Arts & Older People: Exploring the Value of Creative Expression
By Laura Menzies, 2021
Fellow’s Profile
Fellow’s Profile
Arts and older people: exploring the value of creative expression
Improving care for the elderly through multidisciplinary community arts programmes
2015
South West
I am a self-employed visual artist based in Cornwall. I organise and run community art projects in a range of settings, which help to improve individual health and wellbeing.
In 2015, I travelled to the USA to research creative ageing and visited a number of organisations across the country who work with older people in various ways. The aim of my research was to understand what made the work they were doing successful and how I could implement what I had learnt into my own work on my return. I was particularly interested in intergenerational projects, those that brought people of different ages together to support and learn from each other.
Since completing my Fellowship, I have collaborated with Falmouth Art Gallery to develop workshops and resources aimed at an older audience. I have created four sensory resources boxes that relate to the gallery's collection, which help to bring it to life through images, objects and prompts. These boxes can be used in the gallery but also out in the community, for those who might find it hard to physically reach the gallery. I have also worked closely with several Memory Cafes in the area.
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All Reports are copyright © the author. The moral right of the author has been asserted. The views and opinions expressed by any Fellow are those of the Fellow and not of the Churchill Fellowship or its partners, which have no responsibility or liability for any part of them.