Talitha is a unique non-profit making group of professional artists and arts therapists passionate about the potential to restore hope, dignity and worth through the freedom of the creative arts.
Talitha began by volunteering arts workshops to International Justice Mission, working in association with professionals in aftercare homes for girls rescued from sexual trafficking and violent abuse. It is vital that the survivors of sexual exploitation are given the means to recover a true sense of identity and value. By building confidence, resilience and hope these vulnerable women may return better equipped to their communities.
In the UK the charity has also conducted workshops for the Pret Apprenticeship Scheme for ex homeless and ex offenders, as well as victims of trafficking and abuse, victims of domestic abuse, and we are about to work with dementia patients. Talitha has also conducted workshops for community groups.
The art workshops can particularly benefit those who have suffered a trauma or been victims of abuse and maltreatment, as well as those who are excluded, marginalised or struggling with life issues. The workshop activities offer distancing techniques such as metaphor and symbol that allow the participants freedom to express themselves and to explore the context of their situation within the privacy of personal interpretation. In this way the charity’s work acts as a bridge for those who are not ready to engage in traditional or verbal counselling processes.
The charity facilitates arts workshops as a means of renewing hope and releasing potential for those who are broken by abuse, circumstance, ill-health, age or disability. The workshops involve using structured games and imaginative activities to help participants gain a better understanding of their feelings and behaviours.
The charity provides participants with a safe space within which they can express their feelings and explore their relationships, memories and dreams in an open non-judgmental environment. The participants share their personal stories with the workshop group and the activities work to help the participants discover their individuality as well as healthy coping strategies, positive thinking, self-control and physical relaxation.
The charity aims to re-establish value, confidence and choice and to help individuals find new meaning for their lives using creative explorative methods. The workshop activities affirm individual stories and celebrate special gifts and strengths. The charity helps participants to discover new resources including healthy coping strategies, relational skills, positive thinking, self-control and physical relaxation. These activities can be learnt, reworked and revisited by the participants in their everyday life. In this way the workshops equip participants with skills and resources that are both practical and sustainable.
