North Berwick: Care home residents’ striking new artwork

The work has been created by residents of The Abbey care home in the town, creating a rich tapestry of images in collaboration with artist Susie Wilson.

The images depict a rich spectrum of greens and blues under the title ‘Weathering the Storm’, which explored the ideas of weather, coast and the landscape.

The works highlight the unique art that can come from the “diminishing memory” of an individual while also drawing inspiration from North Berwick’s coastal setting.

The artworks are located within the former telephone boxes on Westgate which are operated by pARTicipate, a group working under North Berwick Environment and Heritage Trust with the mission of bringing community-led art projects to the town.

One of the artists takes in the works

Geraldine Prince, the group’s co-ordinator, told the Courier that the artwork was “remarkable” and, if she had not known it was made by people with dementia, she would have thought it had been created by young art students.

The work has also been complemented by a type of ‘create-your-own poem’ which allows members of the public to participate in the piece, moving words and phrases around to create unique poems.

Geraldine said: “It’s also been complemented by really extraordinary contributions from the amazing local community and visitors. Around 75 short poems and inscriptions have appeared… and then disappear to be replaced by others.

“There’s a sort of alchemy going on – the artist prepared a set of words inspired by the workshops; put them in a random order on magnetic panels, and the community took up the challenge.”