News and Blogs

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News

This brief report looks at the complex question of skills development across creative health – an area which intersects importantly with both the wellbeing of the workforce and its diversity and representativeness.
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curly haired woman wearing a striped jumper smiling against a sea facing background
Luisa Golob
Meet our new Barnsley Creative Health Lead, Luisa Golob. She shares what a typical day looks like in the world of Creative Health.
by Fiona Moon, outgoing Events & Programmes Lead After two meaningful years at CHWA, I’m sad and excited to say I’ll be moving on at the end of June to pursue my PhD—today I’m reflecting on what a journey of growth it’s been for the sector, the organisation and for me as an individual and artist.   

Blog

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woman dancing with her back to the camera wearing headphones under a green hue with a dj on the decks in the background
Pete Woodhead - Disco Neurotico
Disco Neurotico was created in response to a need - a need that the vast majority of people probably don’t even think about.
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Women sitting and standing in front of polka dot background wearing vibrantly coloured saris
The Offbeat Sari curated by Priya Khanchandani is a vibrant celebration of the contemporary sari. The exhibition unravels the sari’s numerous forms, positioning it as a powerful metaphor for the layered  and complex definitions of India today.
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Young man with black short hair, wearing a purple t-shirt holding a console control pad and smirking
Stuart Wallace Photography: Steven Mair, Gamer-in-Residence at Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity
Our National Coordinator recently met with Steven Mair, Gamer in Residence at Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity, to talk about his role and the part gaming plays in the wellbeing of patients.  

Stories of lived experience

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an abstract digital artwork with a dark background featuring bright prin, blues and fine points of yellow light in the centre
‘Untitled’ By Casey Francis (Mad Truth)
...through creativity we can transform adversity to beauty and in the process transform ourselves. We can create our own lives as if we are creating a work of art. Instilled within all of our experience are layers of meaning, understanding and connection. Art is empathy, it is communication. Art allows us to step outside of ourselves, and see something inside that we could not recognise because of our external circumstances, our pain, our fear, our doubt.
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Venn diagram showing the intersections of 'queer, 'creativity' and 'health'
Illustrations by MJ Barker
What would it mean to ‘queer’ creative health? Why might we need to, and, if so, how? I was given the opportunity to first delve into these questions through a PhD scholarship I completed in 2019. My literature review explored longer histories of the field of Arts in Health as part of exploring its relationship to people and place.  
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Tina Blaber with guitar against a wall
Tina Blaber
Our existence is embedded in culture – it’s all around us – and I think the need for this, as social creatures, is an inherent part of our make-up, as human beings.

A Day in the Life

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curly haired woman wearing a striped jumper smiling against a sea facing background
Luisa Golob
Meet our new Barnsley Creative Health Lead, Luisa Golob. She shares what a typical day looks like in the world of Creative Health.
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A man with long brown hair wearing brown trousers and a light blue shirt looking at a glass sculpture resting within a tree outside in nature
Ric Raithby 2025
Find out what a typical day looks like for glass artist, Ric Raithby, commissioned to design the award for the upcoming CHWA Awards on the 23rd April.
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Formal portrait photograph of a woman facing the camera. She has long brown hair and is wearing a grey jacket and black top.
Meet one of our new Directors, Dr Nuala Morse...

International

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Hear and Now 2019 in Bedford, co-produced by Orchestras Live and the Philharmonia Orchestra © Beth Walsh
Hear and Now 2019 in Bedford, co-produced by Orchestras Live and the Philharmonia Orchestra © Beth Walsh
An invitation on behalf of the international Music for Social Impact research project funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council to participate in a survey of musicians in all pa
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a woman discusses a picture at the Crocker Museum with a group of seated women
Crocker Museum, Sacramento, California
Seeking participants for new online study to find out.
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logo for Dawn Chorus
Creative Aging International (CAI) was started with the ideas of “making with” and “making for” at its core.