CoolFruit spring 2015: Hope edition

The CoolTan Arts Review March 2015 INSIDE: Events Reviews Exhibitions Insight Poetry Recipes ... and more!

HOPE

© 2015 All Right Reserved CoolFruit Magazine was produced by volunteers at CoolTan Arts in workshops led by Annie Spinster

Written & Edited by:

Afey Yacob Ann Fenn Annie Spinster Carmen Martinez Lopez Caroline Sparrey Gregory Baldeo Singh

Layout & Design:

Afey Yacob, Carmen Martinez Lopez, Caroline Sparrey, Gregory Baldeo Singh and Lucienne Silva

Cover Image:

Giovanni Clinkett - New Beginnings; 2015; mixed media

Jenny Bone Lillian Nalumansi Linda Newman Lucienne Silva Moni Onojeruo

With Contributions by:

Aaron Pilgrim Antiqu’e Howard Luke Joseph Rowan Laura Dyer Peter Cox Rita Unger Sunil Chauhan T.I.N.A.

We would love to hear your views and thoughts on what is in this magazine.

Do you have any great photos or stories from Southwark’s Latin American culture?

What are your favourite tunes that fill you with hope? Have you been affected by London’s housing crisis? Maybe you have a poem, recipe or piece of art you would like to share with us.

Please send all letters and submissions to cooltanmagazine@gmail.com and we will include as many as we can.

With thanks to The Maudsley Charity and Capital Volunteering Legacy Fund for supporting this project.

The CoolTan Arts Review

Welcome ... to CoolFruit’s issue for Spring- our favourite season filled with the promise of lighter, brighter, longer days. Just as Spring signifies nature’s rebirth, we have chosen Hope as our theme for this issue, packed with new starts and fresh beginnings.

Our reporters have been busy gathering information for some fascinating reads and stories of personal triumph. Ann Fenn writes about how journalist and author Rachel Kelly discovered poetry as a route to wellbeing, Caroline Sparrey reveals how she overcame selective mutism, a phobia of talking.

On another track, Annie Spinster visits the people who are fighting back against London’s housing crisis, while Carmen Martinez discovers the colourful and thoughtful culture of South Americans living in Southwark. Meanwhile, CoolTan artists display their work from our exhibition, 21st Century Women.

Catching that time-of-year urge to clear out and refresh, we explore how to spring clean our lives with CoolTan’s innovative Wellbeing Service. We also enjoy Sunil Chauhan’s selection of Songs for Hope and finally, a lighthearted touch as we follow Lucienne Silva’s guide to drawing a springtime bunny while munching on the irresistible Sweet Treats devised by our Cookery Club.

Contents Healing Words at CoolTan

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Poetry: Peter Cox

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Artist’s Profile: Daniela Pirlea

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CoolTan @ Affordable Art Fair

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Short Story: Spring Cleaning

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Poetry: Rita Unger

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Home Truths

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Poetry: Howard Luke & Antiqu’e

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Exhibition: 21st Century Women 28 Recipes: Sweet Treats

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Breaking the Silence

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Poetry and Artwork: Laura Dyer

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Wellbeing At Your Service

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Artist’s Profile: Marjorie McLean 45 Funny Bunny

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Latinos en Southwark

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Artwork: T.I.N.A.

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Songs for Hope

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CoolTrade

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Get Involved 62

Hope you have a lovely Spring.

Enjoy!

m a e T t i u r F The Cool

The opinions in this magazine are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of CoolTan Arts as a charity.

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Healing Words at CoolTan Ann Fenn learns how Rachel Kelly discovered poetry as a road to recovery from depression

On January 21st, as part of Peace Day celebrations, CoolTan hosted a talk by author Rachel Kelly, whose recently published book, Black Rainbow was a Sunday Times bestseller and recently won the prize for Best First Book at the 2014 Spear’s Book Award.

Rachel is also a journalist, workshop leader and ambassador for the mental health charity SANE. A large and attentive audience, including members of CoolTan’s Poetry and Creative Writing groups, gathered in the gallery to hear Rachel talk about her book which tells the story of how she used the power of poetry to overcome depression and then used her experience to help others.

‘There is something healing and consoling in poetry’ she told us. ‘I want to share the strategy of using poetry that I have found.’

She told us her experience of mental distress and described how poetry had become a lifeline for her: ‘Back in 1997, things seemed to be going well for me. I was coping with work, two small children, supporting my husband’s career and thought I was doing fine. Then, suddenly, I couldn’t get to sleep. I had chronic insomnia for three days, then slid into intense and constant anxiety

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Review

Michelle Baharier introduces Rachel for her talk at CoolTan

and had the feeling that I was falling all the time. I was ill for six months and my treatment included medication and hospitalisation.

was, My grace is sufficient for thee. My strength is made perfect by weakness.

This line from Corinthians in the Bible resonated with Rachel. ‘For the first time in my illness I felt a positive stirring of will,’ she said , ‘the idea that strength could come from weakness helped me to find a different story in my head.’

Rachel recovered and was well for a few years. Then in 2003 she had a second, deeper breakdown that For the first time in took her over a year to my illness I felt a So Rachel, still recovering from recover from. She decided she must try to take more positive stirring of her second breakdown, started to benefit from poems that her mother responsibility for her will and her friends shared with her, treatment and her life. She and she in turn began to share them with was using medication, but found some of others. At this point, she discovered some the side-effects distressing, so she was research from Liverpool University. The also trying exercise, diet supplements and researchers scanned the brains of people elements of mindfulness - but she felt she after they read compelling poetry such as needed something more.

T.S. Elliot and Shakespeare and found changes similar to those produced by She remembered how her mother, visiting mindfulness. Focusing on poetry lowered her in hospital, had helped her by sharing the participants’ cortisol levels and slowed healing phrases with her. One of these

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their minds down. Poetry was shown to be healing and calming.

Rachel had found the direction she needed. She began her long journey back to wellbeing as she explored a wide range of poetry to find words that had the power to help her.

‘The first poem that deeply touched me was Love by George Herbert , a 17th century poet and clergyman’ The audience share favourite poems she told us. ‘It’s a religious Having found in poetry a key element on poem but that wasn’t my first impression. her pathway to recovery, Rachel moved It uses simple, direct language, and it on in her life, re-establishing her career as described perfectly my mental state - I a journalist and her role in her family. But realised I had two voices in my head. The she found that she wanted to find ways depressed voice of low self-worth had of sharing her experiences of the healing been dominant for power of words with other people. She the poem gave me a long time, but developed a series of workshops to help another voice of the poem gave me people with mental distress which she has love, compassion another voice of led for the charity Mind in Hammersmith and acceptance love, compassion and other organisations, including her and acceptance. local prison.

And it was when I got that sense of accepting myself that I felt I was on the Rachel calls her workshops mend. The gentle, compassionate voice #thewordsdoctor Workshops. ‘The can counter the negative, guilt-ridden Ancient Greeks used poetry to heal, voices.’ and shamans use affirming and healing Rachel also liked the consoling ordinariness of the last lines: “You must sit down,” says Love, “and taste my meat.” So I did sit and eat.

It reminded her of how much she had yearned for simple pleasures like family meals when she was in hospital.

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words as mantras’ she told us. ‘I do a four part workshop, the first part focusing on understanding darkness and despair.

I share five or six very varied poems at each session and participants also bring words and poems to share.’

‘People all respond differently,’ Rachel said, showing us a short film of one of the Hammersmith groups. ‘Some people find lighter poems more helpful than dark

poems, for example. The workshops follow in general an arc from dark to light. We work through ‘til the last workshop which includes poems that can help deal with “ordinary human unhappiness” as Freud called it, or the challenges of everyday life.

There’s a big canon of artists who write about mental distress, such as Sylvia Plath and Edgar Allen Poe. It’s a very positive thing to bring creativity out of darkness.’

But Rachel uses a wide variety of poems including funny ones. ‘Sometimes I use song lyrics too, such as the words of Liverpool FC’s anthem, You’ll Never Walk Alone.’

The workshops

As well as follow an arc from developing her dark to light workshops, Rachel was also writing her book. ‘It took six years to write. I was still trying to do too much and needing some medication, also I was uncertain if it was any good. But I was encouraged by friends who said that the poems which the book includes – there are about 40 of them – were really helpful to them too in the face of despair. So I persevered and in the end found a publisher - Hodder & Stoughton’.

Rachel spoke about her life and work with clarity and warmth and her talk was followed by lively discussion and the sharing of favourite poems among the audience. Her book Black Rainbow is available from Yellow Kite, a subsidiary of Hodder & Stoughton, priced £8.99.

Rachel has kindly donated some copies to CoolTan Arts, these are for sale for a minimum donation of £1. Drop by and pick one up!

Rachel lives in London with her husband Sebastian and their five children

#thewordsdoctor Workshops at CoolTan Arts Rachel is currently running her #thewordsdoctor workshop at CoolTan Arts. Workshops are free and there are two dates still to come: Friday 17th and Friday 24th April, 12-1pm To sign up: Please contact olivia@cooltanarts.org.uk or call 020 7701 2696

Find out more about Rachel Kelly and her work on her website: www.blackrainbow.org.uk

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DON’T RING 999 A terrible vision inspired by a Daily Mail headline on 29/1/2015 which I took literally, assuming that the service was going to be abolished You think you’ve had a heart attack. The ambulance won’t come.

