Drawing Connections …at the edges:

Arts in Prison

How has Lockdown made you feel?

Have you been missing family? Green spaces? Visiting friends? Work? The things that perhaps bring you most comfort, a hug?

Is the thought of going back into society overwhelming? Does it make you anxious?

“This is an important time for us to learn together, to see the world with fresh eyes – especially now, as people are experiencing and seeing things from new perspectives. Creativity enables us to do just that. It’s about observing, watching and really seeing, making sense of the world as you see it, especially in changing times. Whether through doodling, collage, clay, creative writing, painting, soap carving, matchstick modelling… Whatever works for you. Share your perspectives with the world, especially at this time. 

We may have our differences, but there are more things we share in common. As we have seen during the COVID-19 situation it is really important for us to work together and recognise that in supporting each other we have more chance of succeeding personally and collectively; making things healthier, both physically and mentally for ourselves and others is so important. This is true of everyone in our society, both those seen and unseen.

The Irish poet Pádraig Ó Tuama articulates our need to build relationships with one another across differences this way: “We need ways of navigating our differences that deepen our curiosity, deepen our friendship, deepen our capacity to disagree, deepen the argument of being alive. This is what we need. This is what will save us. This is the work of peace. This is the work of imagination.”