About
Participate Arts – initiating, developing & delivering contemporary participatory arts projects.
Collaboration and partnership are central to what we do. We aim to inspire people to engage in art and the artistic process, working with a diverse range of people, who may be facing social, cultural and educational barriers, socially engaging through art. Workshops and participatory events bring peoples’ creativity alive, enabling people to come together and engage with each other, motivating participants involved to learn and develop skills for positive change.
Our local and national partners include Be Buckfastleigh, Spacex Exeter, Ageing Well, Torre Abbey Museum, Devon Guild, Contemporary Craft Fair, DAISI, The Foyer, Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust, Exeter University, British Council, Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Society, NHS South Devon and Torbay CCG, Thames Festival Trust.
Example Projects:
Memorial Sculpture Garden, Totnes. Working with bereaved families around baby loss, casting personal tiles, making books.
The Foyer, Plymouth. Working with at risk young people and staff over a one year period to re-imagine their residential space, raise aspirations, nurture self awareness and demonstrate new ceramics casting skills to Foyer Federation Management.
Ageing Well festival, Torquay. Engaging older people and public about meaning and purpose in older life, evolving street art sculpture over one day.
Early Intervention Mental Health Programme, Torbay. Working with four schools in Torbay to improve emotional resilience around difficult transitions, over 3 months.
Exeter University Family Day. Collaboration with researcher, making banners around themes of popular culture, performance and football.
Creative Community Engagement and Enchanted Events Programme, Buckfastleigh Town Council. Working with families and delivering Intergenerational projects to improve Arts engagement, developing local Culture strategy. Ongoing.
Buckfastleigh Primary School Arts week. Developing individual prints and large indoor mural around theme of respect with every child in the school.
High Week Primary School Arts Week. Working with a mixed aged group with the theme of an African Myth about hard work and collaboration in the creation of three large scale batiks.
Rivers of The World River Exe project with six Exeter and Malawi secondary schools, highlighting environmental issues and UN global development goals, over 4 months.
Care Homes Leadership – working with managers, team leaders and residents of two care homes on a micro project looking at bereavement tools and team-leading skills.
We are part of TCAN network, delivering a wide creative offer to increase engagement with people in Torbay across the life course. We’ve been involved in Cultural Commissioning Arts and Health projects, helping to develop cultural strategy for the area.
Participate Artists
Gaby Lovatt Gaby has extensive experience for over 20 years of working with families, children and young people as an Artist Educator with a particular interest in site specific work, heritage objects and environmental themes. Background in Installation, 3D, mixed media. Gaby is passionate about the use of the Arts to create positive social change and help build communities.
Becci Eriksson Becci’s arts practice focuses on found objects and people’s stories using 2 and 3D work, installation, book works, textiles and text. Creative practice also embraces arts education, participation, curated exhibitions, coordinated arts events, projects & conferences. Devon School for Social Entrepreneurs fellow. Becci loves working with people and the connections and transformations that can happen around the creative process.