Plymouth Art Club’s Courageous Stories of Mental Health Recovery

  • What difficulties or challenges do our clients face?
  • What changes do we see in the participants’ journeys?
  • What kind of art projects do we make?
  • Do you need to be good at art to come to this club?

All these questions and more are answered in a new documentary. We Tell Your Story is a documentary series funded by the Plymouth Octopus Project, culminating in a major feature that premiered at Plymouth Arts Cinema on June 17, 2024. Directed by Drew Graves, this 36-minute film is a The Hundred Hands production, dedicated to highlighting Plymouth’s vibrant community stories.

The video production spanned two years and involved numerous local creators, from filmmakers to animators. Over 70 individuals were interviewed, capturing a diverse array of stories from across Plymouth. This initiative aims to elevate the profiles of various organisations through high-quality video formats, enabling them to reach new audiences.

The segment about Mindful Art Club CIC is about eight minutes long.

Watch now to find out:

  • Why is the peer support element of the group so important?
  • Why did Si Parnham (formerly of Colebrook SW) say it’s such an “inspiring” atmosphere?
  • How one woman found art club “accidentally” through The Sunflower Women’s Centre
  • And meet the gypsy artist made homeless when a rehab closed, and yet found  a way to express his “demons”.

Watch now and let us know what you think in the comments.

Free Halloween Art Session

Art Session Replay With Printable Activity

Want an easy way to learn mindfulness?
Want to try art for self care?
Want to feel connected to others, but missed our online art session last night?

A replay of yesterday’s online art session is now available as a video, or a sound file to download and listen like a podcast while you make art.

This fifteen minute video gives you a taster of what happens at Mindful Art Club, and offers a short guided mindfulness session, and a themed mindful colouring exercise.

Here’s what people on Facebook said about it:

“Halloween special from the comfort of your own home through Zoom. What a lovely session, thank you all. My kids loved it.” – Kerry

“I really enjoyed tonight’s session. Thanks very much. Lovely to see some familiar faces and meet some new people.” – Linda

“Thank you so much for bringing back mindful art online. I’m going through a lot at the moment and would have spent tonight in tears if it wasn’t for you guys, but instead did something productive and calming.” – Becky

“Thank you Peggy and Emma for being back online!” – Debby

The Halloween replay and printables are only available until 31st October, so sign up now!

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If you want to join us next month there is no art experience required! Friendly and informal. Just grab a coffee and join in. Last Tuesday of the month 7.00pm – 8.00pm

Early bird tickets are available at just £5.00, until seven days before the event. After that the full price is £6.50. So don’t miss out!

Book now for our Online Mindful Art Club

We look forward to seeing you next month.

Peggy and Emma

PS. Share your finished Halloween colouring pages in our Mindful Art Club Facebook group. We’d love to see what you do.

[Video] Mindful Art at Ocean Studios

After winning a competition to receive a year’s business support from The Real Ideas Organisation we have now run hundreds of mindful art sessions, many of them at Ocean Studios in Royal William Yard. Watch now to find out:

  • Why we started this social enterprise
  • What happens at a typical mindful art session
  • See the stunning waterside venue at Ocean Studios
  • Hear from Lee Squires the benefits of volunteering
  • What is mindful drawing

Try mindful drawing at home: Sign up for free colouring pages and zen doodling activity sheets.

One Year Since First Lockdown

It’s now one year since the first coronavirus lockdown. This Facebook Live was our first attempt at offering our creative mental health sessions online. We hadn’t yet learned to use Zoom! Since then we have continued to support mental health and combat social isolation with socially distant groups, outdoor retreats and online sessions. There is a rich archive of 45 videos on our Facebook page if you want to try mindful art at home, for free, at any time. We offer creativity and company to anyone struggling in the Plymouth area, in Devon, in these difficult times.

In this video Peggy reads out live comments from people reacting to their very first day in UK lockdown, and viewers share different experiences of their first socially distanced Mothers Day.

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How to Share With Just Friends

How to share with just friends.

Posted by Facebook on Friday, December 5, 2014

How We Started Offering Immediate Mental Health Support, Without Any Waiting Lists

When Emma and Peggy suddenly lost the jobs they loved, they started a business on a shoestring, to offer mindful art groups, support mental health and tackle social isolation in the Plymouth area.

Mental health services were already overstretched and the pandemic has made that even worse. Mindful Art Club gives people a way to access help and support immediately, without a waiting list, and without finances being a barrier to access.

Emma and I are helping to create a world where peer support, mindfulness, creative activities, and social connection is more easily available in local communities. 