You go by taxi- will you live? It’s NOT all right for some!

Less crime? Skewed figures may result from few reports online.

The vandals rule. Of course they do. You can’t ring 999.

When you’re on fire or have been robbed, or when you’re very ill, you might become so damned annoyed, you feel you’d like to kill.

Complain in vain, ears all are deaf. And so, come rain or shine, there’s one thing you won’t do again- that’s ringing 999.

Some people put out fires themselves when firemen cannot come.

They have the ladders, hoses too. It is all right for SOME! Don’t bang your head against brick walls- you’ll get concussed then die, for 999 has gone for good, though everyone asks why.

All Undertakers’ lines engaged, as you might well expect but 999 can’t be revived whomever we elect.

By Peter Cox

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Daniela’s Wonderful Abstract World Daniela Pirlea is an artist from Romania who volunteers as a workshop assistant at CoolTan Arts. Greg Baldeo-Singh catches up with her after the class to ask about her art practice and about her role as a volunteer

I was a tutor for six and a half years.

Volunteering here is a connection to that work.

Daniela has always been interested in sharing her skills with others. She has been volunteering at CoolTan Arts since last November, helping in the Women Make Art group each Wednesday. ‘After my Masters I was teaching ceramics to people with special needs,’ she tells me, ‘I was a tutor for six and a half years. Volunteering here is a connection to that work. I get lots of pleasure from coming to CoolTan.’

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We sit in the gallery, surrounded by works created by CoolTan participants. Through the window, the sky is blue with wispy white clouds, a lovely setting for our interview.

I begin by asking Daniela about her background as an artist: ‘I did a Degree in Fine Art at The National University of Arts in Bucharest,’ Daniela tells me, ‘then I did my Masters in Fine Art at the same university. In Romania I was exhibiting and selling. I also worked on commissions, including some murals.’

Artist’s Profile

Since coming to the UK, Daniela has been back to college: ‘In 2013 I did a course in curating at Central St Martins and a group of us students curated an exhibition called Connect. The exhibition was situated in three telephone boxes along Lewisham Way as part of Deptford X festival. It featured the work of three international artists and explored the theme of connection.’

Daniela shows me pictures of her work: a series of paintings, many of them abstract portraits in shades of black, grey and white, with sometimes an angry burst of red. ‘I’d like to paint in white but I don’t know how,’ she explains, ‘I am working on a series using red, black and white.’

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the different materials interact - can they stay together or are they fighting?

‘Many of these pieces are portraits,’ Daniela tells me, ‘I like them because I can do whatever I want with them.’ Although these are portraits, it can be hard to make out the features through the rich layers of materials and abstraction.

Daniela draws my attention to a small work in shades of grey, black and white: ‘This portrait is not drawn from life. I started with small irregularities in the surface of the canvas and brought out the expression. Expressions are not just happy or sad; there are lots of shades inbetween.’

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How does she begin the process of creating work? ‘I start by researching on the internet or in books. Sometimes inspiration comes from a dream or something small I see in the street’ she tells me. ‘I use shapes, lines, colours, tones and textures in various ways to create volume, space, movement and light on a flat surface. These elements are combined into expressive patterns.’

Daniela uses a variety of different media, often combining several in the same work. ‘The decision to use a particular medium, such as tempera, acrylic, oil, watercolour, charcoal or all of these, is based on the sensuous qualities and the expressive possibilities and limitations of those options,’ she continues, ‘the different materials interact - can they stay together or are they fighting?’

I ask what the painting is called.

‘I don’t give names to my works,’ Daniela says, ‘if you label something you are then stuck with it.’ This reluctance to have things pinned down or finished turns out to be a strong theme in Daniela’s practice: ‘I always leave my work and come back to it. I have several things on the go at any one time.

I change things and work them over, creating new layers. I can’t go back to my works that are in Romania, but the ones I have here I always come back to. It’s not about unfinished work,’ she explains, ‘it’s about continuing and knowing ... like a relationship. We grow everyday so we cannot be the same; the works also cannot be the same after years.’

It’s not about unfinished work, it’s about continuing and knowing ... like a relationship

Knowing that Daniela has in the past made ceramics, I am curious to find out how this open process can work in that medium. There must come a point where you decide something is finished so that you can fire it in the kiln. ‘Ceramics you can come back to as well!’ she tells me, ‘if they break you can turn them into mosaics.’

Does Daniela miss working with ceramics? ‘I’m not working with ceramics at the moment because I have no kiln here. I like to work in porcelain, it’s so fragile and white.’

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I ask Daniela who her own favorite artists are. ‘For me it’s important how an artist sends their message and what we can learn from their work. I like Dan Perjovschi, whose drawings are a political commentary in response to political and social events.

I also like Marcel Duchamp – I like the “ready-made” – everyday objects repurposed as art. Another artist I like is Gerhart Richter, who once said, “Talk about painting: there’s no point. By conveying a thing through the medium of language, you change it. You construct qualities that can be said, and you leave out the ones that can’t be said but are always the most important.” I truly believe that.’

What are Daniela’s plans for the future? ‘I think I might like to do some more curating,’ she says, ‘I don’t have time to exhibit and sell in the UK and I don’t want to feel pressured into having to say something is finished. I want to do my Masters in Art Therapy and find a place to work that I like. You have to continue and not stop.

‘That’s how I see my future.’

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CoolTan Arts @ The Affordable Art Fair

Review

CoolTan volunteer Aaron Pilgrim reports from the opening night of the prestigious arts event in Battersea which aims to turn visitors into art collectors

CoolTan Arts Arts

were very lucky to be chosen as the official charity for the prestigious Affordable Art Fair held recently in Battersea Park. It is called the Affordable Art Fair as all the work is between the prices of £100 and £5000. The Private View on Wednesday 11th March was held in aid of CoolTan Arts and was a chance to meet and greet many of the distinguished artists and gallerists who were exhibiting.

Evolution building at Battersea Park

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he private view was opened by the great charismatic artist Maggi Hambling. Maggi is a long-standing patron of CoolTan and has done a lot to support us over the years. In her opening speech she said, ‘CoolTan does an amazing job. Henry Moore, of whom you must all have heard, described his entire output as, as far as he was concerned, therapy. Spend money on art because it’s good for the human spirit.’

Gallery stands at Affordable Art Fair

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he Affordable Art Fair was held in the Evolution building, a vast, yet stylish, events venue set in the picturesque surroundings of Battersea Park. Stepping inside, the artwork was immediately apparent, arranged in over 100 smartly whitewashed gallery stands. Each stand was brightly lit by white spotlights, showing the artwork in all its vivid and colourful glory.

Above the gallery stands, on the

William Ramsay, Chief Executive of the AAF & Maggi Humbling, patron of CoolTan Arts

ceiling, were black material drapes scattered with thousands of tiny violet lights, twinkling away.

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he standard of artwork at the fair was very professional. Our stand was full of fantastic works by many CoolTan Artists, including William Ball, Saffron Saidi, Ese Imonioro and Graeme Newton among many others. I was proud to see my own painting, The CoolTan Arts Building, on the wall, together with a large photograph of the unveiling of the CoolTan Bench on Camberwell Green in 2012. Some of the works were hung on the bright whitewashed wall, while others were wrapped in smart cellophane in a stand that visitors could flick through at their leisure. In the corners of our stand were glass cabinets displaying Daniel Baharier’s accomplished bronze figurative sculptures.

Daniel, brother of CoolTan CEO Michelle Baharier, very kindly donated all the proceeds from his sculptures to CoolTan Arts, as did the other participating CoolTan artists.

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lso on our stand were Tombola products including canvas bags, tea towels and postcards all displaying artwork created by CoolTan participants. One of the most popular features of our stand, especially with younger visitors, was the papier mache lucky dip tombola that I made. Inside was a huge selection of postcard-sized original artworks, each in a sealed white envelope. Visitors paid £5 and took a chance on buying a beautiful miniature piece of art, created and

signed by a CoolTan artist.

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ome of the other exhibiting galleries very generously donated work to be sold in aid of CoolTan, including Vera Schuhmacher Opening night and private view Fine Art, who donated two works by graffiti artist Luis Mariano SCER. ‘I hope CoolTan can sell them,’ Vera said, ‘It would be good for my young artists and for them. I will be pleased if they are successful.’

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rt Connection, a gallery from Amsterdam, donated a work by Barbara van den Berg which we were very Artwo pleased to be able to sell. The curator of Art Connection said, ‘we donated one of our works to CoolTan to help their cause because we think it’s very important.’

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huck Elliott, a digital artist from Transistor gallery, also donated work. ‘It was fantastic to hear Maggi Hambling talking about CoolTan and opening the show’ he said. ‘It’s really lovely to have an experience like this.

It’s a great opportunity for me to make a donation of my studio work - a nice piece that can

maybe add a bit of money for the project and also promote my work whilst I’m doing it.

It’s a win-win to my mind. I hope the project does very well.’

Thousands of people walked away with their chosen artworks and CoolTan Arts made over £6000.

