Entering a New Phase
Hello 2024!
We know, it’s been a while…
It’s actually four months since our last blog update and seven since we reflected on our first year! Where did that time go?
We would like to say “thank you” for bearing with us, we can assure you there is a good reason for this…
Thortify is now officially a not-for-profit Limited Company and we have been planning our next steps - which we are really excited to share with you all!
Despite the three of us organising the Arts Council funded project around full-time employment, understanding that this would restrict the impact we could make, we were blown away by what we did manage to achieve and we really want the legacy to continue.
“Thortify was never just a project; it was an idea unleashed, a dream that found life through the passion of its founders, their creative endeavours during lockdown, and the spirit of collaboration.” (Amy Gill - The Beestonian Magazine)
The Art of Self Care
In our journey to discover 'The Art of Self Care’, which perfectly aligned with the Art Council's 'Let's Create' strategy, we believe we successfully introduced our ideas for supporting wellbeing through creativity.
We initiated discussions with a variety of individuals and organisations, that underpinned the social theories we used as our starting point. We feel we demonstrated how to utilise these social theories to promote wellbeing within our three beautifully illustrated workbooks.
What we wanted to achieve we felt was ambitious, but important. The impact of our initial project exceeded our expectations. In just one year we reached over 30,000 people via our website and over 100 participants through in person events and workshops.
Through these we been working hard to build relationships with Nottingham Trent University, the University of Nottingham, Middle Street Resource Centre and the Beeston Women's Group, and contributed community produced artwork for an exhibition celebrating ‘50 Years of Middle Street Resource Centre’.
We have had a few hiccups - mainly due to losing control of our website temporarily - but we are definitely still moving forward.
So what’s next for Thortify Ltd?
We have progressed from our digital roots to deliver more in-person workshop sessions for small groups and at public events, and we have loved it! We are hoping to expand on this to offer bespoke sessions for a wider range of participants.
We have also been considering how we can utilise our combined skills to support even more people in our communities, and as we are spread over two cities this gives us a lot of scope to extend our reach.
Through Collage Club, we have collaborated with The Place, Sherwood to develop artist studios and exhibition space for the benefit of local creatives. This is a fledgling project that looks set to keep us busy this spring!
Finally, it is our intention to submit another application for Arts Council funding. This involves evaluating our one year initial project and writing detailed plans for how we will build on this. It’s a lot of work but we know it’s worth it.
Feedback from our sessions has convinced us that the kind of wellbeing support we can offer has been appreciated and is very much needed. The healthcare crisis, increase in mental health referrals and difficult circumstances in which many of us find ourselves living are not disappearing overnight.
We hope that by committing to Thortify Ltd, we are making a commitment to making a difference, and we genuinely believe that we can.
Empowering others to use creativity to support their wellbeing through self care practices is our aim, and our work has just begun.
Follow our socials for ideas and updates.
Peace and paintbrushes
Team Thortify
