World Mental Health Day (10 October 2023)
1500 ceramic flowers, painted by the public, were unveiled at The Horton Arts Centre, in Epsom
Supported by funding from Historic England, the Friends of Horton Cemetery year long project ran dozens of art-therapy workshops at which ordinary members of the public, of all ages and backgrounds, talked about mental health and disability while painting flowers.
The event began with a ceremony in the field adjacent to the cemetery, with readings, reflections and singing by the choir of St Joseph’s School, Epsom.
A piper then led a procession on foot from the Cemetery to the grounds of the former Horton Chapel that is now the Horton Arts Centre. There an innovative photo-art exhibition of former patients of the Epsom cluster of psychiatric hospitals was displayed.
Then the new Memorial Garden was opened, where the 1500 flowers had been placed.
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