The second workshop at Inspire felt a lot more busy, group members seemed relaxed at what would occur and eager to begin. We warmed up by doing an exercise inspired by Violet Oaklander (she`s amazing)! I warned the group members this exercise was just for them and they didn`t need to share it with anyone- I set the timer to take some of the pressure off. All group members had a go and I felt admiration for their willingness to try something new.
We looked at some botanical images from Bolton Museum to inspire us..
Each member appeared to have a very different pace and style of working; some preferring to plan it out carefully, some not quite knowing where to start, whilst some wanting to dive in there and just get going. Reflecting now there seemed to be more energy at the start of the group and then the atmosphere appeared to calm down, perhaps as people veered off more in their own directions.
Reflecting I think I gave too many instructions that perhaps may have interfered with participant`s process of …..We seemed to hit a difficult point in the middle of the session, but once that had passed beautiful things began to emerge. Lots of things to reflect on for the next workshop. I think perhaps my anxiety about creating an enjoyable experience, over shadowed my ability to let go and follow the group members process. I might see how the group feel about some time in the group free from instruction; where they can just use the materials to do exactly what they want.