The Art of Care: Exploring Its Role with Artist Katharine Goda

Originally posted on Changing Relations C.I.C’s LinkedIn between 16 September 2024 and 20 September 2024

It matters that we grow and nurture a core of specialists and explore the frameworks which can support them.

Why Do We Care?

Care is a really important topic for us. It’s at the heart of all we do. Over the course of this week, we’ll be posting a series of pieces written by our Associate Artist Katharine Goda on the theme of care.

Thank you, Katharine, for your thoughtful words.

Defining Care in Creative Practice

The word ‘care’ comes from voice – to call, to cry, to chatter. But we don’t. Chat about it. We know intuitively what it means: clear safeguarding procedures and leads; signposting towards extra support in and beyond school; consistent facilitators; voluntary participation; creating a space where everyone can contribute – through a carefully considered gender balance, valuing creative and thematic motivations for participating, and a prosocial model which builds confidence and agency. But we rarely talk about what care might mean among creative practitioners and producers.

Changing Relations works with a diverse range of creatives who are excellent at what they do. Part of this is down to who they are and the skills they’ve developed through experience. But what is it that’s special in how we work with each other and young people that keeps everyone safe and creates a space where everyone is able to engage with really challenging topics?

The creative health sector is expanding rapidly, with a limited pool of practitioners – often linked to really dedicated smaller organisations – who can do this work. It matters that we grow and nurture a core of specialists and explore the frameworks which can support them. So what might care mean among creative practitioners and producers? That would be something worth chatting about.

Image credit: Lou Brown from a series commissioned for our What’s All The Fuss About? newspaper.

How Do We Care?

For Changing Relations, care is an active process, embodying the values we believe in. Each project begins with a meeting where each person talks about how they work best. This isn’t just about being an organisation which recognises, takes an interest in and values neurodiversity, but also about embracing the idea that everyone has preferences and areas they find difficult. Before the first participants’ session is even planned, the whole team gathers together to clarify what’s important in the project, how we want the young people to feel and how we might create an environment that fosters this for everyone.

Building a Culture of Support

As well as the care and flexibility around how people work together, when difficult situations arise these are underpinned by a culture of support. Dealing with disclosures is not rare because the arts often facilitate people to talk about things they might never have voiced, and – while creative practitioners remind people there are alternatives to discussion in a group setting – sometimes a gate will be opened. After listening to something so powerful, support is vital to make sure everyone is safe.

All the creative practitioners and Kate Gorman, as Creative Producer, have group sessions with Sue Spencer, an experienced supervisor, former nurse and academic, covering thematic issues and the highs and lows of working as a team. For freelancers used to being alone, this can fundamentally change their approach to – and feelings about – a project. This is echoed by the approach to care which Kate brings from past roles as an accountant – if a facilitator is nervous or needs an extra person, she will always offer to be there. This strong sense of shared responsibility and care is key to Changing Relations as an organisation, their ways of working mirroring the values they hold and speak up for.

Image credit: Lizzie Lovejoy, who we commissioned to illustrate our soundscape Us Too.

The Power of Openness in Leadership

It’s not just the big stuff which matters – the everyday counts too. At the end of every participant session, the team explore what’s worked well, what hasn’t and why. As Creative Producer, Kate Gorman checks in with each individual, an opportunity which normalises bringing up things that need to be addressed before they have the chance to become a problem. This willingness to be open about vulnerability is key in keeping both people and project safe. Many organisations do a great job of caring for creative practitioners but what marks Changing Relations out is its care for the Creative Producer who supports each creative practitioner and maintains an overview of the project. Beyond supervision, Lisa Charlotte Davis contacts Kate often to ask how she’s doing and what she needs.

Vulnerability as a Vital Enabler

Working with people around such difficult issues and experiences is challenging, and it’s easy to think about what you’re doing wrong or missing instead of everything you’re getting right. It’s tempting as a creative producer to feel you have to be the one holding everything together, that for the team to feel confident you need to keep yourself apart and stay silent about issues or problems. Instead, Kate makes a deliberate effort to remind herself it’s important to be allowed to make mistakes and have feelings – that this neither undermines the team’s confidence in her nor changes her ability to be an excellent creative producer.

Actually, seeming invincible benefits no-one – how can people ask for help from someone who’s apparently perfect? Modelling getting things wrong and asking for honest feedback or help when things are hard makes the team stronger. Since everyone is key to the success of the project, it makes sense that encouragement and trust flow both ways: ‘You’ll pull it off. You always do’.

Image credit: Lizzie Lovejoy, commissioned as part of our Us Too soundscape project.