Artist in Residency at the hospice

Since January 2020, we have been working in partnership with Chesterfield-based arts charity Junction Arts, to deliver the Art at Ashgate project which has enabled two Artists in Residence to work at Ashgate Hospice and in our community hubs across North Derbyshire.

Opportunities for end of life patients to engage with the Arts are very limited so, this Artist in Residency project, funded by Arts Council England, enables our patients, their families and friends to work with professional artists to be creative and make art. Being creative together benefits our patients by giving them a positive distraction and focus, rather than overthinking about their situation or bereavement. The project also supports artists by developing their understanding of working in the palliative care setting.

The aims of the project are to:

• explore new ways to integrate the arts and creative outcomes into the care provided by the hospice
• provide professional development by supporting the artists to develop their understanding of working in palliative care
• and provide opportunities for patients, their families, friends and bereaved to be creative and make art at time when due to outside factors their access is limited or lost.

The project has involved Ashgate patients on our Inpatient Unit, in our Day Hospice, at our community hubs, as well as people who attend our support groups. Staff and volunteers from the hospice have also had the chance to take part and learn new skills.

The first Artist in Residence was Nottingham-based Fi Burke who delivered her workshops from January to March with over 100 participants!

Miriam Robinson, an artist from Chesterfield is currently delivering the second residency that should have started in April but was delayed due to Covid. Since July Miriam has been working with participants remotely, delivering live online workshops that have proved to be a great success. Miriam’s residency will continue until the New Year.

You can watch the short film below to find out more about Fi Burke’s residency.