COMMUNITY PROJECTS

At WAC we feel strongly that art and culture are binding forces for communities. For several years we have welcomed collaborations with charities that share our aims, particularly those that support wellbeing and mental health. Below are our partner charities for WAC 2023.  Groups and individuals from these charities have produced artwork for WAC ’23 which is now bring show in our exhibition at Wells Cathedral.

Follow the projects on Instagram @waccommunity !

Creativity Works, Radstock, Somerset.

“Putting wellbeing at the heart of all we do, we work with professional artists and wellbeing specialists to run creative courses and activities aimed at those facing difficulties in their lives, or simply in need of some inspiration.”

We present: ‘Archway of Hope’ by Thursday Threads, supported by Creativity Works and Samantha Hickman

Thursday Threads is an informal sewing group with a focus on creating for wellbeing through textiles. They have made a collective cloth, creatively stitched in their individual styles, to communicate the myriad of ways in which the group supports them. They invite you to celebrate their group by helping to create a rag rainbow by tying coloured strips of fabric to the archway.

Heads up, Wells, Somerset.

“We provide activity-based learning and development workshops. We work with adults experiencing mental ill health and dementia, as well as those with learning and physical disabilities.”

We present: ‘Welcome to the Brown Moth café’ by ‘Heads Up’, alongside local artists Jade Ogden & Sally Dempsey.

Organic calico, St Cuthbert’s Mill paper, tea dyes/stains, natural inks, clay, wool, teabags. Artwork created by participants at Heads Up.

Outside In, Brighton.

“Outside In provides a platform for artists who encounter significant barriers to the art world due to health, disability, social circumstance, or isolation.”

We present: ‘The Sprinter- Gold Run Remix 2012’: James Lake, artist (from the private collection of Outside In)

Ready and waiting in the starting blocks.

Representing the Paralympic journey this sculpture starts as one piece of card, stretching from feet to head. As the card travels forwards, the head becomes the most detailed and focused part. The back of the sculpture has a grid-like structure with gold leaf panels representing the desire to succeed against the categorisation of imposed definitions.

The Lawrence Centre, Wells, Somerset.

“The Lawrence Centre is a community-centred charity providing day opportunities for older people, including those living with health issues and memory loss.”

We present: ‘Jars of Joy’:by The Lawrence Centre and local schools, curated by Rev’d Gill Sakini.

This is a creative collaboration in community. In the nitty gritty of papier-mâché, paint, and glue old and young hands join to make together. The pots speak of gratitude and joy for the uniqueness of all people: shape size, colour, gender, gifts, nationality, story, and age.

We are clay in the potter’s hands, fragile yet functional, and re-moulded to incorporate life’s knocks, disappointments, and chips. We are becoming something beautiful…