Free exhibition and fun day at Southsea venue will celebrate community, art, and gratitude while showcasing young people’s creative work

A local charity supporting young people and their families has teamed up with a gratitude coaching organisation to host the community arts exhibition and event, which is set to be held on Sunday.

The Grateful Arts Club and Motiv8 exhibition aims to answer the question: ‘What are you grateful for?’

It grew from a community-based project which launched in July 2021 and guided a group of young people on a journey of art and gratitude.

Gratitude coach Charla Grant, founder of Portsmouth-based The Grateful Hearts Club, said: ‘Community, gratitude and creativity are all key values for The Grateful Arts Club and this exhibition is a celebration of all of these things.

‘The kindness from people to support the exhibition has been overwhelming, it really is an exhibition by our community for our community and is just the start for this project.

‘I’m so proud of how this tiny idea has grown into an event we all can enjoy’.

Local artists and creatives have come together to contribute to the exhibition, which will be held along with a number of fun activities at St Margaret’s Church, Highland Road, from 10am to 4pm.

It will feature more than 30 pieces of art by local youth from the Motiv8 community as well as local artists, and there will be live entertainment from Unmade Radio and Manic Stage Productions.

Organisers are also promising speeches and poetry readings, a bike raffle, a gratitude tree, dance and face painting, and a seasonal fruit and veg stall from Diggin’ Boots.

There will also be live art, solitude candles with a bespoke candle to celebrate the day available to purchase, as well as refreshments including brownies, and rainbow child tie-dying.

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Southsea Macrame and Wild City Portsmouth will be in attendance.

A percentage of sales from the art will go to Motiv8, which is a Portsmouth-based charity supporting young people.

Clare Ansell, Motiv8 chief executive, said: ‘We are hugely grateful for the support this project has received and are excited to be celebrating the journeys our young people have taken and their achievements.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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