Community arts organisation B arts is working with groups supporting vulnerable people to create an exhibition around the theme of recovery, particularly from mental ill health.
The Atlas to Recovery exhibition takes place at their venue on Hartshill Road in Stoke-on-Trent, opening on Saturday 1 April and running until Thursday 6 April.
Founded in 1985, B arts produce “high quality arts experiences with people from many different backgrounds who would not normally engage with the arts”. Their aim is to create opportunities for people to take part in arts-based activities that help them to “make change for the better in themselves, their place, and their communities”.
Atlas to Recovery will be created by professional artists and facilitators working with members of The Social Agency, ASHA, Changes, and Growthpoint, with input provided by the B-Arts advisory group and their volunteer performers. Members of the partner groups will work with facilitators to create works based on the medieval Mappa Mundi telling their stories of recovery with the use of images, video, music and other related media.
Artistic director of B arts Susan Clarke said the project was “a fantastic opportunity for our artists to continue to put the lived experience of our participants at the centre of the work”, adding that in these current difficult times “we can all benefit from listening to people who continue to recover from trauma and stress every day”.
A member of Growthpoint, who has been taking part in creating work for the exhibition, said: “The process of recovery from mental ill health is different for everyone. The Mappa Mundi is a great way to show this because it is less about a realistic representation of a particular landscape, but more about a way of communicating ideas, stories, and beliefs”.
The Bread in Common ‘no waste’ café, operated by B arts at the Hartshill Road venue, will be open during the exhibition offering drinks and snacks.
There will also be an open mic night for local musicians and poets between 6-7pm on Monday-Thursday evenings during the exhibition.
Atlas to Recovery is funded by Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s Culture and Events Project Grants. For further information about the exhibition and venue contact Kath Stanway by phone on 07544814720 and email at kath.stanway@b-arts.org.uk. B arts is based at 72 Hartshill Road, Stoke-on-Trent, ST4 7RB.
B arts is an Arts Council England NPO and is supported by a range of trusts, organisations, partners and funders including The Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, The Paul Hamlyn Foundation, and the Tudor Trust.
Logo by Andrea Joseph and used with permission from Kath Stanway from B-Arts
