Funding Story: Creativity, confidence and connection on display as Mindful Art Club exhibition celebrates a year of recovery.
The Livewell Foundation is celebrating the success of a powerful community exhibition that showcased how creativity can play a vital role in improving mental health, building confidence and supporting recovery.
Last month, Mindful Art Club CIC welcomed visitors to Leadworks in Stonehouse for a moving exhibition featuring artwork created by women who have spent the past year taking part in weekly mindful art sessions across Plymouth.
Artworks were displayed in a showcase at Leadworks in Stonehouse.
Made possible through funding from the Livewell Foundation, the project has supported women experiencing mental health challenges and recovering from substance misuse, providing safe, welcoming spaces where creativity became a pathway to healing, connection and self-expression.
Delivered in partnership with Greenspace Community Hub, Gifted Women, Sunflower Women's Centre and Leadworks Projects CIC, the weekly sessions encouraged participants to explore art without judgement, helping many to develop confidence, reduce isolation and improve their wellbeing.
The exhibition brought those experiences to life through an inspiring collection of paintings, drawings and mixed-media artwork created entirely by the women who attended the sessions. Visitors also enjoyed live music from local songwriter Abi Bee, poetry performances and deeply personal stories from participants, offering a moving insight into the transformative impact the project has had.
Among those sharing their experience was participant Ellen, who described Mindful Art Club as a lifeline while waiting to access therapy.
"I cried. I identified with people. I got the warmest welcome from Emma and Peggy. I left having not felt the one thing I thought I would encounter: judgement. My life has improved in so many ways because of mindful art."
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| Artwork created as part of the project. |
Peggy Melmoth, Co-founder and Director of Mindful Art Club CIC, reflected on the success of the project:
"What we've seen over the past year has gone far beyond what we imagined. We've witnessed courage, honesty, friendships forming and women rediscovering confidence through creativity. Seeing their work celebrated in this exhibition has been incredibly special."
For the Livewell Foundation, the exhibition is a powerful example of how investing in community-led projects can create lasting improvements in health and wellbeing.
The Foundation exists to support organisations that reduce social isolation, improve health and wellbeing and help prevent ill health across Plymouth and the surrounding area. Mindful Art Club's work demonstrates how relatively small investments in preventative, person-centred support can make a meaningful difference in people's lives.
Hayley Everett, Charity Manager at the Livewell Foundation, said:
"It was wonderful to see the Mindful Art Club host this exhibition and, more importantly, to give a platform to the women whose lives have been changed by this project. The artwork itself was beautiful, but the real achievement was the confidence, resilience and community that had been built over the past year. This is exactly the kind of preventative, community-based support the Livewell Foundation exists to champion."
The Foundation extends its congratulations to everyone involved in bringing the exhibition together, particularly the women who so generously shared both their creativity and their personal journeys. Their courage serves as a reminder that recovery is not always measured by clinical outcomes alone, but also by renewed confidence, connection and hope.
As Mindful Art Club continues its work across Plymouth, the Livewell Foundation looks forward to seeing more people benefit from projects that put wellbeing, creativity and community at their heart.
Find out more: Mindful Art Club – A Creative Escape