'Grow at home'

‘Grow at Home’ Companion Grant project

Earlier this summer I was finally able to deliver an ecotherapy project that had been delayed by Covid. The Guild generously awarded me a Companion Grant to work with St Nick’s Fields nature reserve in York. We planned a Ruskin-based course for vulnerable adults as part of the Ecotherapy sessions that are offered at St Nick’s.  We wanted to build on a relationship that started to develop during the 2019 exhibition at York Art Gallery, ‘Ruskin, Turner & the Storm Cloud’ – when several groups had visited the displays and heard about Ruskin’s concern for nature and close looking.  

The course ran for 9 weeks from May to July 2022, and the Grant paid for two art and writing facilitators, as well as contributing to the costs incurred for using the Environment Centre. St Nick’s Fields is a rewilded natural space close to York city centre and some of the more deprived areas of housing.  Until the late 20th century, it was a landfill site. But in the last 25 years, it has become a wildlife-rich environment which is well used by local walkers, cyclists and families. 

The ’Grow at Home’ course brought up to 10 participants into the Environment Centre each week, in a safe space, where they were able to share their creativity, while receiving mentoring. We had 80% new participants and I have since heard that half the group have continued to join in events at the Centre. St Nicks found extra funds to support a BSL translator, so that one potential participant could access the course. (This is something to consider for future workshops.)

The sessions were held outside, so we could take time to sit in the green spaces and draw, or consider the flowers, small creatures and birds, while we worked on writing prompts. Each person was given a small notebook for sketches or snippets of poetry. During the early weeks, we planted ‘fruitful’ plants, like strawberries and sunflowers. I also arranged a visit to meet Helen Walsh, Curator of Ceramics at York Art Gallery. The group were able to handle and discuss pottery, its uses and decoration (and think about plant pots). Companion Peter Miller was able to join this visit, to help to strengthen the links between St Nick’s, York Art Gallery and the Guild. For another session, we spent time with the head gardener for York Museums Trust – he talked to us about the Edible Garden, we visited the Gothic ruins of St Mary’s Abbey and made cyanotypes in the sunshine, using seed heads and feathers.  The dramatic and beautiful contact prints really delighted all the participants and facilitators too. 

I brought Ruskin to the group, by showing examples of his drawings; talking about his love of small natural details (encouraged by his upbringing) which he described in Praeterita or Proserpina; offering guided readings and historical context. I encouraged the group to think about the potential poetry in the names of Apple varieties, including those planted at Brantwood. We looked at copies of watercolours by Ruskin’s friend, Burne-Jones, based on flower names like ‘Meadow Sweet’. We thought about lifecycles and aging, the very small and the very large, mental health problems, clouds, nests and creativity. All the participants, and the team at St Nick’s, were open to learning about Ruskin’s holistic approach. For many in the group, this was the first time they had encountered his work, and it led them to look for his books in local libraries, to attend talks and to build relationships with the other participants. I hope that the connections can continue. I have recently become a Trustee for St Nick’s Fields, so I will try to make this happen. I certainly learnt a great deal about myself, and as Peter Burmam said in his talk at the AGM, the possibilities of ‘the engaged and valued soul’.