/opportunities, the quality and level of support offered and quality of the museums as venues for this project all need highlighting.

It is highly unusual for a community project to have access to these quality spaces, artist, materials and opportunity to exhibit work in both artistic and fundamentally important space for participants, where participants feel able to give back with a sense of pride and self-worth. It could be said that the quality of each element is what is so inspiring and provides the feeling of being valued.

What has also been highlighted through this analysis is how Fresh Art@ Connected participants to each other and the world around them by inviting participants to Take Notice, of each other’s work, the museums environments and their handling collections, different materials textures and colours and to be inspired. They Learnt new skills and techniques in drawing, painting and colour and a desire to keep learning more. To be active, in exploring new places, travelling to different parts of Bath, in flicking paint or moving to view something differently. Furthermore to Give their support to each other and to give their art work to be exhibited both at Bath Artist Studios as well as in clinical environments within AWP (see p.4) to inspire others and enhance the environment.

Fresh Art@ it could be concluded from this delivers all five of the New Economic Foundations’ Five Ways to Wellbeing, researched on behalf of Foresight, which based on scientific evidence, sets out 5 actions to improve personal wellbeing (Aked and Thompson 2011), providing an interesting additional measure of the project success.

Conclusion Fresh Art@ has developed a successful structure of delivery with fantastic partners and support, to offer participants with potentially severe and/or enduring mental health needs a safe yet inspiring and exciting space to explore and learn creatively, to engage with their inner creativity to take notice of the amazing collections and different environments, learn new skills, connect with each other to build new relationships and interests for the future.

The combinations of these factors enabled people to create works of art they were proud of, feel valued, build confidence and develop feelings of pride and self-worth.

This evaluation has highlighted the fact that Fresh Art@ can also be seen to deliver the New Economic Foundation’s five ways to wellbeing which is a useful model to identify and relate the various elements of the project to and the outcomes they achieve which ultimately support people to improve and maintain their wellbeing in the future.

Recommendations

Artist to consider the balance of structure versus freedom and the number of creative choices on offer in the first few sessions as the group forms and people get to know each other.

To have Fresh Art@ art works shown in clinical environments and clearly labelled as created by Fresh Art@ participants to provide inspiration for current mental health service users in those environments.

Clarification of roles –Participants suggest clarifications of delivery roles would be helpful. Build in more time for participants to work with Creativity Works on how their work is framed and

presented. Explore the potential to spend more time in the museums. Participants were interested to have

more time in the museums as this was really valued. This could be during or after the project. Explore facilitation training for volunteers as well as the possibility of shadowing or working with the

Fresh Art@ worker after the project. Explore the potential for the overall project and sessions to be longer. Explore using the five ways to wellbeing within the project to support participants to identify ways to

use the skills they are learning to support their wellbeing beyond the project. Recommendations for Future Evaluation (see p.6) Explore including the thematic evaluation data collection within the planned sessions and the

participants to get to meet the evaluator in advance of the interviews. In order to gather data from the participants who are less engaged or still find it hard to engage at the end as well as to not add additional trips and meetings some might find difficult.

Explore doing additional 1:1 interviews (rather than a group interview) at the exhibition openings to gather participants’ responses to limit time required away from friends and family who have accompanied participants to see the exhibitions and celebrate with them.

Discuss the need in future evaluations to further explore who the participants are and what their needs or requirements for participation are and how Fresh Art@ provides ‘high needs mental health support’ or support for people with severe and/or enduring mental health needs.

Reference List Aked,J. Marks,N., Cordon, C,. Thompson, S. (2008) Five Ways to Wellbeing. New Economics Foundation

Aked,J. Thompson, S. (2011) Five Ways to Wellbeing. New Economics Foundation, NHS Confederation https://www.nhsconfed.org/~/media/Confederation/Files/Publications/Documents/Five_Ways_summary.pdf accessed 28/03/2019

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006) ‘Using thematic analysis in psychology’, Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3:2, 77-101

Dodge, R., Daly, A., Huyton, J., & Sanders, L. (2012). ‘The challenge of defining wellbeing’. International Journal of Wellbeing, 2(3), 222-235. doi:10.5502/ijw.v2i3.4

World Mental Health organisation https://www.who.int/features/factfiles/mental_health/en/ accessed 27/03/2019.

