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A New Vision for The Lightbox
2nd September 2019
Since winning the Art Fund Prize Museum of the Year Award in 2008, The Lightbox has become widely recognised for its exemplar programme of exhibitions and events, creative sessions for all ages and engagement within the local community.
According to research collected by Art Fund, 40% of adults feel anxious at least some of the time. Over two thirds (67%) of survey respondents agree that taking time out for themselves and pursuing a leisure activity is good for personal wellbeing. The report suggests that there is potential for visiting museums and galleries to play a bigger role in helping individuals to cope with stress and anxiety.
The Lightbox strives to embody the philosophy that art has the power to make you feel good. A new vision exploring art and its ability to promote wellbeing is coming to the forefront, and the organisation has introduced a new social purpose – to improve the quality of life of its community and provide arts and heritage services to those that would not otherwise be able to access them.
The diverse cultural programme, including exhibitions, local heritage displays, talks and tours, social events and arts and crafts workshops, contributes towards raising funds to support the charity’s community initiative, the Art and Wellbeing programme.
This programme provides opportunities for those that would otherwise not be able to access and enjoy arts and heritage services to take part in creative and therapeutic workshops. The programme includes community workshops for those living with dementia and their carers, those affected by mental health issues, those in local care homes and hospices and clients of the nearby York Road Project homeless shelter.
The Lightbox is generously supported by Woking Borough Council, which contributes towards 40% of the building’s core costs. However, to keep providing world-class exhibitions and creative activities for everybody, The Lightbox needs to raise a further £450,000 every year. That’s almost £40,000 every month.
To align with The Lightbox’s new social purpose and help raise the funds they need, the organisation has updated its Membership scheme, introducing a new and improved selection of benefits and membership options. For as little as £2.50 per month, Lightbox Members can enjoy unlimited free entry to all exhibitions throughout the year as well as discounts across the programme, all the while knowing that their membership is providing vital support to The Lightbox’s exhibitions, events, workshops and fundamentally, the Art and Wellbeing programme.
To find out more about how to donate to The Lightbox, the Art and Wellbeing programme, or any of the workshops and sessions included, please visit thelightbox.org.uk.
