A new Dementia Arts group

Oh I have been busy recently.  From the initial funding and group set East Durham Creates of Silk Painting for people and carers of dementia, additional funding has been found to continue the group which we are now calling Making Art Time.  I say funding was ‘found’ but it is never as simple as that is it, Nicola from The Barn at Easington has been the most wonderful advocate for our group and she sourced the funding for us.  Her hands on approach to art is amazing and addictive and we have been immersing ourselves in creating from nature.   With walking in the Dene (woods) collecting leaves, berries and anything that takes our eye, reading poetry whilst sitting on fallen trees, we have embraced natures peace in our dementia journey.  

For me it’s quite spiritual being in a wood in autumn when the leaves are a mass of reds, golden with a variety of browns and greens.  There is a wonderful silence that you can only experience in a wood or forest, with occasional natural sounds of cracking, shuffling and a bird or two singing.

One day we created shapes and pattens on the floor of the wood amongst the trees using moss, logs and leaves; skewered coloured fallen leaves on broken twigs and hung them amongst the brown branches.  

It felt like being a child again.

In January our group is creating a wall banner of mixed media, representative of the group.  

The most important thing is that I love going to this group.  It is not noisy in the sense that it could be overwhelming.  We talk, laugh, exchange thoughts, ideas and most of all we understand each other.  It is comfortable to be amongst company who may need to ask what day it is, or what we did last week, or who is picking us up.   

 

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