Biographies Sarah Gilmartin

Sarah trained at the Royal Academy of Dancing and London Contemporary Dance School before moving into Lighting Design and Production Management, first based at The Place Theatre, then touring the UK and internationally. Sarah continued to develop her freelance practise whilst also moving into Arts and Project management in 2005 as General Manager at Woking Dance Festival before moving to Surry Arts as Arts for Health and Dance Programme manager. Achieving APM Project management and Accounting qualifications. After relocating to the South West Sarah continues to work as a freelance producer and artist with a passion for Arts for health and Wellbeing. Her work has included developing strategic relationships and projects to increase participation and engagement. Developing and delivering training programmes and opportunities for artists. Producing and commissioning community and professional works, platforms and festivals. These projects have all required evaluation and Sarah is passionate about evaluation as a tool to improve and develop what we do and how we do it to achieve the best outcomes for participants.

Sarah is currently completing an MA in Dance Movement Psychotherapy on placement with AWP sarah.gilmartin@nhs.net

Natasha Beesley

Tash is trained in Graphic Design and is currently working as the Fresh Art@ Worker which is a service level agreement between AWP and Creativity Works . Tash works closely with the participants and with the Bath Museums and artists to support all the service users on the projects.

Appendices Appendix 1

Fresh Arts review - Interview Questions 10th July 2018

Introductions, explain evaluation and reminder of the project:

Museum-based sessions that you attended and the exhibition, which included the opening evening and a 2 week show at Bath Artists’ Studios

Museum-based art sessions, framing, exhibition

1. Looking back over this project –what would you say stands out for you?

Prompts: What about working in museums, looking at collections?

What about the curation workshop?

What about choosing which artwork to frame?

What about the additional activities that were offered in the gallery during the exhibition for ‘Create Everyday?

2. How do you feel about exhibitions?

Prompts: How did you feel being part of Fringe Arts Bath at Bath Artists Studio’s?

Was it a reason to participate?

How do you feel the group felt about it as a whole?

3. What do you think about your artwork being shown at NHS House? (in the meeting room and corridors)

Prompts: What did/do you notice about the environment during your therapy or treatment with AWP?

How do you feel about Fresh Art being on the walls for others?

4. What do you think about your artwork being shown more permanently shown at NHS House and in clinical environments? (As part of a growing collection rotated around wards)

Prompts: What are your hopes about changing the environment at NHS House and clinical wards for those who go stay there, visit or work there?

How relevant is it for you to ‘give back’ to the clinical environment?

Skills

5. Throughout the project you developed a range of skills – some may have been new skills, others you may have already had, but maybe hadn’t used for a while – can you describe to me which skills you treasure the most?

Prompts: Are they relevant beyond this project?

How would you say, your confidence has changed?

Wellbeing and Connectedness

6. In what way has the Fresh Art@ project supported your wellbeing

Prompts: what benefits have you experienced as a result of taking part in the Fresh Art@ project?

Has it supported a sense of connectedness?

Next time

7. What would you do differently next time?

Prompts: How did you experience the support?

What about the materials those were on offer?

What about the locations for the workshops and the exhibition?

Any other comments…….

What next?

8. What are you doing or would you like to do next?

Appendix 2

Thematic Analysis Pre session Questions

What stood out for you in the project?

Quality, opportunity, wellbeing, skills, artist, empowering, partnership, connectivity

Multi agency partnership working

Creative mental health and wellbeing support project

Quality resources – artist, venue, materials, volunteer, FA worker

To consider the process of enrolment, pre-course engagement, post project exhibition and taster sessions, post review.

