On Monday I joined Peace of Green‘s Wellness in Nature group at Belgrave Hall gardens in Leicester. I’m artist in residence with the group over the next year as part of my Cultures of Care project. Once a month I’ll spend a few hours with the group, observing and chatting to people, running activities and working with the participants to develop some kind of artwork or project over the next 12 months. What we will do is deliberately open-ended so I will respond to the group and their interests rather than deciding at the start what I want to do. The point of an artist residency for me is to be embedded in the group or organisation and really respond to it the people and the place without fixed ideas of what they want or need. I’m interested in looking at how access to natural spaces cares for us and how engaging with nature in a creative and safe way enables and encourages us to care for natural places. Alongside the sessions I’ll be attending once a month, I’m also doing my own research into related things like access to safe and semi-private green spaces in Leicestershire, about the positive impact that being outside in green spaces has on our creativity and memory as well as our physical and emotional health. I’m also thinking about the impact of learning about plants and observing green and wild spaces more closely – building on my Blossom & Thorn project where several participants said how much they enjoyed seeing hedges differently through my project. If engaging with natural spaces and exploring alongside me appeals, I’ve got an artist walk on Thursday 17th August starting from near my home / studio in Loughborough. Find out more about the walk here. You can also see Blossom & Thorn in my Material Evidence exhibition 2-20 August.
Ruth Singer 
Let me know what you think