Young Artists Brighten the Community

Something quietly wonderful has been happening in Poundbury, and it deserves to be celebrated!

Every fortnight, a group of five-to-ten-year-olds meets after school at an art club held in PiPs Café. It started as a simple idea — somewhere for children to come together and explore art. It's quietly become much more than that, with the benefits reaching into the community. It's a small but powerful example of how creativity, community spaces, and young people can come together to brighten everyday life.

The club, supported through Art in Poundbury, gives local children a place to explore drawing, painting, and creative expression in a relaxed, welcoming environment. Brushes, colours and ideas flow freely as the young artists experiment with landscapes, animals, abstract patterns and imaginative scenes. There is plenty of laughter, plenty of paint, and often a little bit of glitter.

The story doesn't end when the session finishes. The children's artwork is being displayed in the local Prince of Wales GP surgery, for patients and staff to enjoy. The exhibition will be regularly refreshed with new pieces, ensuring there is always something different to discover on the walls. The children have the opportunity to see their work displayed publicly and visitors to the surgery are reminded of the creativity thriving within the local community.

At a time when community connections matter more than ever, initiatives like this show how art can quietly knit people together. A café becomes a studio, a waiting room becomes a gallery, and young artists discover that their creativity has a place in the world around them.

For Poundbury, it's a small project with a big heart, and a wonderful reminder that sometimes the most uplifting art is created by small hands, a big imagination and a splash of colour.

About Art in Poundbury

Art in Poundbury is a Community Interest Company run by residents and supported by a dedicated team of local volunteers. Founded as a local art exhibition in 2019, it became a CIC in 2023 and has grown steadily ever since. Its initiatives include:

• After Schools Kids Club at PiPs Café on the Great Field (fortnightly, ages 5–10)

• Art at PiPs Café — a rolling display of artwork at the café and community hub

• Art at the Crossroads Café — ongoing art display in the heart of the village

• Art in the Park — an open-air en plein air painting day for amateurs and professionals alike

• Art in the Sunflowers — a popular painting event as part of the Sunflower Trail at Maiden Castle Farm

• Winter Exhibition — held annually at Jubilee Hall, featuring local and regional artists

• Hospital exhibitions — including the current Bringing the Outside In display at Dorset County Hospital

• Workshops in schools, care homes, and community groups

• Art and Art Lovers Social — a regular gathering for those who love making and appreciating art

• The Tiny Art Gallery — a permanent small-scale exhibition space

• Young Artists Competition — run in partnership with the Poundbury and Casterbridge Rotary Club

• Art in Poundbury Club — a membership club for local artists (artinpoundbury.club)

  
  

  

To find out more or get involved, visit artinpoundbury.co.uk

For more information on community organisations in Poundbury, please click here.