Stimulating and accessible creative workshops and sessions, working with patients, visitors and NHS staff. 

C4 Ward Workshops

Dementia patients benefit hugely from accessing relaxing creative activities such as painting – alleviating anxiety by focusing the mind and senses. 

Proving it’s never too late to get creative, the elderly patients on Ward C4 at Dumfries & Galloway Royal Infirmary have been exploring painting and printing as part of a block of creative workshops with artist Julie Stephen, overseen by Art in Healthcare Coordinator Frank Hayes. 

In Block 1, patients are creating stunning blossom paintings which will be converted into a public art piece to enhance a space in the ward – we can’t wait to see the sessions develop and are so impressed at what has already been created… 

The workshops provide positive, stimulating, and mindful distraction, and the sessions allow a regular, safe, creative space for patients, their loved ones, and staff to experiment with simple, accessible art practises – developing new skills and understandings, increasing confidence levels, and providing social opportunities.  

Midpark Workshops 

Dental Centre Workshops 

Working Well Workshops

Midpark Empowering Portraits Workshops 


Art in Healthcare News

  • Empowering Portraits Update

    Empowering Portraits Update

    The Empowering Portraits sessions recently took place at Midpark Hospital  in Dumfries. Patients and staff had a unique opportunity to engage in artistic expression and exploration. Under the guidance of Dumfries-based artist Kirsty Turpie, took part in a variety of creative activities focused around the theme of portraits, self-reflection, and wellbeing. After two hugely successful blocks…

  • DGRI Self-Care Week

    DGRI Self-Care Week

    DG Creative Wellbeing recently hosted an amazing day at Dumfries & Galloway Royal Infirmary (DGRI) as part of the staff ‘Self-Care Week’.  It included a printing workshop and window mural painting. Check out some images from the event.

  • New Mural Unveiled at The Willows

    New Mural Unveiled at The Willows

    A new mural has been unveiled at The Willows Children Young People & Family Centre based on the Crichton Campus in Dumfries. The artwork was officially unveiled as part of a special event on Thursday 21 March 2024 The DG Creative Wellbeing project’s Community Creative Wellbeing and Art in Healthcare teams worked in partnership with…

  • AccessArt Passengers Exhibition

    AccessArt Passengers Exhibition

    Turning Point Scotland’s AccessArt will open the Passengers Exhibition at Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary on 11 March. The new exhibition, in partnership with DG Creative Wellbeing, was inspired by AccessArt participant Jim Lynn who has a passion for model buses, owning a growing collection of more than 400 miniature vehicles. Turning Point Scotland Senior…

  • Midpark Empowering Portraits Workshops 

    Midpark Empowering Portraits Workshops 

    Throughout February and March 2024, Midpark Hospital in Dumfries is playing host to a series of creative workshops.   The Empowering Portraits sessions are taking place across six weeks, presenting patients and staff with a unique opportunity to engage in artistic expression and exploration.   Under the guidance of Dumfries-based artist Kirsty Turpie, participants are able to…

  • Senior Charge Nurse Creative Workshop

    Senior Charge Nurse Creative Workshop

    DG Creative Wellbeing Art in Healthcare coordinator Frank Hayes led a creative workshop with NHS D&G Senior Charge Nurses recently. The session sparked discussion about the integration of art into healthcare settings and how staff members can use it as a tool to think creatively about ways to enhance their work environment.  “Everyone threw themselves into some expressive…

  • Women in Photography Exhibition at DGRI 

    Women in Photography Exhibition at DGRI 

    An exhibition that celebrates of women in photography will tour across Dumfries and Galloway in 2024.    Currently on display at Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary (DGRI), the exhibition was curated and first showcased at Shambellie House in June 2023. The images displayed were taken by both emerging and established photographers from the UK and beyond.…

  • Then & Now Exhibition Launched

    Then & Now Exhibition Launched

    The Then & Now installation has been unveiled at Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary, Ward C4.  The exhibition has been created by Graeme Robertson Centre for Practised Arts, Dumfries.   The images displayed blend old Dumfries with the present day, using old photos overlayed and merged with new photos of the same locations. These showcase the…

  • Bringing art to health sites – Launch

    Bringing art to health sites – Launch

    A unique programme has been launched in the region bringing together art and healthcare. Supported by Dumfries and Galloway Health Board Endowment Fund, OutPost Arts (OPA) is coordinating a two-year Art in Healthcare programme for the local NHS. It will see a range of activities across healthcare sites that aim to enhance clinical environments and…

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