Friendliness of the team and the museum staff.

Given time for 1:1 assistance

All the materials that we able to use

Learning about aspects of the museums exhibitions (Holborne)

The inspiration that comes out from being surrounded by the collection.

The value of seeing the artwork framed.

Power of having art in clinical environments alongside participant’s voices.

Increase in confidence and lift in mood through art making.

‘High needs’ mental health support provided, in a relaxed, welcoming and non-clinical environment.

Safe social environment - professional mental health support and peer support (mutual understanding, encouragement and camaraderie between participants).

Promotes ‘hope’ during the recovery process. @Fresh Art is an opportunity to challenge personal barriers to community engagement (i.e generalised anxiety disorder) by providing a safe, highly supported creative environment to build coping skills (i.e weekly structure, social engagement skills), resilience and confidence to move forward.

@Fresh Art is unique, not like any other wellbeing creative course. It’s high needs mental health support, makes it accessible - promotes social inclusion, acceptance and social belonging.

Volunteer (peer support) opportunity - further development of confidence, facilitation skills, giving back, inspiring others, self worth and pride.

@Fresh Art is a high needs stepping stone in the community, supporting participants to safely engage in creative workshops so as to develop confidence to manage their own mental health; leading to wider social engagement and personal wellbeing.

Trust - participants are trusted, high quality art resources, handling collections, Museum environments. Clinical ward based environments are all about minimising risks and therefore as someone with a mental health problem it often feels we are not trusted. @Fresh Art promotes trust in the community and this is welcomed and empowering.

What would you like to get out of this evaluation?

Clear (All voices/language) representation of the benefits.

Concise narrow down the multiple aspects to a few themes.

Try to make the next FA even better (But I don’t know how!!)

Learn and highlight ways to improve the project for this year

Understand participants’ perspectives

Clear actions for 2019

Accurate representation of the data, learn whats good and what can improve.

Celebration of the work/project outcomes.

Participants’ voices heard.

An ability to contribute my views and opinions from my personal experience as both a participant and volunteer.

The establishment of common outcome themes and relationship links within the @Fresh Art project.

What is your bias?

Would like to describe the project well, clearly and its outcomes, to managers, funders and to raise profile.

For future funding support to continue

I want to see the project be successful, I want it to carry on so I can keep working on it.

Want to make it better – from my experience I would like more time in the museums and longer sessions.

As a participant – ‘The exhibition was a good idea it made me feel valued and important as an individual’

Independent but with an arts background and belief in this type of work. Think it’s important.

As a participant and volunteer, I have a bias towards the positive outcomes of the project (since my personal experience has been very positive).

What has stood out for you already from the data?

Progression and skills, Empowerment, Exhibitions working towards something, Proud of achievements and work

Valuable learning experience –art and museums.

Supportive community project

Made a big difference at a time when feeling vulnerable.

Proud to have art work displayed.

Feeling proud to see work framed and exhibited

Transformation as artist from start to finish.

Supported by Barbara and quality of the materials.

Think the quality of the museums/spaces, materials, artist all important.

Listening to the CD was helpful to try to understand others opinions and experiences.

- Small data set from participants - views of only 3 participants

- No feedback data from those that disengaged (dropped out of the project) and therefore limited perspectives.

- Data needs to have more emphasis on the ‘high needs mental heath support’ provided as this is the fundamental purpose of the project; engaging those disadvantaged in the community due to high mental health support needs and their inability to access more community based creative opportunities.

These questions were reviewed at the end to cross check with the outcomes. The final theme of learning evolved through the process but addresses these.

Appendix 3

Sub themes created from participant and volunteers feedback. (Direct quotes)

Highlighted areas could move to different sub themes or have 2 interpretations or shows how they feed each other.

