Be Seen, Be Heard, Belong: through Creativity and Co-production- "Transformation"

At bemix, co-production means much more than working together. It's about sharing ideas, solving problems, recognising everyone's strengths and creating something that no one person could achieve alone.

That's exactly what's happening as our Dover and Canterbury groups collaborate on an exciting creative project that we previously shared - The Beaney exhibition in Canterbury. 

The artist, Oliver Enwonwu, standing in front of his portrait of the first black Lord Mayor of Canterbury, Cllr Keji Moses. 

Some of the bemix group members with The Canterbury Lord Mayor, Cllr Allister Brady  

The project challenged participants to design and build a creative litter bin for the exhibition, with every stage of the journey shaped through co-production.

Working together, the groups explored different ideas before deciding to create a giant Red-billed Chough, to represent our theme - "Transformation" - a bird with strong historical links to Canterbury and featured on the coat of arms of Canterbury Cathedral.    The Red-billed Chough also features on the Lord Mayor's Shield, and they are elsewhere within the Beanie (see if you can spot them when you visit!)

From the very beginning, every decision was made together. Participants discussed ideas, explored different construction methods and created a scale model before agreeing on the final design. They even measured the car's boot to ensure the finished sculpture could be safely transported to the exhibition.

For now, here's a sneak peek to whet your appetite!

Building the bird has been an ambitious challenge.

Using skills developed through previous creative projects, the group decided to construct the body from chicken wire before handcrafting hundreds of individual feathers from recycled drink cans, giving new life to everyday materials while supporting the exhibition's environmental theme.

The project has pushed everyone's creativity, patience and problem-solving skills.

As Lis, the project lead for Dover, explained:

"This is the hardest co-production project we have ever done. The technical construction and the materials have provided huge challenges, but everyone has been absolutely amazing, overcoming problems together and building on each other's strengths."

Working across both the Dover and Canterbury groups has meant sourcing additional materials, adapting ideas and even creating a scale model.

As the project has developed, the groups have been finding creative solutions to every new challenge. Throughout the process, everyone has had an opportunity to contribute, with each person's ideas helping to shape the final sculpture.

Ty said "It was a fun and challenging project to be part of. The size and sharp tin cans were a bit tricky, but we all had a good laugh making it.  Me,Leila, Steve, Andrew and Robert went on a mission to get more cans to make sure we had enough cans for the feathers… In THAT heat, too!"

Leila said "I enjoyed cutting the cans to make the feathers. It was loads of fun"

This is co-production in action.

People have shared their creativity, learnt new practical skills, supported one another and discovered that even the most ambitious ideas can become reality when everyone works together.

Although the Red-billed Chough isn't quite ready to spread its wings, we're incredibly proud of everything our participants have achieved so far.

Here is a sneaky reveal of the finished sculpture, as it takes pride of place at The Beaney exhibition: OPEN NOW! 

Click here to plan your trip to the exhibition.

And to find out more about our groups, Click here