#feedcreativityglos @createglos

Creativity and connection in a time of crisis- what might the arts and cultural sector learn from the food sector?

I am watching with admiration as the food sector responds to the Covid-19 crisis. Top notch chefs, take away restaurants, food banks, community kitchens, street based teams of neighbours, van drivers all now working together in radical and innovative ways.

Unexpected alliances have emerged and are rapidly achieving scale with new supply chains, dynamic producer teams and diverse distribution networks.

Food for thought for us at Create Gloucestershire – what might we learn from this commitment to ensure people, especially those who are most vulnerable, receive a daily supply of home delivered food? How has the obvious sense of urgency to feed people during lock down, driven the speed, innovation and scale that has been achieved?

Our mission is arts every day for everyone. If we believe creative expression is as important as food to our health, how are we going to reach the 9000 people currently at home and classified as “vulnerable” in Gloucestershire? Who would our radical and unexpected partners be? What would a home delivered creative box need to include to ensure it was comforting and palatable to a diverse range of tastes, preferences and demographics? Would this even be welcomed or could it feel irrelevant at this time of crisis?

These are just some of the questions we have been sharing as a team since Covid-19 arrived. They have stimulated a new conversation with The Long Table, a Stroud based social enterprise who make healthy, home cooked food and deliver it to doorsteps around the county. In partnership with kitchens across the county, including The Sober Parrot in Cheltenham , The Clean Plate and Roots Cafe in Gloucester, they’ve delivered over 10,000 meals in just three weeks.

We are exploring what we could achieve if we combined forces - from the arts and cultural sector point of view we would access a safe, cost effective and energy efficient distribution network that already reaches many of the 9000 people we would like to engage with.

For the Long Table, and their partner food networks, they could complement their meal service with a creative offering as a way to grow conversation and connectivity. And when the lock down is lifted signpost the diverse menu of cultural and arts activity that is offered by our 800 + network of artists, producers, collectives, festivals. cultural organisations, libraries, galleries and theatres across the county.

As a first step, from this week each Long Table food box will include a template (designed by Marcus Walters), of a plate in the middle of a place mat with a simple invitation to draw, write, doodle or paint on the paper plate and to then cut out and display on a window sill- Gloucestershire new art galleries! And to share online via #feedcreativityglos @createglos alongside other people’s ideas and designs.

Our hope is that a series of simple creative ideas like this, offered while people are isolated at home, will plant a seed for something new. We are really excited to be exploring this with the Long Table and learning as we go about what does and doesn’t work.

Most importantly we can’t wait for the moment when we can create a feast together and welcome old and hopefully some new and unexpected partners.

So if you are curious to know more about how to feed creativity in Gloucestershire (#feedcreativityglos) and have ideas or resources to contribute do get in touch with us.

hello@creategloucestershire.co.uk

If you’d like to design your own plate, please do. You can keep it, give or send (safely), put up in your window for others to see or share on social media via #feedcreativityglos @createglos.

Download the template by clicking on the image below.