If you’re 4 years old and living in Kensington/Flemington, you have spent half your life in lockdown. Half your life!
For those of us who are older, a couple of years of isolation is not much, but for our youngest community members it means a big chunk of their life has been restricted.
Many have been unable to visit extended family, get to know their grandparents, or connect with neighbours or other community members.
Extended lockdowns caused significant changes to children’s routines, including confinement, isolation and closure of schools and childcare, affecting children’s sense of structure and security.
Likewise, older adults have been negatively impacted by prolonged lockdowns – experiencing an acute sense of social isolation and loneliness with associated mental and physical health consequences.
The obvious solution is to get older and younger community members together!
In an effort to rekindle inter-generational connections, Kensington Neighbourhood House will be organizing a series of art-making workshops throughout 2023. Our project – “From The HeART” – aims to bring older and younger community members together to create a fantastic public art installation.
The developers of the Kensington Recreation Centre have promised a section of hoarding to use as our “canvas” and we will be commissioning a community artist to oversee the project.
Art enables people to share their experiences, thoughts, feelings and imaginations. It is a way for people to express their sense of identity and it enriches lives by providing a means to see and experience the world through the eyes of others.
We hope that “From The HeART” will provide a creative focus for participants to process the impacts of the pandemic and explore feelings of belonging.
We’re also hoping to increase opportunities for inter-generational and cross- cultural communication. Not to mention provide a whole lot of colour, creativity and fun!
We are currently collecting participants. If you, or a small person you know, would like to take part in this project, please email Rebecca.s@kenhouse.org.au.
Thanks to the City of Melbourne for the 2023 Connected Communities Grant funding this project.
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