Michelle Baharier said, ‘CoolTan Arts had a brilliant time at the Affordable Art Fair - this is part of a two year partnership between our two organisations. That means CoolTan can widen its reach and make a wider circle of friends, who can help us in these w at CoolTan Arts’ stand icks difficult times. It Gallery was great fun and very generously donated a an excellent place Daniel Baharier, Maggi Hambling piece by Peter Blake. Alice to meet people. and Michelle Baharier Special thanks go from Hicks said, ‘We’re very to Sarah Barratt, our Partnerships pleased to be and Programmes Manager and to able to donate William Ramsay, Chief Executive one of Peter of the Affordable Art Fair. Big Blake’s works thanks also go to the artists and for CoolTan galleries who donated work and Arts. It’s an to everybody who made us so amazing cause welcome. Last but not least, We’d and we’re like to thank everyone who helped really keen to ork at CoolTan Arts’ stand be us by selling or buying tickets or by giving their involved with them.’ time to help with the The work was called CoolTan stand.’

ABC Print and we are very pleased that it he Affordable Art Fair sold for £999 - a figure returns to Battersea chosen because it is on 22nd October and the phone number once again, CoolTan for the emergency Arts will be the charity services. beneficiary so mark it in your diary now - for nother donated art lovers like me, you CoolTan Arts treats work which sold was couldn’t find a better a painting by Nigel Hays of Michelle event to attend.

Baharier’s cat Zebbee. ou can view a CoolTan video of he Battersea Affordable Arts Fair the Affordable Art Fair Private was a very successful event.

View on Youtube here

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Spring Cleaning A short story by Joseph Rowan One day in spring I suddenly declared that we needed to clean the flat. I don’t know exactly what I intended to find, but I had the strong sense that beneath all the old newspapers and other bits of ephemera that lay dusted over the flat like a light falling of snow, there would be something that made the whole awful process worthwhile.

Three terrible hours later and only one enclave of mess still held out against my cleaning onslaught.

The cupboard above the boiler. We rarely ventured into it because you needed a ladder to get up there and our ladder was terrifyingly rickety. When we moved in we had thrown a selection of boxes into it, mostly full of things we didn’t know what else to do with, and had since pretended them away. Out of sight and all that.

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Short Story But no more, I had decided. Perched on that rickety ladder - to give spring cleaning the feeling of danger it so sorely lacked - I was going to flush out the minor embarrassments of our pasts.

“What on earth are you doing?” she demanded, rounding the corner ten minutes later, as she spied my wriggling legs hanging over the cupboard edge, the ladder safely out of my reach on the floor below.

“Just a bit of spring cleaning!” I offered cheerfully, as if that would explain everything. It clearly didn’t, as a cavalcade of further questions was suddenly flung my way. Thankfully, I was saved from having to answer them by the expediency of having just fallen off the ladder. I lay there, rubbing my coccyx while my supposed beloved stood over me equally paralysed by laughter.

But clutched in my pained arms was the prize I had been subconsciously looking for. The same mad instinct as had got me into this mess led me to grab a nearby box when I felt myself falling, instead of trying to prevent injury in any way. One look inside and I knew the bruises and embarrassment had been worth it.

“Ah ha!” I exclaimed, brandishing it at her. “I did get you that anniversary present! You just put it up in the cupboard and forgot about it - just like I said!”

She peered inside. “You’ve broken it,” was her sole comment, before she walked away, leaving me in a broken pile of my own making.

Oh well. It was nice to taste victory, at least for one brief moment.

Joseph Rowan and Rita Unger (see overleaf) attended CoolTan’s Creative Writing workshop. If you would like to join one of our workshops, see page 64 for details of how to get involved.

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Poetry

WHO ARE YOU? Grayson Perry, Perhaps his alter ego Informs his art, Consciousness, Flamboyance, The aura he casts, The rumbustious joyousness He mines from existence.

His essence is one of eccentric decency, A merry heart, Unique perspective on the world, The verities he poses Are leavened with lightness, Easy articulacy, An unsullied honesty.

A maverick And a rare, wise man, One who draws others to him, Palliated by his understanding Of their worth, Their significance illustrated, Alighted upon with insight Within his artist eye.

A cadeaux of a being, His work fashioned Like rainbow, brilliant diadems That stun us with their virtuosity, Drawing us in with enchantment And shock, The elemental bedrocks Of his otherworldly moral sentience.

By Rita Unger, 29/11/2014

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Artwork by a CoolTan participant

Home Truths

Feature

Why are a group of activists occupying an empty block of flats on a council estate in Walworth? Annie Spinster investigates London’s housing crisis and meets the protesters on the Aylesbury Estate Occupation The Housing Crisis

Most readers will have heard that there is a housing crisis in London, but what does this mean? House prices in London are much higher than elsewhere in the country and are rising much faster (ONS statistics). According to Shelter, house prices in Southwark have risen 59% in the last three years and rents have risen by 14%. Meanwhile, a large amount of social housing is being replaced with ‘affordable’ housing. Over the past decade, there has been a net loss of 8000 social rented properties in London according to the London Assembly Housing Committee.

‘Affordable’ weekly rents in Southwark - data from Southwark Council

Empty flats on the Aylesbury Estate

Affordable Housing is different from social housing. Social housing is let at low rents, using a formula which takes into account average local incomes. Affordable housing can cost anything up to 80% of local market rents. As the table below shows, in Southwark this means rents of over £200 per week for a one bedroom flat in the cheapest postcode would be considered ‘affordable’.

The introduction of the Benefit Cap compounds the problem. Since April 2013 the total amount of benefits a household can receive is £500 / week, or £350 / week for single people without children. As social housing disappears and is replaced with ‘affordable’ The benefit cap housing, more and compounds the more low income households have to problem meet an increasing proportion of their rent themselves.

Across London, over 25,000 households

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Fighting Back

Tenants and leaseholders on the Aylesbury Estate SE17 have been campaigning since 2000 to save their homes.

Following the March for Homes on January 31st this year, Chartridge block - one of the first due for demolition - was reoccupied by protesters and has been squatted Banners outside the Aylesbury Occupation - drawing by Alex Nicholson ever since despite an have been affected so far, including 429 attempt by riot police to evict them.** I households in Southwark and 620 in visited the site and spoke with protesters, Lambeth (Dept. for Work & Pensions). including Aysen Dennis who helped set up Aylesbury Tenants and Leaseholders At the same time, over 10% of Southwark First: ‘In 2001 we were balloted on what social housing tenants and almost 12% should happen with the estate,’ Aysen of those in Lambeth have been affected said, ‘there was a 73% turnout and 73% by the bedroom tax, losing more than voted for refurbishment. We thought we £20 per week on average. The change had won, but the democratic process was from Council Tax Credit to the locally ignored. The council never tell tenants and determined Council Tax Support has left leaseholders what’s really going on. The the poorest Southwark and Lambeth reason we won the ballot was because we households worse off by an additional informed the community.’ £100 - £200 per year (London’s Poverty Profile).

The combination of these factors has led to an increase in homelessness - up 80% in the last four years in London, according to Crisis, and vast numbers of poorer people being driven out of their boroughs or out of London altogether.

Homelessness has risen 80% in London over the last four years

Aylesbury Protesters make pancakes for residents and supporters on Shrove Tuesday

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Protest flyer from the Aylesbury Occupation

There are currently around 2250 council houses on the Aylesbury Estate (83% of the total properties there). These are due to be replaced with a total of 3500 homes of which around 1300 will be offered at social rents - almost 1000 fewer than are currently there. There is no guarantee that these properties will remain at social rents either: ‘Once everyone is out, rents will skyrocket. People won’t be able to afford to return,’ one tenant said.

Another resident expressed deep concerns: ‘This is social cleansing. They say they are creating mixed communities but we have seen from other ‘This is social developments what they cleansing’ mean by this: separate entrances for the poor, or separate communal gardens like those planned at One Tower Bridge’. She was referring to the new development next to Tower Bridge where social housing tenants will not have access to the same communal gardens as private residents.

Several recent developments in London feature ‘poor doors’, including One Commercial Street in the City and Queens Park Place in North West London. While private tenants enter the building through a well-lit, pleasantly furnished lobby, social tenants have to use a separate no-frills entrance round the corner.

Aylesbury residents’ fears are well-founded.

They have only to look at what has happened to the nearby Heygate Estate at Elephant & Castle. The 2004 plans for the Heygate promised 1200 social housing units. Now, out of 3000 new homes, only 79 socially rented properties are planned (35% Campaign). As the demolition of the Heygate continues apace, the former residents have been dispersed across London and further afield. A community has been destroyed for the sake of ‘gentrification’.

Google map showing displacement of Heygate residents - from Heygate Was Home

Back on the Aylesbury, protesters are optimistic: ‘We started petitioning and door-knocking last Saturday. Everybody put posters in their windows saying ‘We Love Council Houses’ Aysen says. ‘We are not giving up! We are reclaiming our homes, reclaiming our streets and we are not going anywhere.’

