The Kirklees College Creative Industries are collaborating with Globe Arts to promote positive mental health and wellbeing as part of the Kirklees Council Creative Minds Project.
Globe Arts Studio has been awarded Creative Minds NHS funding to help tackle the negative impact that the coronavirus pandemic has had on individual’s wellbeing and mental health. The project aims to engage people who are suffering from loneliness, low confidence and loss by providing them with a positive creative outlet.
Jonathan Salmon, Technician for Creative Industries and Art Lecturer, is leading the project for Kirklees College with the help of Zoe Gale, Creative Industries Alumni and Globe Arts Tutor and Jackie Harrowsmith, Creative Director of Globe Arts.
Tapping into the benefits of the outdoors on mental health, ‘A Journey Through Nature’ is a visual arts project which will support participants wellbeing and actively encourage mindfulness through creative activity. In partnership with the college’s Wellbeing Wednesday initiative, the project is open to teaching staff, adult learners and vulnerable young people, as well as the wider Kirklees community.
Those taking part in the project will be delivered Art Kits and have access to 10 ‘live’ online art sessions and 10 YouTube ‘How To’ videos. The project will encourage the submission of artwork to an online gallery and offer the opportunity for group discussion through online forums and social media.
As restrictions are lifted, small groups will be able to meet at the Globe Arts Studio and Globe Gallery to socialise with their new online friends. The meeting space will also be made available for the network as an ongoing resource to sustain positive wellbeing and encourage further exploration of visual arts activities, including the Kirklees College Adult Learning programme.