Dwell Time Monday @ Paddock

Dwell Time ran a workshop for Kirklees Words In Mind’s Bibliotherapy Paddock group and the three following poems were submitted:

Dwell Time Monday @ Paddock

Last week we remembered, remembered the fifth
A penny for Guy Fawkes but not for thrift
A Bonfire Night Poem with some blanks it would seem,
A task for the group that leads on to today’s theme.

So this afternoon @Paddock when you came in you may have saw,
A lady from Dwell Time by the name of Alice Bradshaw,
After conversations earlier this year, Elaine has kindly arranged this,
A creative writing session, we hope you will find pure bliss.

I’m certainly no expert and I’m sure Alice will explain,
That Dwell Time is a publication for mental wellbeing,
Issue two will be published in Spring twenty-twenty next year,
And the deadline for submissions is the very end of the year.

So it’s time to pass over and let Alice explain
What we’ll be doing this afternoon with our time,
I really hope you all enjoy this special one of lesson,
And proof of the pudding will be the writing from today’s session.

– David Flint, 10 November 2019

 

Untitled

Human functionality embraces the mental and physical.
Satisfactory functions are influences positively and negatively by emotional experience which in turn may affect our behaviour.
We all are likely to have different perspectives of what is enjoyable.
Sport for example may compete with literature.
A well rounded personality is dependent on a balanced outlook and lifestyle.
Activities will vary from one to another.
One the one hand a keen sports person, on the other a serious academic.
One’s acceptance in society is usually influences by other people’s perspective of one’s worth.
The aforementioned balance has great influence on one’s ability to cope with life’s problems.
What one considers normal may seriously differ from someone else’s perception of normal.

Good health should be everyone’s aim.
Shortfall can be countered by change in diet and habits.
Safety and wellbeing are largely dependent on self care.
Do not lose hope that change can be made.
A positive mental attitude is a tremendous prop.
Never doubt one’s ability.
Failure is not necessarily the end. Consider Edison.
Social interaction can be beneficial to good health.
Learn from your experiences.
Life is not stereotypical.
Changes are always possible.
Illness is not always avoidable but strive to obtain the best treatment when it occurs.

– R. B. Fisher (Bob)

 

Untitled

More often these days I find happiness
Surging through my reality
In a life once dominated with sadness
Disorder and lack of inclusion
In which I though I’d never work again

I looked at nature through a window or screen
I lost my value in myself
I lost all value in life
The cause of this was ill health and disability
Both mentally and physically

But then through culture
Art, photography, poetry, curating
I found in myself my true essence waiting
I found I could care for me, and an eagerness
To rebuild my life.

I found that I was blessed
To have creative zeal within myself
Once more to set it free
And explore this intrinsic part of me.

 

Stanley Iyanu – Rose (2019)

Rose

A rose is still a rose even if it grows through the cracks and through the dirt. Its roots creeping deep down
Pushing through and persevering.
Up top, its flowers such bright beauty coil into a bulbous shape.
It’s hard to be a rose in darkness
It’s hard to be bright when so many try to dim your light
But a rose is still a rose even through its suffering
The ants and pesticides dig deep, aulacapsis and weevils on its leaves. Chemicals in the air
A rose can bloom in sun and shine
Smelling so sweet
This rose is still alive, still thriving, still here
A rose is still a rose even when nobody’s here
Its presence attracts these bees around flashing its wings at it, staying to sip then flying away.
A rose is still a rose because it has meaning, despite its troubles and what anyone else says
It’s still beautiful.

Written by Stanley Iyanu
Instagram: Stanley_Writes
Twitter: WritesStanley

Helly Fletcher – Unravelled (2019)

My work uses the language of thread to illustrate the experience of internal disintegration and the fragility of existence. The delicacy of the stitch is often in stark contrast with the themes portrayed in the images. The viewer is invited into the privacy of ‘behind closed doors’ events not normally discussed in public but experienced by many people.

www.hellyfletcher.co.uk

Valeriya Vakutina – Empty Forever (2019)

@a_priori_creativity
Valeriyavakutina.com

David W Westwood – In the closet 1984. Crime of Diversity 1885 and An adventure begins (2019)

“I am a self taught artist. As a mentally disabled person (OCD, Anxiety and Depression) I paint what I feel about what I see, rather then just what I see. My paintings aren’t created to be pretty but they tell a story instead. I work in oil paints and mixed media. I began painting in 2013 when a long term relationship came to an end. My then partner (Peter) found someone else and I was left lonely. My painting has been my lifeline or raft. As a gay person I have created several hard hitting works on the subject of LGBTQ but it does not stop there. I have challenged religion, politics and other controversial issues. Like all artist exposure is my main aim. Painting is great but pointless without an audience.”

Susan Plover – End of the Line? (2019)

The narrative of the composition is an open question surrounding a journey through life. I have produced a mixed media collage using found visual fragments juxtaposed to make the viewer examine the possible multi layer readings of the piece. The title “End of the Line,” is a deliberate question using a railway term to open a dialogue. I want this piece to convey optimism against a backdrop of potential loss of self. To that end I was delighted to source and include an image of a Lost and found box,found being a positive message! The piece is hand finished with charcoal.

www.susanplover.com

Lieske Weenink – Patients (2019)

A waiting room setting is trapped in time inside a glass fronted box.
Accompanying this, a looped sound recording plays, which was recorded from a waiting room which I sat in with my father.

My practice currently focuses upon the themes of human relationships, health, psychological boundaries, and time. I explore these concepts through a mixture of both film, sound, sculpture and installation which express topics which are often left un-spoken. This is due to my own personal circumstance of my father being diagnosed with a rare blood cancer. This unfortunate experience has become a pivotal moment both within my life and my artistic practice. Making art has become increasingly therapeutic for me, in coming to terms with having a seriously unwell parent.

This overall subject matter has also interested me in the boundaries of private and public spaces; in particular, how illness blurs these boundaries. I have become fascinated with hospital waiting rooms and the etiquette we follow when we enter these spaces, including how these impersonal spaces enclose individuals with vast complex personal circumstances. The constant activity within a hospital waiting room environment contradicts the isolation felt by individuals waiting for treatment. By making artworks with materials which have metaphorical connections attached allows me to allude to these emotional and physical situations which can affect us all, making the viewer aware of their own vulnerability.

https://www.instagram.com/lieskk_art/