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The Effects of Homelessness

Communal space on the Aylesbury Estate - drawing

by Alex Nicholson

**Since the time of writing ...

The Aylesbury protest has moved twice but continues to occupy the estate and fight against its demolition. Southwark Council has erected security hoardings around the whole ‘First Development Site’ - the part of the estate that is due for demolition the soonest. As well as the protesters there are tenants still living behind this barrier, some of whom now face an extra half mile walk to their homes, passing through a single security checkpoint. ‘Unauthorised persons, or those who cannot justify their visit to the blocks’ are denied access.

Find Out More Aylesbury Tenants & Leaseholders First aylesburytenantsfirst.wordpress.com Fight for the Aylesbury fightfortheaylesbury.wordpress.com Southwark Notes southwarknotes.wordpress.com Housing Action Southwark & Lambeth housingactionsouthwarkandlambeth. wordpress.com Better Elephant betterelephant.org 35% Campaign 35percent.org

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Housing rights are human rights. Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that: ‘Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services.’

Insecure, unaffordable and inadequate housing can all lead to physical and mental health problems and reduced life opportunities. For example: Damp or mouldy properties can cause respiratory disease, especially in children and older people Poorly maintained properties can be full of hazards such as faulty boilers or old and unsafe electrical wiring Overcrowding leads to severe stress, anxiety, loss of sleep and poor family relationships as well as increased risk of infectious diseases such as TB Insecure tenancies mean that people have to move house frequently, sometimes after only six months in a property. This leads to stress, anxiety and depression and harms people’s ability to form supportive social networks. The costs of moving can also lead people further into poverty Unaffordable housing can lead people to cut back on food or heating, damaging their physical health. They may end up having to move far away from their jobs, schools and social networks

For those who find themselves homeless, the picture is even worse. People in temporary accommodation can face long periods of stressful uncertainty in overcrowded or cramped conditions.

Shelter found that in London, 62% of people in temporary accommodation had been there for over a year.

Accommodation may be a long way from people’s friends, family, jobs and schools and, especially for those in hostels and bed and breakfasts, may not be secure from crime, including violent crime.

Street homelessness causes severe physical and mental distress. Cold, hunger, poor hygiene, lack of sleep and vulnerability to violence all contribute to an average age of death that is three decades lower than the general population (Crisis).

There is a complex relationship between homelessness, mental distress and drug and alcohol problems: while many people become homeless in part because of poor mental health or substance misuse, these problems are then made much worse by living on the streets or in insecure accommodation. In addition, many who did not originally have these problems develop them once they become homeless.

A recent report by Homeless Link showed that 80% of homeless people reported some form of mental health issue, 73% had physical health issues, 39% had a problem with drugs and 27% with alcohol. Almost half said they use drugs or alcohol to help them cope with a mental health issue.

House drawing by Lionel Allorge

Where to Get Help Shelter Housing Advice Line (free) 0808 800 4444 CAB national advice line 03444 111 444 Peckham CAB 97 Peckham High Street, London SE15 5RS Tel: 03444 994 134 Bermondsey CAB 8 Market Place, Southwark Park Road, London SE16 3UQ Tel: 03444 994 134 Streatham Hill CAB 1 Barrhill Road, Streatham Hill, London SW2 4RJ Tel: 0844 243 8430 Blackfriars Advice Centre Cambridge House, 1 Addington Square, London SE5 0HF Tel: 020 7358 7034 Southwark Council Housing Options advice line: 020 7525 5950 Lambeth Housing Advice Line 020 7926 4200

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SPRING and HOPE

By Howard Luke Spring and Hope were very good friends But this is where the story ends Hope is at the end of things Love’s a fountain flowing from eternal springs Don’t be scared Try not to hate Depression will end even if after a long wait A stay in hospital may be long due But with Hope in your breast you’ll Get over the trauma like flu After a long winter Spring always arrives Like that look of humour returning to the eyes Try to laugh if you can Try to be a happier woman or man

Howard attends the Poetry workshop at CoolTan Arts. If you would like to attend a workshop at CoolTan, please see page 62 for details of how to get involved.

Image by a CoolTan Arts participant

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Poetry

I’M A ME WOMEN! I’m I’m I’m I’m

a a a a

strong WOMEN. song WOMEN. white WOMEN. soul WOMEN.

I’m a beautiful I’m a black I’m a multi-coloured I’m a rap

WOMEN. WOMEN. WOMEN. WOMEN.

I’m a face the facts WOMEN, how about that WOMEN. I’m a future WOMEN. I’m the present WOMEN.

I’m a future WOMEN. I’m the present WOMEN.

I’m not the first & certainly not the last WOMEN. I’m a bold WOMEN. I’m a spoken word WOMEN. I’m a gifted WOMEN

I’m a curve WOMEN. I’m a presence WOMEN. I’m a blessed WOMEN.

I’m the best WOMEN, no one can WOMEN. I’m a yes I’m a believer in myself WOMEN. Measured only by my best I can WOMEN. I’m a I love my self I’m a positive WOMEN. I’m a confident Improving my mental health WOMEN.

WOMEN. WOMEN. WOMEN. WOMEN.

I’m a, invest in my spiritual health WOMEN. I’m a, I know my worth WOMEN.

I’m a music WOMEN.

I’m a happy women because I’m a ME WOMEN!

by Antiqu’e

This poem is from Diagnosis: Hysteria? Prescription: Hysteria! available from CoolTan Books, £5.99. See page 60 for details

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Water And Life Liz Innes Watercolour and collage

21st Century God Felt tip on paper

Power Puss Richard Del Oro Pencil and rapidograph

Yayoi Kusama Portrait And Her Poem Saf Mixed media

ddess Eva Arnaiz

ffron Saidi

Hayley Mike Fox

Felt tip and pencil on paper

Exhibition CoolTan’s artists express their vision of 21st Century Women in our exhibition to celebrate International Women’s Day 2015.

Exhibition continues until early June.

Look out for our next exhibition, Cats 22 - opening on Saturday 13th June.

21 Century st

Self Portrait Ese Imonioro Acrylic on canvas

Wo

m e n

Untitled Saffron Saidi

Black and white photograph

Look Mummy Giovanni Clinkett

Watercolourand coloured pencil and willowcharcoal

Unfinished Me Alessandra Pisu

Angelica 21st Century Artist

Meditation Horacio Bento

Acrylic on canvas

Aaron Pilgrim

Acrylic on canvas

Watercolour on paper

All That Glistens William Ball Acrylic and collage on MDF

21st Century Woman Part1 Graeme Newton Felt tip on paper

Womens Weekly Collage on paper

Noel Smith

LOVE ACTION This recipe is called Love Action as all the ingredients are energising and also enhance mood

INGREDIENTS 2 heaped tablespoons raw (extra virgin) coconut oil 6 handfuls pumpkin seeds 6 handfuls dried cranberries 2 tablespoons xylitol (natural sweetener) 1 pinch saffron 1 tablespoon cacao powder

METHOD • Melt the coconut oil in a bain-marie* adding a pinch of saffron until it is a warm liquid. * Half fill a large bowl with boiling water. Inside that, place smaller bowl containing the coconut oil and saffron. Then cover and leave the oil to melt (approximately 5 minutes).

• Then pour over the cranberries, pumpkin seeds and xylitol and blend together in a food processor until it forms a large ball.

• Roll out into a bite-size balls and dust/roll in cacao powder.

• Allow to set in the fridge.

Note: vegan, diabetic-friendly and gluten-free recipe

HBEALTH ENEFITS

CRANBERRY: female sexual health PUMPKINSEED: male sexual health

RAW CACAO: mood enhancer SAFFRON: natural antidepressant

E s

e s e h t njoy ! s t a e r t t e we

Food

These recipes have been prepared with love by CoolTan Arts’ Cooking Club

A

RABIAN NIGHTS

INGREDIENTS Zest of 2 lemons 3 cups ground almonds 2 tablespoons runny honey Desiccated coconut to sprinkle 2 teaspoons ground cardamoms 1 tablespoon rose syrup/ rose water or 2 drops rose essence

METHOD • Blend almonds in a food processor until mixed and ground well.

• Add into the bowl all the other ingredients except the desiccated coconut saved for sprinkling.

• Wet your hands (to prevent sticking) and mix together.

• Form into small balls and roll in the desiccated coconut.

• Refrigerate or freeze to harden and set.

Note: Gluten-free recipe

ALMOND: brain function and nervous system

ROSE: natural sedative and mood elevator

LEMON: antibacterial and immune boosting

COCONUT OIL: brain function and mental health

Breaking the

SILENCE

Caroline Sparrey tells her personal story of overcoming the condition Selective Mutism - a social anxiety phobia

What is Selective Mutism?

Selective Mutism is a condition usually associated with shyness and social anxiety. People affected find that they are repeatedly unable to speak in certain situations even though they are capable of speech and can understand spoken conversation.

MY STORY

“

Childhood Years

From a very young age I can remember having particular difficulty in speaking within group situations. I come from a loving and supportive home and would have no trouble speaking to my parents, older sister and twin brother, but for some reason as soon as I went to school I found I was physically unable to speak.

The sensation felt like my jaw had literally been glued shut in response to the prospect of talking. Just before I was due to speak I would usually get an elevated heart rate and feel hot and panicky. The

34

symptoms seemed to correspond with the flight or fight response often associated with a life or death situation. Strangely my twin brother did not seem to have been afflicted with this condition but my sister and mother have both also been sufferers in the past.

