History
In Autumn 2019 we partnered with Magic Me, the UK’s leading inter-generational arts charity, to take part in their Artists’ Residencies in Care Homes project.
Working with arts organisations who are at the cutting edge of their art forms and leaders in their field, the project challenges not just the public’s perception of what ‘old people’ living in care homes want, but also the artists themselves who will be exploring a whole new audience and way of working. Staff and management of the care settings will also gain a greater understanding of what arts can do for their residents and of the hidden talents of the people they care for.
Also taking part in the project are Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures, Fevered Sleep and Curious Directive. Anglia Ruskin University will be evaluating the project to highlight learning and best practice in building relationships between arts organisations, artists & care staff: a vital foundation for future innovative arts practice
The project spans four years and we were paired with Lime Court, an Exelcare UK care home in Dovercourt, Essex.
“People over 75 are one of the most marginalized groups in terms of arts participation. Ageism is still rife and socially acceptable in a way that other prejudices are not, colouring the way older arts audiences are viewed as less important, not open to new work and even, not ‘on brand’ by some arts organisations. Care homes are the butt of jokes or feared places of last resort, not people’s homes. Thanks to funding from Paul Hamlyn Foundation this project can start to address these prejudices. I passionately believe that just because someone lives in a care home they don’t stop being entitled to high quality arts and culture, or to a participative experience that is more than just something to pass the time.”
Susan Langford, Magic Me Director
The project began in Autumn 2019, starting with a ‘meet and greet’ session for families, friends and loved ones to talk about the work of Gecko and to help them understand the project better. To introduce the home to our work, we screened ‘The Time of Your Life’ at a movie night created for the residents. Then, over the course of two weeks we began some workshops, led by Helen Baggett, Kenny Wing Tao Ho and Katie Lusby, to begin building relationships and to test working with ideas of movement, touch and stimulation.
November 2019
September 2021
The Covid 19 pandemic halted our engagement with Lime Court, as they coped with this national crisis. However, further into lockdown, they were keen to keep our relationship going, and were in need of some fun, energy and happiness, so in the following Easter 2021 we developed a weekly zoom workshop, led by Helen, which was beamed into their lounge areas. We also built in 1 to 1 sessions over zoom, chatting with Helen about their lives and experiences.
In September 21 we began our Research and Development period, where, due to continuing restrictions, we built an outdoor stage area on the side of the home in their garden, adorned with props including vintage radios, a dressing-up area, musical instruments, and even a parrot in a cage. Over the course of two weeks, we captured this playful exploration led by Helen and Miguel, supported by Mishi Bekesi and Gecko’s previous administrator, Frankie Bloor and you can see the what we got up to in this film below.
Experimenting with film and the subsequent impact from capturing these moments on camera led to our decision to create an artistically elevated piece of film theatre for the ‘residency’ stage of the project and the culmination of this journey: STILL