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Institute of Advanced Study
External shot of Institute of Advanced study at Cosin's Hall

Arts, Imagination, Creative Expression, and Working Life - Workshop

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4 March 2025 - 4 March 2025

9:30AM - 4:30PM

Bowes Suite, Delta Hotels Durham Royal County, Old Elvet, Durham, DH1 3JN

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The purpose is to bring together academics, leaders, artists and art facilitators with interests in how imagination, creative expression, and engagement with the arts can underpin and benefit the well-being in organisations.

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Image courtesy of iStock

The event will scope ideas for future collaborative explorations across disciplines, and between academia, business, and art institutions. The convenors are looking to form a network of stakeholders interested in working with Dr Nieberle and Dr Zheng to better understand how arts engagement, imagination, and creative expression affect organisational members, and explore how this can successfully be used to improve well-being in businesses.

The workshop is supported by Durham University’s Institute of Advanced Study, a home for growing big ideas and for developing creative approaches to interesting and important problems. The workshop forms preparations for the IAS Major Project on “Arts Engagement and Mental Health at Work”, which will run in October-December 2025.

Participants

The workshop will bring together academics across disciplines with organisational leaders, artists, and art facilitators.

Durham academics from Business, Humanities, Sciences and Social Sciences are joining the event, as well as professional service colleagues. Prof Simon James (English Studies) and Dr Sophie Ward (School of Education) will share their research and experience on creativity and arts in education.

Louise Thompson, Health and Well-Being Manager at Manchester Art Gallery will give a virtual keynote talk on her work and experiences. In addition, local artists and art facilitators will also attend, including Dr Richard Bruce, Choral Leader and Durham Faculty Manager, Sam Slatcher, Director of Citizen Songwriters CIC, as well as Sarah Calavera and Dr Zara Worth from the public art-collective STRIKE.

Format & Questions

The workshop will be informal with shorter presentations that are followed by guided round table discussions.  Several questions will be addressed, such as: Why are imagination and creative expression important for employees’ working life? When and for which organisational members are these processes most relevant? What are the limitations to creative expression and arts engagement at work? What role does co-creation and community play for imagination and creative expression at work and why? How does imagination and creative expression vary for different forms of arts engagement (e.g., visual arts, music, performance), and which consequences does it have for working life?

 

Detailed Agenda

09:00 – 09:30       Arrive & Refreshments

09:30 – 10:50       Slot I:  The Aims, the Project & the Expertise in the Room

  • Welcome & Aims of the Workshop
  • IAS project team presentation: Arts engagement and mental health at Work
  • Workshop participant introduction and links to the theme

10:50 – 11:00       Comfort break

11:00 – 12:30       Slot II:  Insights from Creativity and Arts in Education

  • Prof Simon James (English Studies): Creativity and Education across Disciplines
  • Dr Sophie Ward (School of Education): The Arts in Education
  • Round table and plenary discussion

12:30 - 13:30        Lunch Break with Buffet

13:30 – 15:00       Slot III:  Insights from Arts & Well-Being at Manchester Art Gallery

  • Louise Thompson (Health and Wellbeing Manager at Manchester Art Gallery)
  • Round table and plenary discussion

15:00 – 15:30       Tea/Coffee Break

15:30 – 16:30       Slot IV:  Looking Ahead - Research Questions and Activities for the Major Project

  • Round table and plenary discussion
  • Wrap up and closure

Pricing

Free