The project aims to enhance the creative playfulness, overall wellbeing and relational bonding between infants and their caregivers through collaboration and participation in a series of 8 creative art workshops with professional artists from AAEX Jennifer Slater, Susan Farrelly, Caoimhe O’Dwyer and Úna Curley.

Our main objectives focus on the delivery of a sophisticated art experience for this vulnerable group in society; babies and their mothers, who may both be feeling the normal stresses and strains of early care giving scenarios. It is also estimated that postnatal depression exists at about 28% in Ireland in urban areas, yet is considered to be greatly underreported due to stigma, societal pressures and cultural myths around motherhood. Exploring themes of mothering and reciprocity through creative play, mark-making, mirroring, repetition, matching and mis-matching via the production of monoprints, printed textiles, textile sculptures, photo graphics, drawings and poems presented in 'art keepsake box' and mini-world installations, inspired by the assemblage boxes of artist Joseph Cornell. A self-taught artist, Cornell relied almost exclusively on found materials. He collected items from books, newspapers, second-hand stores, exploratory walks — even sweepings from his studio floor. As a group we would hope to try out some of Cornell’s' ideas, alongside ideas from our own art-practices involving found objects, drawing, textile art, walking and writing.

Please note that the details of events listed above are provided by the relevant Local Authorities.