Connectedness

Good at keeping in contact afterwards; willing to help each other; (volunteer) very supportive; rewarding experience to give back to the project; watching participants develop; privilege to be part of process; sense of teamwork and common goal; supported project as a whole and individually; sharing at the end of each session, people making comments; diversity of the group; good to be with people; good to feel part of a group; we got to know each other; seeing the enthusiasm of participants at the end of the project wanting to engage more in the community and pursue other creative opportunities, with new found confidence; makes a significant difference to the lives of all of the involved; Not only do the participants improve their own personal wellbeing, they connect within their communities, build relationships and develop emotional resilience; The positivity of the project is infectious and this is what makes Fresh Arts @ so special; Using my own personal experience to support participants…made me feel valued; supported my wellbeing by allowing me to make a positive contribution and give something back within my local community; Helped me challenge my anxieties, build confidence and self esteem as well as develop my inter-personal skills; I found the social interaction really good and helped my well-being; It will open it up to a wider audience (Exhib in therapy areas) yes think that is an excellent idea..provide inspiration to other people to do art or join a fresh art group, it’s an important factor to mention who has done it….its also a way of getting Fresh Art out there; Social interaction really good and helped my wellbeing as well as doing the art work. When I can ask something it is really quite useful (also environment).

Choice

Fundamentals of art could be shown as well; Would have liked more structure; structure and guidelines; Everyone is different though and some people might just want to come in and do their own thing, where as others might want or need more structure; We had the choice of what to do; we went to the gallery to decide how we wanted to display the exhibition and what words we wanted to use; We could do whatever we wanted it was our choice to do whatever, I was attracted to one particular pattern on one of the quilts; I felt my piece of work would have looked better in a black frame, but it was put in a white frame (keep choice);I agree mine would have looked better in a darker frame (Keep choice); I tried different materials as well which I enjoyed, they were new to me; (good) the amount of materials used, half of which I didn’t know existed; I have always done art at home but now it has improved quite a bit. (best part) using the different materials and doing the screen printing is the new skills I have learnt, I have definitely learnt new skills; There is a lot to take in on the course and it is very easy to get overwhelmed with everything; different types of art techniques used. A lot of people choose different ways to produce their work. It is really really different all the work produced; I hope they wonder how this evolved and are curious about it; (Re structure) I think that it is a catch 22 as you see if you start bringing in constraints then you become less expressive artistically; More structure in the first few weeks would have been helpful; Having no structure caused be anxiety about what to do; I felt I needed a bit more direction. I was panicking what to do . What I did was to just do a squiggle and then that turned into a drawing; (Choice of venues) the holburn (favourite), it was newer. I didn’t like Royal Cresent as was not my sort of thing really. The Holburn felt more arty. I found it inspiring…this inspired me to try a copy John Constable’s Haywire; It brought colour to my work..it really encouraged me to use colour; (image for exhib.)chose from, which is a confidence issue…there was one I liked.

Process/Structure

(learning and trying new things) different materials that we used half of which I didn’t know exisited; watching a participant enthusiastically flick paint at her piece of art, in order to express herself and the thoughts within; deciding what would go in it (the exhibition) and finishing things as well; evolved as weeks went by; We wanted to come up with something as a group (group process); I found the process constructive; Everyone is different…some people might just want to come in and do their own thing, where as others might want or need more structure. We should have left more time to sort out framing (to enable more choice); over the 12 week project developing my own confidence and self esteem with in the creative group facilitation setting;