There would be a great conflict inside me as on the one hand I would actively want to join in and knew what to say while another part of me absolutely would not let me. When asked a question by my peers I would usually answer with a nod

Wellbeing or shake of the head. When asked a question that required a longer response I did not respond at all and would simply just look away or smile. One incident that sticks in my head was when I couldn’t say the word ‘yes’ when my name was called on the register. I knew I had to say ‘yes’ but my body would not let me. The other pupils and the teacher were unable to comprehend why I was not saying ‘yes’ to my name when they could clearly see that I was sitting there. That incident passed and the teacher may have just shrugged it off. The condition at that point was not really heard of and not much information or research had been carried out.

“I couldn’t say the word ‘yes’ when my name was called on the register at school.”

Another incident that was particularly bad was when I was physically shaken in the gym by a teacher when I did not answer a question. This was carried out in front of other pupils and was not reported at the time. As a young girl in primary school I think the instinct was to blame myself. I only told my mother about it when I was in my twenties and her reaction was that of fury towards the teacher but by then it was too late.

I had few real friends in primary school and none in middle school. Some children did not like me and regarded me as an oddity because I did not speak.

There were a few, however, who would sometimes hang around me curiously and wanted to include me, but I reluctantly pushed them away unable to see the point. The flipside to all of this was that I had a small group of close friends outside of school who I would chat to normally.

I was quite loud and sociable with them and played in the streets, but I rarely felt able to speak to their parents.

Things changed slightly as I entered secondary school and I made a effort to force myself to say something. Mostly I would keep my head down and just get on with it. Once a girl approached me and said she was shocked to hear me speak as she had previously thought I was mute. I did manage to speak frequently to a small group of girls during that period and now consider four of them to be close friends today.

College years

It was only when I left school and started to think about my future that I decided to make a conscious effort that something had to be done. I did not want to spend the rest of my life in the shadows and wanted to be free and not locked down.

I decided that I wanted to attend college and did not want this condition to rob me of an education. I spent a gap year working at a bookshop to build up my confidence and then enrolled

35

on a one year course in Art & Design Foundation. A degree in Theatre Design followed. While at college I tried many different forms of therapy including counselling, hypnotherapy, self-hypnosis tapes, an assertivenes training course and I visited a psychologist. There were a lot of group discussions and presentations on my course which were extremely stressful, but I managed to get through them, although some days were better than others.

“Once a girl approached me and said she was shocked to hear me speak as she had previously thought I was mute.”

The counselling was extremely helpful as the lady I spoke to was intelligent and insightful. She was able to help me to see things in a clearer way and to address my negative cycle of thinking. I was referred to her after seeing the doctor about my condition as it had left me quite miserable and I was beginning to turn to drink to blot the anxiety out. This was not what I wanted as substance only masks the issue and does not deal with it.

The hypnosis wasn’t successful as I was hoping for a quick fix and when it didn’t happen I was very disappointed. The assertive training helped as I was in a group setting and was surrounded by people who were in similar situations.

The therapist was not good and was

36

too expensive. The man in question fell asleep during one of my sessions and so I made the decision not to bother.

Out of the comfort zone After a while I realised that the anxiety could not be overcome with only a few courses and counselling sessions. I was not keen but realised that the only way to deal with the situation was to face it head on and take myself out of my comfort zone gradually. Instead of saying no to doing things I decided to give them a try and if I did not succeed then at least whatever it was would not kill me. I had to accept that the fear was coming from inside of me and there was not a life threatening situation outside that was affecting me.

“I was not keen but realised that the only way to deal with the situation was to face it head on.”

I moved out of home to study and lived in student accommodation with strangers. I did a variety of things on my own including a prop making placement, attended a five week speech making class, worked behind a rock bar, attended evening courses on my own. I also lived and worked abroad in Australia for a year and generally tried to say ‘yes’ to things such as parties and events.

Each of these contributed to helping me to identify that there was no real fear to be had in living. Weird little things such as watching Big Brother on TV helped me to see how others interacted and I saw that the conversations I had were no different to the conversations other people had. I also managed to make friends and keep in touch with those people that I had met along the way.

In 2010 a documentary was broadcast on the BBC called ‘My child won’t speak’ about a group of people who were affected with Selective Mutism. This was the first time I found out that my condition actually had a name as previously I thought it was just shyness and social anxiety.

I have had quite a few jobs since leaving college, from working in events, being a PA/administrator and designing for theatre. I learnt graphic design and illustration at one of my evening courses and also online.

Present day

At present I work part time at an office job and also volunteer for CoolTan Arts on their CoolFruit magazine as a layout designer and writer. Although hesitant at first I really enjoy it. I have met a lot of new creative people and feel that my development is supported. I recently had the opportunity to interview an artist and it has given me the experience and the confidence to do it again.

There is a tendency for people to view me as being somewhat quiet until they get to know me. Occasionally I do get apprehensive, but it doesn’t seem to affect me like it used to. I feel more confident now and able to focus on my future and pursue things.”

Support and Advice Association of Speech and Language Therapists in Independent Practice (ASTIP): If you have a child or someone possibly affected by Selective Mutism then ASLTIP with the nearest speech and language therapy clinic.

www.helpwithtalking.com

Selective Mutism Information and Research Association: provides further information on Selective Mutism as well as training days for parents and professionals.

www.smira.org.uk

37

Hidden Agenda The colour yellow rushes up the wood, hide if you should.

Gentle patters I know you’re there, but why avoid me?

I care.

The beauty comes from her soul, Rising behind my spine.

You will be fine, You will be fine.

In time.

Paper, plastic, distributed on denim, The trace of your disappearance.

Not one word spilt, But instead hide until it pours, brings roars.

Breathless, I absorb the distant twists, until I feel I can’t exist.

Leaves shivering behind the pane, can I do this again?

Your womb expelled me for good it seems, And I have been walked over since.

I want to question, to understand.

She takes my hand, “Don’t”...

The stars and flashes come in waves, scribble the words, I want to know it is real.

Is this madness creeping in?

Shivers, shakes.

Breaks.

You are all fake.

38

Lau

ura Dyer

Poetry

Self Portrait by Laura Dyer Laura attended a series of twelve free Art workshops at CoolTan Arts. If you would like to attend a CoolTan workshop, please see page 62 for details

39

Wellbeing At Your Service

Moni Onojeruo meets Wellbeing Advisor Renu Bhakta to find out what CoolTan’s new Wellbeing Service can offer you When the allocated time to discuss your problems with a GP is typically ten minutes, there often isn’t enough time to discuss all your concerns in the depth you would like to. Looking to address this need and to provide a more holistic and practical way to support people, CoolTan Arts has launched a new Wellbeing Service based at Lambeth Walk Group Practice and at CoolTan Arts.

The CoolTan Arts Wellbeing Service comprises two Wellbeing Advisors: Renu and her colleague Lulu Falbe-Hansen, who support individuals to create and work with their own personal

40

‘Wellbeing Plan’.

The aim is to assist people to manage their own wellbeing, identifying areas where they might benefit from support and helping them think creatively to find ways to make improvements.

The service is totally free and offers up to six months of regular support and encouragement to anybody aged 18 or over who lives or works in London.

‘The initial appointment is about building trust and getting to know each other,’ Renu says. The aim is to improve a person’s situation and not simply to cure a symptom. This is done by reviewing each individual’s

Wellbeing

wellbeing and identifying their support needs so that they can be signposted to relevant free or low cost resources, services and activities.

‘It’s very much about looking at the social, economic or medical factors that could affect a persons wellbeing’ Renu explains. ‘We look at what your housing conditions are like, what your environment is like, what your food is like - are you eating regularly? What about your relationships – have you got friends? Have you got networks?

We help people identify areas where they might want some additional support.

‘Once we’ve done that initial assessment we offer regular appointments to review the Wellbeing Plan. We’re friendly and flexible in our approach and the focus of conversation is participant led. We recognise that for people who feel less confident, or who have been isolated for some time, it’s a big move to seek support.’

Renuka Bhakta - Wellbeing Advisor

The Five Ways to Wellbeing Connect - with the people around you

Be Active - exercising makes you feel good

The Wellbeing Service uses the New Economics Foundation’s Five Ways to Wellbeing to help people identify their needs. These are a set of five simple and evidencebased activities that people can do in their everyday lives to improve their wellbeing.

world around you and what you are feeling

Renu and Lulu each bring years of experience to the project: Lulu has worked in mental health settings for a decade and Renu

Give - do something nice for a

Take Notice - be aware of the

Keep Learning - try something new

friend or a stranger

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able to cover the cost of CoolTan’s workshops for participants who are referred through our service.’

As well as CoolTan’s activities and workshops, the Wellbeing Service can also refer people to a host of other local resources including The Dragon Café - Mental Fight Club’s innovative wellbeing project in St George’s Crypt, Borough; the mental health charity Mind, who can provide a range of services and advice to people with mental distress and their families and friends; and Citizens Advice Bureau, who can offer advice on housing, cheap counselling, legal advice and more.

Lulu Falbe-Hansen - Wellbeing Advisor

has worked voluntarily and in paid work with people experiencing emotional distress since 2001.

