Registration

Reserve your free place online here

View the event poster here

About the event:

Event programme

17:00 - 18:00: Registration, Art Exhibition viewing and refreshements

18:00 - 19:30: The Words, Transformational Pathways

Welcome - Heike Bartel, Chair

Opening Address - Andy Farr, Artist

Participant Testimonies

19:30 - 20:00: Meet the Artist, Participants and sponsors

The Art

Leading the event is Andy Farr, a Midlands-based artist and storyteller known for his ability to express deeply emotional and personal journeys through his art. Andy started using art to work through his own challenging life story and now he uses art to help others with their own healing. His latest project, Being Seen, is a poignant collection of paintings based on dialogues with individuals who have faced trauma. Each piece reflects their stories of recovery, as Andy translates their emotions into visual form. Through this body of work, he continues his mission of using art to heal and to make the unseen, seen.

Being Seen follows earlier moving exhibitions, including The Twisted Rose & Other Lives, and Portraits of Isolation both collaborations with With-You and the IMH.

The Words

For the first time alongside the art, the event will feature the voices behind the paintings. Nine speakers, whose personal stories informed Andy’s work, will share their experiences of recovery. Their stories range from engaging with talking therapies, mindfulness, and creative expression to finding solace in community, nature, and self-discovery. Together, they represent diverse pathways to reclaiming well-being after trauma, offering powerful messages of hope and empowerment. They will talk about the role this project has played in their journey of healing, and the importance of truly being seen.

This event promises to be a powerful experience, blending art and personal storytelling to shine a light on recovery and resilience.

The Collaborations

The Institute of Mental Health is a huge supporter of Andy Farr and his work and this will be the third time he is returning for an exhibition, held in our A floor corridoor.

Andy has worked closely with several organisations to bring this collection to life.

His association with With-you Consultancy, an organisation specialising in peer support and peer-based approaches, stretches back over five years to Andy’s The Twisted Rose & Other Lives exhibition.

DayOne Trauma Support help anyone affected by major physical trauma rebuild their life. From day one, for as long as it takes.

Chairing the event is Heike Bartel, a Professor at the University of Nottingham with a special interest in the study of interdisciplinary narratives of illness, health and recovery. 

Getting here

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