Sherrell House Care Home in Essex have been working in collaboration with Fevered Sleep and Magic Me, as part of their project on touch.
In 2019, Fever Sleep were invited by Magic Me to be part of a 4-year project that links art with care homes in Essex. They had wanted to make a project on touch, particularly focused on the significance of touch for older people, many of whom are frequently affected by loneliness and isolation.
Magic Me invited three dance artists, Akshay Sharma, Petra Söör and Kip Johnson to be Associate Artists on the project. The three were asked to develop the theme of touch through their own practice.
Last week, the team had their first Zoom meeting with Petra, Ashkay, and Fevered Sleep’s programme producer Louisa to discuss their ideas and plans going forward. They also presented a short film that they had created, which focused on gestures and touch. The team at Sherrell House believe that this short film will really help them when carrying out activities such as therapeutic touches.
Petra, Ashkay and Louisa were very keen to hear what activities have been a success in the home, and alternatively which activities they believed could be improved. They are very enthusiastic to work with the people living at Sherrell House, and the team at the home can’t wait to see what they can achieve together.