They both make sure they keep up to date with their knowledge of local services so that, once people’s needs are identified, they can be signposted to appropriate resources, activities and support.

Renu explains the relationship between the Wellbeing Service and CoolTan Arts: ‘People can be signposted to CoolTan and we provide an easy access route to get into those workshops. The project is still at a pilot stage at the moment. In the future we hope to secure more funding so we are

42

Alongside the individual appointments participants can also attend a Wellbeing Walk-In group, held each Friday at the Lambeth Walk Group Practice.

The Friday Walk-Ins, started

by Lulu, are run by the people who attend and group members decide which aspects of wellbeing they want to focus on. ‘The aim is to enable people to share tips and advice on how to improve wellbeing and to build community connections between people and local organisations’ says Renu. ‘The group offers a perfect opportunity to get to know people and learn about local resources in an informal environment. We’ve also hosted talks from external groups including Age UK, the Reading Club and Solidarity in a

Crisis. Group members have said it has made them feel less anxious about contacting the services in the future as they’ve already met someone from the organisation.’

A number of community projects have evolved from the Wellbeing Walk-In group including the simple and highly effective Smile Project, which involves smiling more at neighbours and local vendors.

The new service fills a void in current mental health provision as Renu explains: ‘At CoolTan Arts we aim to prevent severe mental illness and improve wellbeing, so we need to get to people early when they are first experiencing life’s inevitable stresses and challenges. We felt that the GP practice could be a highly effective location as it’s often the place people come to as their first point of call when they are experiencing difficulties.

Location is everything for the Wellbeing Service. It’s also more accessible because it is based at a surgery so the GP’s can refer people to us easily.’

While the Wellbeing Service is located at a GP surgery, Renu and Lulu’s approach differs greatly from a doctor’s way of working. ‘When

we were planning the new service we pulled together lots of different ideas and came up with a role similar to an advocate or a friend, somebody who can offer practical support and help people through difficult periods or crises’ Renu says.

‘We underestimate how many complicated tasks we have to cope with on a daily basis. When we’re stressed out and things have got on top of us these are things that can become difficult, which further adds to our stress.

When you’ve got someone else being mindful with you and thinking about it with you, you can focus on what’s important. You can’t always expect this from a partner or family member so it’s useful to have somebody independent like a Wellbeing Advisor who can bring a different perspective. It gives people hope when they’ve got somebody to help them think like that.’

The CoolTan Arts Wellbeing Service is currently a pilot project with

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Lambeth Walk Group Practice - image by sarflondondunc on flickr

funding to run for one year. They are carrying out research and developing the service with the aim of securing further funding to introduce a Wellbeing Service to more GP surgeries. To take part in the research, participants are requested to complete a

questionnaire during their appointment.

The service is open to anyone age 18+ who lives or works in London.

You can refer yourself or be referred by a health professional.

What are you waiting for? Make an appointment and get support to spring clean your life today!

To find out more or book an appointment ...

- call CoolTan Arts on 020 7701 2696 or email wellbeing@cooltanarts.org.uk - or call Lambeth Walk Group Practice on 020 7735 4412 - or ask your GP or other health care professional to refer you This service is free, confidential and offers up to six months’ support. It’s available to anybody aged 18 or over who lives or works in London.

Appointments are held at: CoolTan Arts, 3rd Floor, 224-236 Walworth Road, London SE17 1JE or at Lambeth Walk Group Practice, 5 Lambeth Walk, London SE11 6SP

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Artist’s Profile

DISCOVERING CREATIVITY Marjorie McLean is a CoolTan regular; she’s been coming to the Art Workshops for nine years. Here she talks to Linda Newman about why she rarely misses a session been coming to CoolTan almost every single Friday for the past nine years to paint, and also, very importantly to chat, joke and laugh. Marjorie’s I had no art musical laugh is training before sweet, warm and CoolTan Arts intoxicating. Very much like her uplifting paintings.

She works using her preferred medium: ‘I always use acrylics’, she tells me as we sit in the light, bright studio. ‘Angelica, the tutor, has been teaching me about shape, form and colour’ Marjorie explains.

Marjorie McLean sits at her easel using small, deft brush strokes as she works on her latest piece of work - a new avenue for her - portrait painting.

The one she is currently working on is of CoolTan CEO Michelle Baharier and artist and patron Maggie Hambling.

Marjorie is in her element surrounded by friends and art work. She has

21 Again

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I was truly surprised to learn that Marjorie had no prior history of art or painting. ‘No’, she confirms, ‘Coming to CoolTan was the first time I painted. I had no art training before coming here and I didn’t draw, so I have been nourished all along by the teachers to get the to stage I am at now.’

So how did she discover her enjoyment for painting? ‘I retired nine years ago when I was 60.

I stopped working as a cook in a school and I wanted to find something to do. I was looking at the leaflets in my community centre and saw information about art workshops at CoolTan and that appealed to me.

‘In those days CoolTan was at Loughborough Junction. Michelle Fire Engines Through The Decades

Since she has been coming here, Marjorie has produced a wealth of paintings which have been regularly featured in CoolTan exhibitions. She depicts a myriad of It’s good to subjects including birds, flowers - her try different favourite topics approaches plus landscapes and scenes painted from nature, such as sunsets and the Northern Lights. Sometimes she adds collage, such as on her recently exhibited work called Fire Through the Ages. Then, there is her effective piece of a tunnel getting narrower and narrower, a mixture of painting and collage. ‘It’s good to try different approaches’ she says.

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The Ibis

encouraged me in my work from the start and I’ve been coming every week since I retired as a cook then - the only time and coming to I’ve ever art workshops missed a session is if appealed to me something very important arises.’

How does Marjorie get her ideas for her paintings? ‘I look through

Marjorie at work

some background on her subjects.

The first one we look at is based around her other hobby. ‘That’s my allotment in Stuart Road, Peckham; I have been going there for 18 years.

Two friends were visiting me at the time so I put them in the picture.’

Roses

magazines to find photographs I like, things that I want to put onto paper myself. That’s how I started learning how to use brush strokes to create the shapes and form and have got better as I’ve gone along.’

During a break in the Friday morning class we look through some of her work together and I ask Marjorie for

Silver Hill Waterfall

Marjorie is not the only one to benefit from that particular hobby. ‘I grow cabbages, beans, potatoes, peas, carrots, things I like to eat and I bring some in to share with Michelle and friends at CoolTan.

47

that inspire her, as she did of her allotment, and also the next painting we look at, a cascading waterfall.

Was that difficult to do? ‘I took a photograph of that scene when I went on holiday to Jamaica – that’s my husband’s place; he lives near the waterfall. Yes, I found it difficult painting the water, but I got lots of encouragement from Michelle and the others.’

The Grumpy Cat

Marjorie thoroughly enjoys joining CoolTan group outings to art galleries when they come up, such as the visit to the Dulwich Picture Gallery. She says that exhibitions can be a source of inspiration for her. ‘I get inspired

The next painting we come to is one of Marjorie’s iconic pieces of work - beautiful exotic birds painted in electrifying colours - this is one of her own favourites. ‘I saw the picture in a magazine and I wanted to paint it.

I learnt a lot when I was working on this one, getting the different strokes right and bringing out the colour.’

Marjorie is naturally self-effacing, but when we turn to her next piece, showstopping butterflies, she agrees.

‘That is one of my best ones,’ adding, ‘The buddleia wasn’t in the original photograph; I put that in.’ Then she bursts out laughing as we come to the next one. ‘Oh, there’s my grumpy cat!’

Why grumpy? ‘It is the way I drew his face; he looks very cross.’

As well as painting from pictures taken from magazines or art books, Marjorie takes photographs of things

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Tunnel

What would Marjorie say to other people contemplating coming to an art workshop? ‘Just be brave and come and try and fit in. And don’t worry if something you are working on doesn’t go right first of all. Just persevere. That’s what I did. And I look forward to coming every week, to having my cup of tea with the other artists and exchanging conversation.’

The Butterfly

by all different kinds of paintings and I like Rembrandt’ she says, but then adds in a whisper, ‘but I don’t get too heavy. I enjoy painting what I like.’

What about the work she used to do, cooking school dinners? Does Marjorie miss that at all? ‘Nooooo!

Not at all,’ she says emphatically with more peals of laughter and then without another word gets straight back to her painting.

And once she gets started? ‘I am slow; it takes me at least four or five workshops to finish a painting, but once I have got something down on paper I keep going till it’s really good ... slow but sure ... I want to get I get inspired by it done the way all different kinds I like it.

I get there in of paintings and I the end.’ like Rembrandt Marjorie’s determination and enthusiasm is inspiring. ‘I want to do more portraits and to get good at it. Angelica has helped me to position and fix the features and she has taught me how to shape the face. There’s always something new to learn.’

If you would like to attend an Art Workshop at CoolTan see page 62 for how to join

Nicola Adams

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Lucienne Silva Shows you how to draw a

Funny Bunny Would you like to learn how to draw a rabbit for spring, but don’t know where to start? Here is a beginner’s guide to creativity for this season Step 1

S

tart by drawing four simple circles very lightly with a pencil. This will help plan the placement of the body parts so that the final piece will not look distorted and out of place.

