As part of a month of art therapy activities residents at Tallington Lodge have been recreating famous works of art and iconic photographs.
Art therapy can reduce feelings of anxiety, depression and stress. Studies have shown that older people who participate in creative arts experienced lower levels of depression and loneliness and were more positive in general.
Art therapy activities at Tallington Lodge this month have included drawing and painting, collage and photography.
“We have many talented residents in our care homes” declared Home Manager at Tallington Lodge, Manju Panankavil. “This is a wonderful opportunity to share their creations and give people a sense of purpose. Everyone has enjoyed taking part in the activities this month, they’ve had great fun trying new techniques and styles.”
Residents started off by studying some famous paintings and decided to recreate the artwork with things they had to hand around our home.
Then the residents searched their home for props and costumes to recreate the artwork. They had great fun posing, dressing up and discussing the original artworks.
Wellbeing Coordinator, Chantal De Vries, described how she engaged the residents throughout the project, “It took a lot of planning and preparation to achieve the best results. We made a lot of mess, but we had so much fun along the way, it was definitely worth it! We had fun exploring colour and art too."
Activities included looking at primary colours and the colours created when you mix them.
They explored the theory of colour further by using a prism to visually demonstrate that white light is composed of seven different colours.
With Chantal's guidance they created their own art using album and magazine covers for inspiration. The residents chose a diverse range of paintings to recreate, from surrealist artists to photographers.
Chantal expressed her delight in the outcomes of the project "We had so much fun creating the images and learnt a lot about colour, different styles and techniques. The residents were eager to try new things and explore the many dimensions of art.” she explained.
One of my favourite activities from this project is the recreation of still life images.
Whereby residents help to set up the objects as seen by the artist, using a piece of artwork as their guide.
Such as in this example using Paul Cezanne's still life painting.
Almost like art in reverse, but art all the same, and very accessible, even for those who don't consider themselves to be creative.
The results of the residents’ artistic activities were shared on the Tallington Lodge Facebook page for their families and friends to enjoy.
The artwork created by residents will feature in the Country Court 2022 calendar. Care Homes from the Country Court group will be submitting their resident’s artwork and the best twelve pieces will be chosen to feature in the calendar.
For more information about life at Tallington Lodge Care Home, contact Customer Relations
Advisor Heidi Kerr on 01780 740314 or email heidi.kerr@countrycourtcare.com.
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