Brightsparks

Informally run for 7 years, BrightSparks is now a fully constituted arts in mental health group. It’s central principle is to use the arts to promote positive images of mental health; social inclusion; service user and carer involvement. It exists to acknowledge, support and showcase the creative talent that exists within the mental health community through an expanding portfolio of creative projects. These include: The BrightSparks Annual Showcase, The Brighter Side and ArtSpace.

BrightSparks Annual Showcase.

BrightSparks began with The BrightSparks Art Exhibition and The BrightSparks Guildhall Show. These are still our longest running projects. They are programmed to coincide with World Mental Health Day and take place at the Leicester City Gallery and The Guild Hall, respectively. The annual showcase events are always oversubscribed and the audiences widely attended. Many BrightSparks artists have since gone on to develop successful careers in the arts.

ArtSpace.

ArtSpace provides studio space and professional facilitation for artists experiencing mental health and social exclusion issues. It came about as a result of steadily mounting demand for BrightSparks to develop a regular group, where the people who contributed work to our annual shows could come to socialize and develop their practice with support.

We have now been running for a year and meet every week on a Wednesday afternoon, 1-3pm. Sessions take place at Access Arts, 60 Northgate Street, Leicester.

In addition to workshops and studio space, ArtSpace also stages events and touring exhibitions throughout the year.

The Brighter Side.

The Brighter Side is a performance poetry based project, working with identified statutory and voluntary sector services. Ideally, each project consists of a series of performance poetry workshops (facilitated by reformed psychiatric nurse and performance poet Rob Gee) and a series of illustration workshops (facilitated by me!). The workshops result in a high profile performance of all the work generated, usually at a mainstream venue. We also produce an accompanying illustrated journal of work.

The Brighter Side has worked with volutary sector service REMIT. The projects final show attracted an audience of over 230 to Leicester’s Phoenix Arts. Later the same year we attracted a similar audience for our World Mental Health Day Brighter Side, also held at Phoenix Arts

We are currently working with Amber Valley and Nottingham to develop an adapted 3 cities version of this project.

BrightSparks Who’s Who.

Treasurer: Tim Sayers is the Creative Arts Coordinator (job share) for LPT. He is a Community Psychiatric Nurse, founder of BrightSparks and the holder of an LPT Celebration of Achievement Award. As well as being lead singer for Bombdogs, he can ride a uni-cycle and do workshops. Though not at the same time

Chair: Lydia Towsey job shares the role of Creative Arts Coordinator for LPT with Tim. In 2005 she won a NIMHE award for best practice in the category of Arts and Mental Health. She is a professional freelance poet, headlining at venues across the UK and widely published in a variety of small press publications. She has project managed and workshop led on a number of Arts Council England, Leicester City Libraries and NHS funded arts in mental health projects.

Secretary: Janet Blow is a registered accountant. She’s very nice.