New Skills

It is great to try something new;Trying the new skills for screen printing, different techniques; They (materials to try) were excellent. There was a lot of stuff; Using the different materials and doing screen printing;I never thought I would have the opportunity, but now it has happened, I feel proud of what I have done; I am trying to find opportunities through Art where it is more constructive and you are taught techniques etc, that is what I would like to do (next); We also talked about an additional subject in fashion as well; Learning new techniques; I tried different materials as well, which I enjoyed and they were new to me as they were introduced on the course; Being with others as well gave you inspiration as well as new skills; I think the amount of different materials we used, half of which I didn’t know existed; Training in facilitation skills (interest in); It was collaborative, it was good, it was good to try something new; She seemed to be able to pick up on what we had done and add to it with different techniques. The emphasis was on how to express yourself by art which is ok; the fundamentals of art could be shown as well; (best part) learning new techniques; didn’t want it to end; what you are all saying is that beyond the project you are going to use those skills in one way or another in different ways – Yes; (developing skills/next steps) I would like to look at more traditional landscapes; We had a choice of what to do, I think it would have been better to narrow it down, and follow that route , to develop that specific skill. Hearing from a participant that she had always created black and white art, how through the collection at the Holborne Museum, they were now inspired by colour, and during later sessions discovered how to create beautiful vibrant pieces of art; I have definitely learnt some new skills but I am not very good at doing things on my own.

Creating Wellbeing

Hearing how attending Fresh Art@ project was the highlight of one participant’s week. I think that producing a piece of art work that is worthy enough to get included in an exhibition; Makes a significant difference to the lives of all those involved. Not only do the participants improve their own personal wellbeing, they connect within their communities, build relationships and develop emotional resilience through creativity. The positivity of the project is infectious; watching a participant enthusiastically flick paint at her piece of art, in order to express herself and the thoughts within; rewarding experience to give back to the project; opportunity to further build confidence in a creative setting; an incredibly inspiring project, it’s a unique opportunity that allows individuals with mental health issues to engage in art within a highly supported and relaxed atmosphere; Museums provide inspirational environments and collections that encourage creativity and positive cultural engagement. choose from, which is a confidence issue…there was one Ii liked. I found the social interaction really good and helped my wellbeing, as well as doing the art; supported me to build confidence to take on board new voluntary and paid creative opportunities; Improved networking opportunities;

Pride

Felt very pleased with one piece of work that I did; Through out the project and more specifically with the culmination of the exhibition I gained an immense sense of pride; Seeing all the work framed on the wall; I feel proud of what I have done; made me feel valued as a volunteer; make a positive contribution and give something back within my local community; felt proud of myself, and I felt I had achieved something, had never done anything like this before, so it is a good feeling; feeling of pride, feels like stepping up a level; seeing the participants who’d made it through the project, standing next to their framed artwork on the walls of bath Artists Studio was humbling; I felt proud and privileged to have been part of their journey; A rewarding experience to give back to the project; open it up to a wider audience (pride in work); Seeing all the work framed and on one wall and displayed felt like a real achievement; The idea (our artwork in NHS spaces,) may help cheer up the areas where the art work is displayed. It is nice as it is a place people can appreciate it; don’t want it to end. Producing a piece of art work that is worthy to get included in an exhibition;

Exhibiting

In Bath Studios it was all together here it is different; It is nice as it is a place where people can appreciate it especially against the magnolia walls; You can inspire other people and pass that on; felt like a real achievement; It was very nice, felt proud of myself, felt I had achieved something, had never done anything like this before , so it is a good feeling; Yes (it is a good thing) I think so as it will open it up to a wider audience. Will there be some in the area where we go for therapy? It might give inspiration to other people; way of getting Fresh Art out there; may help cheer up areas where the art work is displayed; It would improve the rooms because they are quite clinical; (exhibiting in NHS) Yes Go for it!; lot of interest in it;

