#20: An Intervention By The Sea

Last week I took The Library of Meaning to Hastings Library as part of Men’s Mental Health Day, run by Mind Charity. It was the first time presenting the Library to the general public, away from the supportive atmosphere of friends and peers. I am looking to build a base for the project in the Hastings/East Sussex area as I plan to move there sometime in the next year or two.

It was very warmly received, if not particularly well attended, I’d say only around five or six people actually participated in it. However it was very valuable to get the chance to meet lots of useful stakeholders who could provide me with opportunities to push the project forward. I found myself surrounded by people who ran various kinds of mental health charities and organisations, most of them were looking to find artists who could deliver artistic engagement for their members. There was a real hunger for new and interesting approaches, this made me feel like I was pointing my project in the right direction. Even though there was not much testing of the project with the public, I relished the chance to meet crucial stakeholders and discuss aspects of mental health engagement with them.

I’ve come away feeling that I might have learnt as much as I can from this iteration of my intervention. I have a couple of leads on potential opportunities to take the project to mental health support groups, which could provide a valuable insight on delivering to my most at risk stakeholders. But while I wait to see if these bear fruit I am starting to plan the next stage of the project: Intervention Mk3.