This year, we were thrilled to announce Sandra Priseman as the Artist in Residence for our partner commission with RHS Wisley Gardens.
In her first blog post, Sandra introduces herself and her plans for the residency, and includes an example of her previous work ‘Abandoned Wheelbarrow’ as a taster of what’s to come. We’re excited to find out!
About Me
My name is Sandra Priseman I have a complex mental health disorder. I am about to celebrate my 60th birthday and would like my creative writing residency at Wisely to reflect the part nature has played towards healing in my mental health journey.
I attend Creative Response, a safe space for wellbeing focusing on art as a medium for recovery. I am also one of the founder members of a writing group component of Creative Response. When I am at Wisley I would like to explore different artwork as background to my poetry.
About My Work
During my creative writing journey, I have been part of many opportunities to write poetry, the latest of which was a project I did during the pandemic. A group of Creative Response participants worked with professional poet Justin Coe who inspired the group to write individual poems which were then put in a book called ‘Where Seeds Are Planted Poems Grow.’ We then got together at ‘Space To Grow’ a local place of wellbeing and shared our poetry with our peers at Creative Response.
ABANDONED WHEELBARROW
Abandoned in the garden
I wonder what you are going to be used for next?
Left to rot!!!!
But today I see that someone has planted strawberry plants
Just flowering at the moment
But one day soon the flowers will transform into fruits
Starting green, turning to white
Ripening in the sun into a juicy bright red
So therefore, this Wheelbarrow was never abandoned
But turns out to be full of fruits
The focus of my residency is ‘The Healing Aspect of Nature in Relation to Mental Health Disorders’. I am very much looking forward to the beautiful environment of Wisely inspiring my creative writing and artwork.
We can’t wait to hear more from Sandra about her residency and how she is getting on. Stay up to date by following us on social media!