Confidence

I think producing a piece of art work that is worthy enough to get included in an exhibition; Helped be to challenge my anxieties, build confidence and self-esteem; being with others as well gave you inspiration as well as learning new skills; ..it also enables the creation of confidence, self-pride, wellbeing and camaraderie; Feels like stepping up a level and that working people are seeing them; No I wouldn’t have had the confidence (before) to so that. So that is definitely a benefit; It has definitely given me inspiration and unlocked creative powers; An opportunity to build confidence in a creative setting; When I can ask something its really quite useful; I am not very confident and I felt I needed a bit more direction…I was panicking on what to do. What I did was to just do a squiggle and then that turned into a drawing, I think it was of a Chinese lantern; confidence to take on board new voluntary and paid creative opportunities both facilitating and co facilitating; participants challenge their fears and anxieties of taking part to actively engaging and finally flourishing as artists in their own right; (doing a new class) I wouldn’t have had the confidence to do that (without FA); seeing the enthusiasm of participants at the end of the project wanting to engage more in the community and pursue other opportunities, with new found confidence; (has learning new skills increased your confidence?) Yes hugely; watching participants develop not just creatively but in terms of confidence, self esteem and interpersonal skills; a participant ..now enrolled in a local creative craft group (when before they were very much socially isolated with their mental health and fearful of joining groups) and how much they enjoyed it;

Learning

Also notice the different types of art technique used; I have identified things and found an adult learning course; We saw quilts in one room, did the quilts influence anything you did? Yes definitely, was it your response or were you invited to do something specific? No we could do whatever we wanted in was our choice; I am trying to find opportunities through art where it is more constructive; go back to the museums for inspiration; you can inspire other people and pass it on; (would it help the environment? Yes I think so. It would improve it because the rooms are quite clinical; The Holborne was more private; talked a lot about skills what do you treasure most? I think the amount of different

materials used half of which I didn’t know existed; Is there anything else which has helped your confidence? I think it’s a combination of it really. Being with others as well gave you inspiration as well as learning new skills; Everyone is different though and some people might just want to come in and do their own thing; Support – I think it was about right; Materials – They were excellent. There was a lot of stuff; additional subject in fashion;

Inspiring

Given me inspiration and unlocked the creative powers. It might give inspiration to others to do art or join a FA group; It also brought colour into my work, there was one that glowed it looked like it had light behind it; I tried different materials as well, which I enjoyed and they were new to me; The FA project is an incredible inspiring project;it’s a unique opportunity that allows individuals with mental health issues to engage in art, within a highly supported and relaxed setting. The museums provide inspirational environments and collections that encourage creativity and positive cultural engagement; We saw quilts in one room (did they influence you?) yes definitely; It just evolved as the weeks went by (exhibition was a positive thing?) Yes I think so and deciding what would go in it and finishing things as well; seeing the collections was an important part of the project? Yes definitely. Because it provided inspiration? Is that right? Yes it is; (Do you have a favourite?) the Holborne. It was newer…the Holborne just felt more arty. I found it inspiring; I like more traditional art work eg landscapes and this inspired me to try to copy John Constable’s the Haywire; hearing a participant that had previously always created art in black and white..through the collection at the Holborne…they were now inspired by colour, during later sessions discovered how to create beautifully vibrant pieces of art; (inspired to..) focus on specific techniques. More working with nature as well,…painting different landscapes; almost like going back in time, as it was surrounded in different periods of history; ..nice to stay in there in that environment as that is where you got the inspiration for what you were re creating; (Would you go back to any of the museums for inspiration?) Yes I think I would….which may inspire me to do that. Also learning new skills for the screen printing; They were all different as was the atmosphere; each place was completely different to the other; I hope they wonder about this and are curious about it;

