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In this series of blog posts, Blue Cabin’s therapeutic supervisors, Matt Stalker and Louise Wicks, and associate artist Elena Miller discuss supervision in the context of creative practice. Here, Elena shares her experience of supervision.
As an Associate Artist with Blue Cabin, I have been delivering sessions in various capacities for over five years, for programmes including Creative Life Story Work, Cool Things Darlington and Artsmark Creative Consultancy for Virtual Schools. As part of Blue Cabin’s incredible support services for staff, I was offered supervision sessions.
It was a brand new offer for me as an artist and initially I was unsure as to what supervision would mean in this area of work. How might/would/could this work? What would I need to bring to the session?
I had only heard of supervision in terms of management and its use of sharing useful information or discussing challenging issues in the workplace. But in this setting, the person we would be having the sessions with would be a therapeutic supervisor who did not necessarily know anything about us or the sessions we would be delivering but would be there to support us. Again – what would this mean?
Unlike ‘normal’ supervision, these sessions were offered to us in pairs or groups, monthly, depending on what projects we were part of.
During our first few sessions, we were all first footing as to how they would run and what we might bring in terms of topics of discussion. The sessions lasted around 40 minutes per person and often had a short break in them to take stock of the matters discussed.
During this voyage into the unknown, what became apparent was the feeling of safety – having the space to openly share our thoughts about how our sessions were going in a non-judgemental setting.
Matt, our supervisor, was able to help us navigate our thoughts and find the words to articulate what might have happened in a certain moment or feeling that we had, and then take this into our future sessions.
One such example was when I was first delivering an online All About Me Creative Experience session (part of Creative Life Story Work).
During the sessions the young people have the opportunity to work with their carers to complete certain creative tasks whilst music is played and their microphones are muted. Everyone then returns into the space with microphones on and they are given the space and time to share their creations.
This specific week’s theme was around feelings and emotions – a session that is undoubtedly emotionally charged through the nature of the task. Until this point, all the children I had worked with had been keen to share their feelings cards, but then one young girl reached a card and said that she did not want to share what was on it.
At that moment, my stomach dropped! I was worried that the task had sparked something intense for the young person and whilst I assured her that she could share as much or as little as she wanted, I couldn’t help but feel that I hadn’t held the space safely enough for her.
I brought this to supervision, I shared the ‘ick’ – that stomach lurch feeling – and through chatting with Matt I was able to see that it was the opposite! In that moment, the child was empowered to make that choice to NOT share. Allowing her that choice was crucial! The sessions we deliver are there to help children think about and process their life stories, but it is up to them when and if they feel comfortable enough to share what has happened to them.
Through his questioning, and the fact that another artist was there who was also experiencing similar situations, we were able to ‘unpick that ick’ and reflect on a much deeper level.
Equally though, supervision is also a space to celebrate the great, and the moments of joy and wonder that present themselves when working in this setting. This too can also evoke an emotional response for the artist but what do we do with that feeling?
An example of this was when a child said ‘I feel better’ after sharing their work. By bringing this to supervision, it allowed me space and time to take stock of the power of the arts and creativity and the value it brings.
As artists, we don’t always allow ourselves the chance to fully appreciate the golden moments. But supervision gives you that time and a chance to reflect on the positive emotional response that might have occurred in you!
Another key learning point from supervision was that of creating a sense of shared responsibility.
As an artist it is so easy to become overly critical of oneself. Whilst self-reflection is an important part of our work, when we are holding the space for care-experienced young people who may have had traumatic life experiences, we want the sessions to be as safe and secure as possible for them.
We know how valuable creatively can be and how it can provide an avenue for people to see themselves and others differently. But with that also comes the possibility of tricky feelings and emotions, bigger questions and unknown answers.
During my early sessions, I felt an overwhelming sense of responsibility to hold the space myself. I forgot about the other key people in the space and the skills and knowledge that they held. Through supervision I was able to see that we can collectively hold the space by having transparency and clarity over roles and responsibilities.
Whilst an ordinary supervision is normally done one to one, the value of having other artists in the space was also a key part of the success of the sessions.
Not only did it provide insight into other artist’s practice, it also allowed us a space to remember that we weren’t alone in our discoveries. Sharing our skills, knowledge, reflections and questions meant that we were there for each other on another level – where because of time constraints and the juggling of diaries, we felt seen and heard by people doing the same work as us.
Supervision for artists in this setting, in a nutshell, is about empowerment. It is about someone holding the space for us to process what happens in our sessions and find the words, meanings, and ways to acknowledge our practice on a deeper level.
This empowering learning can then be taken into future sessions to make the sessions the best that they can be for care-experienced children and their trusted adults.
“We are stronger when we listen, and smarter when we share.” Rania Al-Abdullah UNICEF Advocate for Children
Elena has been working in and around the North East for 18 years, delivering a variety of creative arts performances, programmes and workshops.
She has always been amazed at the power that the arts can have to bring change – whether that be to convey a message, allow voices to be heard or build confidence and abilities.
She has been honoured to be part of the Creative Life Story Work programme with Blue Cabin. She also has her own arts business which supports health and wellbeing through creative activities for children and young people, with a strong focus on sensory storytelling and play.
Elena lives with her teenage son just north of Newcastle in a teeny town called Seaton Burn. She can often be found making up daft songs on her ukulele, trying to remember important football facts and genuinely enjoying cold coffee!
