TAKE ONE

This is my last block of Creative Kin.

Creative Kin Moray began back in November 2017. Since then we’ve done 15 2-hour sessions – that’s a total of 30 hours with 12 diverse families and 7 additional artists from an array of disciplines.

The project has achieved so much in this time – the opportunity to work with families rather than individuals; the chance to work on a long term project with these families and to give them the space to meet other people, and to make lifelong friends. We now have four final sessions to pull together everything we’ve done over the last year and celebrate what we’ve achieved in a glorious, memorable and life-enhancing way (no pressure…)

One of the aspirations I had for each block that I feel we have not fully achieved, was about making something together, of shared ownership and to create something we can be proud of.

I’ve been trying to achieve this with a number of different mediums: music, craft, puppetry, even horticulture to name but a few. Each one of these sessions has been satisfying in its own way. The focus on the process has been the main concern and having this approach has created sessions that have been creative in the truest form of the word.  We don’t use templates or encourage recreations – we use materials that are as accessible to participants whatever their age.  Many of these creations have not lasted the distance; the glue covered sock puppet, the woodland dens made from moss and twigs, the ‘foodland’ creatures that were scoffed throughout the session with not a crumb or a grape remaining.

That’s okay though.  I know they will appear again; be it in the family’s own homes when they recreate the activity or when they tell stories to others about what they’ve done in their Creative Kin sessions.

However, by the end of Creative Kin I would really like us to make something collectively.  Something that is lasting, that challenges and surprises the group in the quality of what they’ve created and achieved. Something they want to show off to other people in their lives.  To share, be proud of and treasure beyond the project.

So, my genius idea for this block?! We’re going to make a film.  I don’t know what kind of film yet – that will be up to the group.  We’ll work with Moray based Film Artist, Jason Sinclair, to create something of which we can all be proud. I know that the Moray Creative Kin group will embrace this idea with both arms (and possibly both
legs) and take on whatever challenge I throw at them.

Wish us luck and see you in Cannes…