Support

It was very collaborative I think it is good to be with people. We have got to know each other It was good to feel part of a group; Being with others as well gave you inspiration; ..not only allows individuals to create art, but it also enables the creation of confidence, self-pride, wellbeing and camaraderie as a group; We wanted to come up with something as a group; A real sense of group and common goal; watching participants develop..in terms of confidence, self-esteem and interpersonal skills. It was a privilege to be part of the process knowing I had helped support the project as a whole and individuals too; (it helped me by) ..using my personal experience to support participants….supported my wellbeing…positive contribution, giving something back within my community, helped challenge my anxieties, build confidence and self-esteem as well as develop my interpersonal skills; connect with the participants; I found the social interaction really good and helped my wellbeing, as well as doing the art work; P and T were there….it is very easy to get overwhelmed with everything; C was very supportive especially to X. She was a good point of knowledge for everyone. She also knew quite a lot about the Hope Guide as well; X was friendly and sociable; Comments from participants often made my day…..made me feel valued and part of something special; I found the process (of deciding together) constructive; Shows the diversity of the group (feedback at the end); X has been good at keeping in contact afterwards; nice to still have a bit of contact afterwards; An opportunity to work with the FA worker after the 12 weeks, to assist with follow up work, helping provide information, advice and guidance (as well as encouragement) to participants around other creative and wellbeing based opportunities; I think there was within the group. We were willing to help each other; She seemed able to pick up on what we had done and add to it with different techniques; ..as well as provide support to the lead artist and other members of FA.

Environment

They were all different as was the atmosphere, each place completely different to the other; It is important to mention who has done the work, that it is part of FA; helped my wellbeing…safe environment to be in and have nothing to worry about; relaxing atmosphere; It would improve because the rooms are quite clinical (NHS spaces); deciding what would go in and finishing things as well; atmosphere – each place was completely different; it was nice to stay in that environment as that is where you got your inspiration; had never done that before and I would think about going to look at something similar. Which might inspire me; The exercise was good for me; I drove so was ok; in Bath Studios it was all together, but here it is different; gave you more of a country atmosphere; we also talked about a different subject in fashion as well; process constructive really …the next day I was amazed to see the pieces of work arranged on the wall, quite quickly, within one day; almost like going back in time, as it was surrounded in different periods of history…so you were reflecting back in history; Holborne was more private; American museum was based in the country and so gave you more of a country atmosphere; Royal Crescent was more traditional china and things; Holborne felt more arty;

Next Steps

Would think about going back to look at something similar; I just want to do more art in a similar environment to what we had at FA, ..to explore more…I am looking for opportunities; Being told by a participant they had enrolled in a local creative craft group (when before they were very much socially isolated) and how much they enjoyed it; Seeing the enthusiasm of participants at the end of the project wanting to engage more in the community and pursue other creative opportunities, with new found confidence; Have found other art groups to go to. Which is good; I go to Art-iculate every other Friday. It was posted in Sainsburys (Do you think you would have done it without FA?)No I would not have had the confidence to do that. So that’s definitely a benefit; ..not very good at doing things on my own…I just have a bag full of stuff. So I am hoping I can motivate myself to do some; My unique insight…I really feel helped me to interact and connect with the participants. I was able to be authentic… and provide genuine compassion and understanding; I have identified things and found an adult learning course in Twerton, which is teaching how to draw. Also want to try to sell some of my work…feel I need help how to present them; I liked to explore the more traditional route….focus on specific techniques…more working with nature. Painting different landscapes.

Advice to Project

Collection grows we maybe able to expand; It would improve (the environment) because most of the rooms are quite bland; think it would have been better if this had been narrowed down…to develop that specific skill; didn’t realise how big it (the exhibition) would be. I didn’t know about it when I started…I was more interested in the art work; If you start bringing in constraints then you become less expressive artistically; Initially having no structure caused me anxiety…so more structure the first few weeks would have been helpful; There is a lot to take on board and it is very easy to get overwhelmed; At times feedback was given informally; (all the art work on a table) we went and had a look at it; people did make comments; more opportunity to feedback about the project; structure and clarification of roles. Who responsible for what? What are the expectations and format of project delivery? Training in facilitation skills..to benefit volunteers. An opportunity to work with the FA worker after the 12 weeks; exhibition in other NHS spaces – It might give inspiration to other people to do art or join a FA group it is an important factor is to mention who has done it that it is part of FA; There should have been 12 but it averaged at 6. It was quite varied; the fundamentals of art could be shown as well eg how to work out proportions etc; Would have liked more structure in sessions; more time to sort out framing; opportunity to discuss the framework; I felt like I needed more direction;