
Moving forwards with purpose
28 Jan 25…What is next for me and my practice?
UNION 24, final weekend at Bidston Observatory Artistic Research Centre (BOARC)
Thank you to local participants Sian Davies and Marcy Rick who collaborated with UNION team to build our time together, the weekend explored personal growth, collaboration, and envisioning the next steps in participants’ practices.
Throughout the weekend we asked and reflected on:
- What do you need to end?
- To end what do you need to let go of?
- How can the end make way for new experiences and growth (to begin)?
Day 1
The weekend began on Friday evening with an introduction to the weekend’s activities and check in about our time apart followed by an orientation to the venue and catering from Ed and Brendan.
Participants brought along games to share into the evening progressed including ‘I can see the moon’, ‘The sun shines on’ and ‘Werewolves’
Day 2
The second day opened with a grounding and centering practice to prepare for a full and reflective day.
Throughout the morning we explored the IKIGAI model
Working individually use art materials to create your IKIGAI to define or refine your passion and purpose with the prompts:
- What do you LOVE doing?
- What you are you GOOD at?
- What does the world NEED?
- What do you get PAID for?
Further questions to explore included:
- What is at the places that overlap?
- What is at the centre?
- Are there any new connections or surprises?
- How does your purpose align with your values?
- How do you communicate your purpose?
Sharing back in small groups we explored our IKIGAI’s with supportive questions and discussed:
- Who are my allies?
- What is our common purpose?
- How do we work together to create change?
The afternoon we developed a programme of creative activities and skill sharing using open space, where participants could lead or join activities, such as DJing tutorials, badge making, mindful movement, music jam, walk and talks exploring the local landscape, cooking with Brendan and Empathy Poker.
After a celebratory last evening meal together we enjoyed an open mic night hosted Marcy. The performances showcased the community’s rich talent and reinforced the power of collective expression.
Day 3
And we come to our final day…
Sunday’s activities included an introduction to the GROW coaching model and participants tried out some peer coaching in small groups around the questions
- What is next for me?
- What is my goal moving forwards?
After another delicious lunch we looked at evaluating our UNION journey with a recap presentation of the previous weekends as well creating a visual journey of our Highlights, Challenges and Learning.
We also took time to appreciate each other with a beautiful activity writing our thoughts a piece of card attached to each others backs, creating a lasting memory to take away.
The weekend ended with a group checkout using a ball of yarn to weave a literal connection between us. This powerful closing symbolized the collective bonds formed and the shared commitment to growth and collaboration.
The UNION 24 cohort will continue to develop with coaching sessions by UNION team and through collaborative projects.
Watch this space for updates!