Peggy Melmoth

Watch Now:

If you’ve ever felt stressed, anxious or depressed, we have a free downloadable mindful colouring bundle with zen doodling exercises for you. Just enter your email now to receive our colouring bundle today, and we will write to you monthly to let you know about our latest free and low-cost events in the Plymouth area.

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How to Make Zentangles

Zentangle artwork by Cara H.

Zentangles® are a kind of meditative drawing; creating abstract, repetitive patterns, without worrying what the patterns look like. This process slows down the breathing, calms the mind, and helps you to focus on the present moment. It’s a therapeutic way of drawing that offers peace of mind, and is accessible to all.

The method was created in 2003 by an American couple called Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas. You can find out more about them at www.zentangle.com The Zentangle teaching materials and tools are covered by copyright and “Zentangle” is a registered trademark of Zentangle, Inc.

  • You will need a piece of plain A4 paper and a black pen.
  • Draw six boxes to put your Zentangles into.
  • Inside the first box, draw a line to make a “string.” The string separates your square into sections, in which you draw your tangles. A string can be any shape.
  • Take your pen for a walk, and draw random patterns inside the shapes. Try shading different areas.
  • On an A4 page you might have six different boxes full of Zentangles.

There are eight steps in the original Zentangle method, which you can read about on their website.

What is a Zentangle and why would you draw one? Watch Emma explain here:

Watch Peggy draw Zentangles here:

https://www.facebook.com/MindfulArtClub/videos/660535961437055/

Join in with the Facebook Live session here:

https://www.facebook.com/MindfulArtClub/videos/196899558173904/

Skip to 25 minutes in to watch the part about Zentangles.

Alternatively, instead of drawing in squares, you could incorporate zentangle style patterns into your own drawing, as with the example above created by Cara H, a client at one of our weekly groups.

Now we’d love to hear from you. Have you tried drawing zentangles? How does it make you feel? Leave us a comment below.

How To Do Art Club When You Don’t Really Want To Go Out

  • Were you thinking of trying mindfulness?
  • Does your anxiety prevent you from coming to our groups?
  • Would you like to feel a little bit calmer and happier?

Here are three ways to try mindful art club, without even getting out of bed!

1) Listen to our free 15 minute recording.

This 15 minute mindfulness recording guides you to bring your attention to experiences happening in the present moment, without judgement. For best results, choose a place where you will not be disturbed, listen with headphones and close your eyes. 

Listen Now: Mindful Body Scan

2) Watch a Mindful Art Club Video

If you’re short of time watch one of our quick YouTube videos and join in with a simple art project.

If you have an hour to spare, join in with one of our online classes. They are all recorded to Facebook in an archive of videos. Each recording includes a guided mindfulness session and instructions for a simple art project that you can do at home with felt tip pens and plain paper. Art Club Catch-Up TV. It’s like being at Mindful Art Club, but without leaving your house! (You could even stay in your pyjamas!)

3) Try Mindful Colouring

I know, I know. When I first heard of “adult colouring books” I thought it sounded like a ridiculous idea! But it’s amazing how the simple act of colouring can calm the mind down. I have designed a few mindful art colouring pages around the theme of “I am enough” using a little egg character that I created. His caption is, “I am an oeuf.” (Oeuf is French for egg.) The oeuf character makes me smile. Grab your free colouring pages by signing up to our mailing list, and then we’ll write to you monthly to let you know about our latest free and low-cost events, videos and mindfulness recordings. (You can unsubscribe at any time.)

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How to Feel Connected in the Age of Social Distance

Would you like to socialise without even leaving your home?

Want to try mindfulness, but have no motivation to practice it alone?

Are you kind of creative, but don’t take art too seriously?

It sounds like you’d love our online art group!

Watch this short video to find out how we are responding to COVID-19, how to join us online, how did we meet, and why did we start an art club?

We interviewed ourselves in April 2020 to discuss how COVID-19 has affected our clients and how we can move forward with life after lockdown.

Watch Now:

Join us for a Facebook Live every Monday at 10am.

Now we’d love to hear your thoughts. How can we best support you? Go to https://tinyurl.com/MAC-feedback now and let us know.

[Video] New: Outdoor Art Group

Our new outdoor art group makes mindfulness more fun. We usually like to offer coffee, creativity and company, but for this group you will have to bring your own coffee! (Or tea.) Please also bring your own felt tip pens and paper, as we can’t share materials due to COVID19. The group meets at 10am on Wednesdays in Plympton St Maurice. Message us to book your place.

  • Isolated?
  • Anxious?
  • Stressed?

Watch now to find out how mindful art club can change all of that!

Now we’d like to hear from you. Do you have any questions about our new way of working outside? Leave us a comment below.