Community

Our vision for the community programme is to be more present in people’s lives and more connected to our diverse local community. We aim to provide a welcoming space for exchange, mutual learning, creativity, connection, and care.

We work collaboratively with organisations, charities, and individuals to design sessions and projects that bring people together. These activities create opportunities to share ideas, learn from one another, and build knowledge collectively in an inclusive and friendly environment. Through art and creativity, we hope to strengthen community connections and help foster a greater sense of unity. 

Anne Hardy / Feelings

Workshop with The Welcoming

Our long-term partners, The Welcoming, visited Anne Hardy / Feelings for a tour and workshop, and the conversations that unfolded were fascinating.

One person stood in front of Being (Interloper), without knowing the title or reading the guide, and said: "It looks like they're against the system. They're outside because their clothes show a sense of freedom, and the way they're offering the objects feels like they're doing something different from what people expect. The chicken wire at the end of their tail looks like a snake shedding its skin."

Looking at Universe (Organised Chaos), someone asked: "If we pulled the soda tap at the bottom... would it open the whole universe?"

And in response to Being (Warrior), another visitor reflected that the plastic growing out of the wooden body might be a comment on the microplastics that are now inside all of us.

These are the moments that remind us why we love opening up conversations around art. Every interpretation brings something new, often revealing ideas we'd never considered ourselves.

Afterwards, we settled down with a cup of tea and spent some time playing with found materials, textures and shapes. The conversation drifted from politics and AI to the cost-of-living crisis, and plenty in between.

The dead don’t go until we do 

Workshop with CRISIS 

Since 2025 we have been working with CRISIS to deliver tours alongside wellbeing-focused, craft-based workshops. After exploring the exhibition together, we reflected on our own experiences of community, family and friendship, using fabric to tell our stories. 

The stories that emerged were rich and personal including memories of a grandparent’s warm home with a bench outside for important decisions, imagined scenes of mountains and rivers filled with tuna and the presence of a brother, and reflections on music, including Freddie Mercury, as a source of connection and belonging. These conversations also connected with local heritage, such as the Fisherrow fishwives of Musselburgh, highlighting shared resilience across generations. 

The Children are Now  

Workshop with Little Muslims + Ajeeb Studio 

We hosted a sculpture workshop with Ajeeb Studios in collaboration with The Little Muslims, exploring the exhibition and discussing children’s perspectives on global challenges and their visions for a better world.  

In response, the children created sculptures reflecting their everyday experiences of barakah (an Islamic term meaning “blessings”), alongside imaginative creatures inspired by the artworks. These small sculptures carried meaningful stories, encouraging thoughtful reflection and powerful moments of sharing.