Step 2 As the blue parts highlight, these are plans for where to place the legs and ears. If it is difficult to see when the lines are blended with the circles, different coloured pencils can be used and the final piece can be traced on top of the plan with another piece of paper.

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How to ...

Step 3 The outer lines should be drawn in the darkest colour you are using; you can press the pencil a little harder.

Step 4 Rub out the circle and lined plans once you have drawn the outline. At this stage, you have the option to give the rabbit a basic colour. In this example the rabbit will be white so the base colour will be left as white. You can experiment with other colours such as brown or grey.

Step 5 Start shading the rabbit in a darker shade of your chosen base colour. You can also add some light to its eyes and some colour so that it looks like light is reflecting from it. While shading think about where the darker areas would be, such as underneath its stomach or foot.

Think about where the light is coming from. Also think about what colours to use for the shading, for example if you used white for your base colour, a light shade of grey can be used for the shadow, or it can be darker. Do not be afraid to experiment.

Continue to practice in your spare time and your skills in drawing will get better.

Experiment with colours and shading, the key is to have fun making your own character.

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ATINOS L EN

SOUTHWARK

THE COLOURFUL WORLD OF SOUTH AMERICA IS RIGHT ON OUR DOORSTEP Since the millennium the Latin American community has been one of the fastest growing migrant groups in London. Many settled in Southwark, bringing their rich cultural heritage, plus their hopes and dreams to the area. Carmen Martinez goes walking to find what’s cooking in the “Latinos en Southwark pot”

O

ur first stop is The Latin American Disabled People’s Project (LADPP). A charity working for the Spanish and Portuguese speaking community living in London.

Community Development Officer Rosie Morgan tells us about the charity’s history: ‘LADPP was founded in 1989 by a Latin American group of people with disabilities who realised from personal experience how difficult it was setting up in a new country. LADPP is open to everybody whether or not they have disabilities, but even so, 70% of our users have told us they live with depression.’

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LADPP’s mission is to combat social isolation by providing a place where users can communicate, learn about their rights, how to access public services and gain employment skills.

Rosie introduces us to Nora, a volunteer from Colombia. Nora has been in London for five years caring for her family and now she is seeking work: ‘I worked in administration in my country and I’m volunteering to update my skills and increase my confidence.

Coming here I get the chance to get outside the home and to socialise, so I will try to come even when I have a job.’

The language barrier is the main problem for newly arrived Spanish and Portuguese speakers. One of the users, Teodosia Alicia, describes her experience: ‘I’m from Lima,

Feature Peru, and I arrived in London three years ago speaking just a few words of English. I’m a trained hairdresser and my dream is to open my own salon here. I tried to find out about the administrative procedures, but because I couldn’t communicate in English I couldn’t get the information I needed.

Finally I came to LADPP and was able to get free legal advice in Spanish.’

people are involved in running the services and workshops, including wellbeing, guitar classes, SpanishEnglish language exchange, and more. Volunteers often bring their own knowledge and skills, for example, one volunteer was an electrician and fixed an electrical fault while he was waiting to be seen. Others help with tidying the office or making tea. We are a family’ she concludes proudly.

W

e leave LADPP to walk into a warm cafe in Peckham Rye and have a chat with Daniel Goldman, Artistic Director of CASA, the stunning Latin American Theatre Festival now in its 8th year.

Teodosia Alicia studying English at LADPP

Slight, chatty, lively Teodosia concludes: ‘The staff here treat me as a human being with kindness and warmth, especially Rosie; she is such a beautiful and sweet person.’

‘We are a family

As she talks about what she calls la familia, it’s clear that Rosie is passionate about her work. She was a volunteer before joining the staff and says: ‘LADPP wouldn’t be possible without its volunteers. Around 60

Daniel introduces himself in a perfect sweet Argentinean Spanish, so it’s a total surprise to discover that Daniel is actually British. He explains with a smile: ‘I studied theatre in Buenos Aires for one year.’

Actually, that’s where the idea for the CASA Festival was born: ‘It was 2001 and I witnessed the theatre’s response to the terrible economic crisis the country was suffering. I discovered that theatre could have a political and social meaning by becoming a channel for ideas.’

In 2007 Daniel was inspired to launch the CASA Festival in London. His idea was to facilitate the cultural exchange between Latin American and UK-based

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Permormers at CASA Community Show © Alex Brenner

theatre makers and showcase the best selected works from both.

companies we invite from the continent stay, not only for their own performance, but for the whole ten days, creating a rich collaborative space.

The audience share the hub space with the performers; the aim is to get close, eat delicious Latin American food, drink, chat, party and enjoy the festive atmosphere. We are working on making the party bigger this year…’ It sounds great Daniel, looking forward to CASA in October!

The ten day international Festival takes place in October and includes shows from both emerging and established companies. This year, Daniel says: ‘Excellent theatre makers are coming Party time in CASA Festival 2014 © Alex Brenner from Mexico, Brazil, oming back to CoolTan Arts, Peru and Chile.’ They will share we discover our very special the stage with outstanding Latin neighbours Teléfono de la Esperanza American artists living in London.

UK (Hope Phone UK) just two The shows are subtitled in English streets away from our office. for the approximate 40% of the Teléfono de la Esperanza is a audience who are non Spanish or respected NGO (non-government Portuguese speakers. organisation) launched 40 years ago in Spain. The London branch opened in 2006 as a registered charity with around 30 committed volunteers.

‘The name of the festival arose Vice President Ernesto Ortega because every Brit knows the describes their mission: ‘It is to meaning of casa, you know? Mi provide support to people who are casa es tu casa (my house is in emotional crisis. Our users are your house). We want everybody Spanish and Portuguese speakers, involved to feel at home and the

C

‘We want everybody involved to feel at home

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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Latin American Disabled People’s Project Unit 7 of the Kennington Workshop.

42 Braganza Street, London SE17 3RJ www.ladpp.org.uk / Tel: 020 7793 8399

CASA Latin Americ E-mail: info@casaf www.casafestival.

Tel: 020 3302 0660

mostly migrants. However, we also use English for the second generation born in the UK.

“Growing to help and helping to grow” is our motto

‘We work in two ways: first, via our telephone helpline and secondly through one-to-one and group sessions run by qualified psychologists and counsellors.

We also organise social events and activities for migrants’ social inclusion.’

Ernesto conveys warmth, reassurance and calm - is this typical of their volunteers?

‘We work on the model of the “professional volunteer”. Everyone involved with us attends oneyear training on self-knowledge, personal growth and helping resources. “Growing to help and helping to grow” is our motto.

proudly: ‘Results are wonderful, you see people who were in crisis recovering and getting on with their lives’ … and all of sudden, the phone rings and Ernesto apologises for finishing our meeting so abruptly ... help is needed, hope is the way.

These are some examples of Latinos’ contributions to London life. We only have to step forward and look around to discover them.

Their casa and familia wait for you.

Just knock the door and go inside!

SOME FACTS AND FIGURES ★★ There are an estimated 113,500 Latin Americans in London. ★★ London’s Latin American population has grown almost four fold since 2001, making it one of the fastest growing migrant groups in the capital.

Telefono de la Esperanza UK Helpline’s volunteer in action

‘People call us for many different reasons ranging from loneliness, depression and for dramatic situations, such as attempts at selfharm.’

Regarding the one-to-one therapy, the group sessions on self-advocacy and mental wellbeing Ernesto says

can Theatre Festival festival.org.uk .org.uk

★★ The Latin American population is especially concentrated in Lambeth and Southwark. This has given rise to vibrant Latino shopping areas in Elephant & Castle and its environs. ★★ They are mainly of working age and are well-educated although almost one-third are unable to speak, read or write more than a little English.

(Source: No longer invisible. The Latin American Community in London. Queen Mary University of London. 2010.)

Telefono de la Esperanza UK Saint Paul’s Lorrimore Square, London SE17 3QU www.telefonodelaesperanza.org.uk Tel: 020 7733 0471

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T. I. N. A.

A

rt, for me, is but a distant memory. I scarcely remember how to experience it. It feels so alien, as though inconsequential and emphatically remote.

It is not at the juncture of creation that Art seems to be drained of all its meaning. Only when it is delivered into the crazy arena that is the exhibition, does it become sterile and valued not simply for the beauty it imparts, but for the questionable identity an Artwork acquires.

I do not profess to know what the future holds for Art, but it is my guess that if it continues on its current trajectory, it will become irretrievably decadent, with the Artist being reduced to hypermarketable bondage.

We need to start afresh in order to re-inhabit the poetic spaces that Art once occupied. This will not be easy. It will take both determination and a strength of will.

I propose that we should not discontinue creatively, but that we should cease to allow the product of our creativity to enter an Art world that is both morally corrupt and unscrupulous at every level.

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Artwork

X

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SONGS for HOPE Su n i l Ch a u h a n’s s e l ec t io n o f u p l if t ing t unes

T

he right song can make you feel less alone, make you believe that someone understands your emotional state, and maybe articulate how you feel better than you could yourself. A singer might express something you didn’t know you felt, or

just make you feel better when you’re at a low ebb. Whether you prefer music to lift you out of yourself or mirror your feelings, these songs offer hope, talk about it, or sound like it.

