Breathing   S  p  a  c  e  s

Local poet Nige Wood started the Breathing Spaces poetry sessions today and here is some of what was going on...

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Brian was at Back on Track today where he is learning to play the guitar. He spent his time today creating a beautiful picture of all the different aspects that he is learning about. Here is the finished piece:

We will have a stall at the next Second Hand Book Sale at Elizabeth Gaskell House - Sunday 12th May. If you are interested in books generally or our unique community publishing project come along and have a chat with us - Dominique Tessier the author of Rent Book will be there to answer your quetions.

Someone told me this: I have been labouring up in the Lake District - building some dry stone walls. Today I stopped for a break with my work mate. We were sitting just looking over this whole vast landscape, drinking our tea and I was thinking how lucky we were to be working here and how beautiful it was. At that my moment, my work mate turned to me and said "this is shit isn't it?"

Today we did the first of four workshops at Elizabeth Gaskell's House as part of our contribution to their celebration of Ruskin during 2019. Based on Ruskin's notion that engagement with art and nature can enrich people's lives spiritually and lift us out of the mundane concerns and stresses of our lives we explored Swinton Grove Park and Elizabeth Gaskell's Garden for most of the afternoon. Below are some of the images we made as we looked at plants and flowers, trees and s

This year we are celebrating International Dawn Chorus at the other end of the day. The Dusk period or ‘Twilight’ offers another chance to tune into the natural rhythm of the day as the birds gather once again after their busy day to roost for the evening.Their final songs communicate and connect with each other and with whomever wants to listen. What are they saying? How is this different to their Dawn song and how do we feel when we take time out to gather in a quiet plac

We are very happy to be have been invited to partner with Elizabeth Gaskell's House to celebrate Ruskin's Legacy by running a series of drawing and photography workshops for people at TLC St Luke's. This project echoes Ruskin's theory that engagement with art and nature can enrich people's lives spiritually and lift us out of the mundane concerns and stresses of our lives. This project will explore the environmental links between the House and the surrounding area, both curre

Just been reading some of the many research articles about the health benefits of green and quiet spaces. This article sets it all out pretty well and recommends that we need a 'daily dose of neighbourhood nature'. Have you had yours today? I recommend getting off the bus a stop or two early to explore some of the city's great green spaces when you are out and about. Today I got off the 192 a couple of stops early to walk through Ardwick Green and see the cherry blossom. It w