This blog features excerpts from the working internal microsite created by Tier One partners Bright Shadow (Herne Bay, England) and Raum der Künste e.V. (Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg) whose partnership has explored intergenerational co-creation and creative practices in the context of dementia. 

Online meetings

At the start of the partnership, the teams met online across a series of sessions exploring specific ideas and themes, including: 

- Socially Engaged Art Practice
- Artistic / Teaching / Creative Facilitation
- Access / Outreach / Community
- Organisational & Support Structures

Across these sessions the teams came together to share ideas, explore similarities and differences in approach between the UK and Germany and discuss specific examples of work. Here's some insight into the conversations via excerpts from their documentation notes:

Process vs. Outcome:
A recurring theme was the “magic in process” — the transformative moments that occur during creative engagement, which are often overlooked by funders focused solely on measurable outcomes. We spoke about the importance of balancing process and outcome, and for dismantling expectations and hierarchies that limit participation and creativity.

Metaphor of “Windows”:
Katja used the concept of “opening windows” to describe the need for spaces and opportunities for self-expression, connection, and transformation. This metaphor was applied to both participants and practitioners, emphasizing the role of art in fostering openness and communication.

Movement Adaptation:
Sessions often often include movement, adapted for participants’ mobility and comfort, especially with older adults or those living with dementia. Activities might involve sharing gestures inspired by personal experiences, combining individual gestures into group phrases, and using props (e.g., toilet roll tubes) to focus observation.

Respect, Trust, and Humane Approaches:
Art interventions succeed when they are non-transactional, trust-based, and adaptable to individual and group realities. Projects need to offer experiences that feel safe, congruent, and suited to diverse needs, particularly for groups who may not fit typical “arts participant” molds.

September 17–19, 2025: Raum der Künste team (Janet, Nina) visit Bright Shadow in Kent

Images above: Janet Grau & Lucy Stockton-Smith

The following are excerpts from the visit documentation:

Thursday morning (Sep 18), we visited St. Alphege Infant School, where we met the artist Jo Dyer (artistic director of Animate Arts and part of the Bright Shadow network of professionals). She showed us some of the work she has been doing with kids in the school, and told us about a program that is scheduled to run over several years, aiming to train teachers in the intersection of art and mathematics. The exhibition in the school stairwell, reminiscent of a professional gallery, shows the children’s work with recognizing geometric shapes in famous works of art, and recreating them with paper.

We also stopped by the very fantastic Stream Walk Community Garden, where Bright Shadow has worked in the past (and hopes to return in the future). Had a chat with the men in the Bodger’s Hut (Men in Sheds project) and got some yummy string beans on the way out.

Zest

Next we travelled to the Riverside Community Hub in Dover to attend the Zest session which was planned and carried out by Edith Tankus, David Leahy and Lucy Stockton-Smith. It was a large group of ca. 20 participants, including those affected by dementia and their relatives. The topic was colors and their emotional significance. Several of the exercises were challenging – but not too much – such as the introduction round, when participants said their name and their favorite color, creating a gesture of what the color does for them emotionally. The group repeated each others’ names and gestures.

A seated “dancers’ warmup” (with the type of humor and absurdity found in the work of the choreographer Pina Bausch) was led by Edith. Then there was theatrical scene work with a colored dice: small groups of two or three improvised scenes inspired by the associations that arose from the color rolled. David accompanied these scenes with the contrabass.

Next Lucy led a task that involved a cognitive focus, as small groups of participants sorted colored paper and slips with printed names of colors, such as “cornflower,” “bottle” and “canary”.

At the end, there were cookies and tea, which is a ritual that seems to be important, creating a sense of community and exchange. This involves having help from the team on site to support some of the participants and serve the tea (Marion and her granddaughter).

Observations:

The contrabass played by David as accompaniment acts like another person present (another teacher), opening up a new space of possibilities, but possibly also a space for memories. Many of the older people move to the music, and the instrument also underscores the theater scenes wonderfully, bringing them to life.

We also observed that the extremely appreciative and caring attitude of the artist teachers conveys a sense of security for the participants.

Images © Bright Shadow, Jen Holland Photography

Campfire Conversation at the Whitstable Umbrella Centre

Particularly impressive was the “Campfire Conversation” initiated by Bright Shadow, in which experts in everyday life, i.e., people affected by dementia in various stages, their relatives, artists who work with this target group, and people working in the health sector came together for a multi-perspective exchange.

The talk was moderated by Tim Harrison (from We Live Here; part of the Medway Council Creative Health Strategy, also curator of the “Sick” festival), who made sure that those affected in particular had a chance to speak. 



October 13-15, 2025: Bright Shadow team (Clare, Lucy) visits Raum der Künste in Heidelberg

In October, the Bright Shadow team travelled to Heidelberg three days of visits, talks and workshops. Activities included:

- A visit to the “TANZ MAL!” project of Janet and Massalé at a local school for children with special educational needs and disabilities
- Attending Katja’s Seminar at the Pädagogische Hochschule (Dance for Theater Educators)
- Taking part in a “Campfire Conversation” with interested RdK members, colleagues and friends

Images: Janet Grau, Katja Körber, Nina Lenz