Peter Gabriel & Kate Bush: Don’t Give Up

Jonathan Richman: Now is Better Than Before

Watch on YouTube: Here

Watch on YouTube: Here

A duel between two perspectives, lines of perseverance - Don’t give up, you’re not beaten yet, don’t give up, I know you can make it good - fight it out with lines of failure - no-one wants you when you lose.

It’s a balance echoed in the video where the sun enters total eclipse and re-emerges, a metaphor for facing the world again.

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Questioning whether things might be better now than they ever were, you’re never sure if Modern Lovers frontman Richman is deluding himself, but it’s a bittersweet trip down memory lane, a song to make you rethink how you compare the past with the present, a sweet reassurance that today might be better than yesterday.

The Beatles: Here Comes the Sun

George Harrison’s most famous Beatles number came from thinking the long English winters lasted too long. It’s probably why Here Comes the Sun hasn’t forgotten its wintry sadness, but is still looking hopefully to what’s around the corner.

Watch on YouTube: Here The Source featuring Candi Staton: You’ve Got The Love

Soul passion rubbing up against cold Chicago house, You’ve Got the Love sounds despairing and defiant all at once, stuck between giving up and soldiering on. Candi Staton finds solace in a higher power, but you don’t have to be a believer to feel her determination.

Watch on YouTube: Here Barbra Streisand : Happy Days Are Here Again

Barbra Streisand’s 1963 version is one of the most enduring versions of a song that first appeared in 1930 film Chasing Rainbows.

She makes it a showstopper, a triumphant farewell to misery. So long sad times, go long bad times, we are rid of you at last.

Music Radiohead: Optimistic

Hope from someone who sounds like they aren’t quite there yet but don’t mind helping you get there first, Radiohead’s Thom Yorke is popularly viewed as a miserablist but lines like - If you try the best you can, the best you can is good enough - suggest he isn’t all gloom.

Watch on YouTube: Here Stevie Wonder – Smile Please

Stevie Wonder has written many songs that are genuinely joyful and life-affirming. Smile Please may sound downbeat but it won’t weigh you down - Wonder’s kindness means assurances like - there are brighter days ahead - always seem to ring true.

Watch on YouTube: Here Judy Garland – Over the Rainbow

A Depression-era staple, Over the Rainbow understands the economic woes of its time and why that meant hope was needed.

It might be blind optimism (If happy little bluebirds fly beyond the rainbow, Why, oh why can’t I?) but being able to think of alternate realities can be necessary for recovery.

Watch on YouTube: Here

Watch on YouTube: Here

Bob Dylan – New Morning

Bob Marley: Everything’s Gonna Be Alright

Exploring life’s simple pleasures (Can’t you hear the rooster crowin’?), New Morning is Dylan’s ode to nature. Able to transplant you to country rivers and farmyards even if you’re in greyest London, it’s full of joy: So happy just to be alive, underneath the sky of blue, on this new morning.

Watch on YouTube: Here

Does pop get more hopeful than this? If you can separate it from its use in advertising, it’s still a lovely, compassionate song with sweet rural imagery (Three little birds perch by my doorstep singin’ sweet songs) and a positivity that familiarity can’t dampen.

Watch on YouTube: Here

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Creative products from CoolTan Arts

CoolTan Books

A Postcard to the World

CoolTan Books, price £7.50 A beautiful collection of 14 original postcard artworks, created for our ‘A Postcard to the World’ mail art project.

Food for Mood CoolTan Books, price £9.99 A uniquely creative cookbook from CoolTan Arts, which will inspire you to cook and eat well whatever your mood!

Greeting Cards

Anthropology

by the CoolTan Poets CoolTan Books, price £5.99 An anthology of poetry by members of the poetry group at CoolTan Arts. ... a book of brilliant growling poems, dandified wild work ... funny, witty, moving, political, sassy, wise Ali Smith

Diagnosis: Hysteria?

Prescription: Hysteria!

Poems by the Women of CoolTan Arts CoolTan Books, price £5.99 An anthology of poems by the participants of the CoolTan Arts Women’s Poetry Group and some of the female staff and volunteers who work there.

£2 each or 6 for £10

New designs available!

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All items are available through CoolTan’s online shop, CoolTrade, or directly from CoolTan Arts reception.

Drop in or contact olivia@cooltanarts.org.uk or phone 020 7701 2696

Textiles New designs!

Fairy Bag or Walworth Road Bag £10.00 Beautiful reproductions of classic CoolTan artworks. Featuring the CoolTan swirl on the back. 100% cotton canvas.

Apron £20.00 Full colour design by Richard del Oro NEW!!

Badges £1 each Lots of colours!

CoolTan T-Shirts £10.00 Orange or black, fitted or loose, available in a range of sizes.

Teatowels £10.00 100% cotton, colourful artwork by CoolTan artists. More designs available

Largactyl Shuffle Products Rucksack £19.99 High visibility and water repellent.

High Vis Vest £15.00 Our Largactyl Shuffle logo is included in the front and back of the vest.

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Getting involved with Joining a Workshop At CoolTan Arts we offer a wide range of activities including visual arts, poetry, cooking, textiles, computer skills, walking ...

Workshops are funded in different ways, so some workshops are free and open to everyone, and for others there is a fee to pay, or they are set up to support certain people.

If you have general questions about workshops or would like a copy of the latest timetable, you can come in and speak to our reception volunteers, or to Olivia Moyes, our Admin Officer. You can also ring her on 0207 701 2696, or email olivia@cooltanarts.org.uk You will be asked to fill in a registration form before you can attend a workshop.

If you have a social worker or are with a CMHT and are interested in joining a workshop, your registration form will be passed onto Karen Unrue, Community Involvement Advocacy Coordinator: karen@cooltanarts.org.uk or phone 0207 701 2696. Karen will contact you with more info about how to start at CoolTan Arts.

Most workshops are advertised on our website: www.cooltanarts.org.uk and in our monthly newsletter, along with information about who the workshops are for and if you need to pay.

Volunteering at CoolTan Gain a unique experience with a lively independent Arts organisation!

We have recently been awarded the Investing in Volunteers quality standard and have also won the Queen’s Award for Volunteering. There has never been a better time to volunteer at CoolTan Arts!

Make friends, have fun, learn work skills and brush up on your talents in a safe, supportive environment.

We usually have a wide variety of volunteering opportunities ranging from practical activities to admin and reception, graphic design to workshop assistants. We also have various volunteering roles with specific projects. There are lots of training opportunities, tailored to your volunteer role, and we pay up to £4.40 travel expenses per day.

Opportunities are advertised on our website: www.cooltanarts.org.uk and in our monthly newsletter. You can also call in to CoolTan and ask to see the volunteering bulletin with all the latest roles in it.

To find out more about volunteering or to apply for a role, please contact our volunteer coordinator volunteering@cooltanarts.org.uk or ring 020 701 2696. You will be invited to attend a Volunteer Induction Session.

CoolTan Arts welcomes volunteers with disabilities.

If you would like to sign up for the monthly newsletter (sent to your email) please contact olivia@cooltanarts.org.uk or phone 0207 701 2696.

We Need Your Help!

If you have enjoyed this magazine, please consider making a donation to CoolTan Arts.

CoolTan Arts provide support in an area which has one of the highest incidences of mental distress in Western Europe. We enable people to develop their potential, reconnect with their aspirations, recover and enjoy life!

Due to severe funding cuts to organisations like CoolTan Arts we need your help to ensure we can continue making a difference. All money raised is much needed and will go directly to support people with mental distress.

Ways to donate: • • •

Donate securely using JustGiving: www.justgiving.com/cooltanarts Use the form below to make a one-off or monthly donation Donate by text: Simply send COOL96 £3 to 70070 to make a £3 donation, or any other £1, £2, £3, £4, £5 or £10. It’s quick and simple!

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CoolTan Arts believes mental wellbeing is enhanced by the power of creativity

HOW TO FIND US CoolTan Arts Third Floor 224-236 Walworth Road London SE17 1JE 020 7701 2696 or 0798 5658443 Email: info@cooltanarts.org.uk Web: www.cooltanarts.org.uk Tel:

*We are to the right of the main post office between a Specsavers Optician and Paul’s Discount Store. To enter the building press 6 and the bell icon. Inside there is a lift (press 3 in lift) or stairs which you can take to the third floor.

CoolTan Arts are there on the right.

* The nearest tube station is Elephant & Castle which is approximately a ten minute walk. *Buses from Elephant & Castle and Camberwell (get off at East Street stop) 12, 35, 40, 45, 68, 148, 171, 176, 468 & P5

CoolTan Arts Entrance

With thanks to our funders and sponsors

CoolTan Arts has received the following awards: • Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, 2014 • Investing in Volunteers, 2014 • South London Membership Council’s Innovation Award, 2013 • MHPF Awards - Best Practice in Peer Support Development, 2013 • Southwark Arts Forum - Celebrating Diversity Award, 2013 • Shortlisted for Guardian Charity Awards, 2013 We are proud to have as Patrons: Arthur Smith, Maggi Hambling, Ali Smith, Clare Allen and Rosemary Shrager Registered charity number 1064231, Company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales reg. 3244552