A Creative Transformation

29/07/2026

My artwork has been selected for inclusion in the 'Mad in Norway International Film Festival Digital Art Show'.

The Mad in Norway Digital Art Exhibit will be displayed between films throughout the Mad in Norway International Film Festival on September 24 to 26, 2026 in Lillehammer, Norway. It will also be available on https://www.madinnorwayfilmfest.org as a web gallery. These slideshows and web galleries will feature art and statements that highlight how art-making can heal in times of mental distress.

This is my accompanying statement:

I had a severe traumatic brain injury when I was 18. After that I lost everything, including all memory of my life before it. I developed severe mental illness, which has plagued my life ever since. My painting, writing and poetry have been my lifeline and means of coping with all the torment I have experienced. The piece I include in this submission was done whilst I was detained on an acute psychiatric ward. I felt so trapped in this admission, in response to the coercive control policy of 'treatment'. During the admission, I spent the days and nights drawing and writing in my room. Nobody could take this away from me. Ultimately, being creative allowed me to express and break free from the constraints posed upon me and make something positive and affirmative. The arts brought form and substance to my violent hallucinations, changing them and allowing me to cope. This enabled me to stabilise myself, cope with the symptoms of the illness, and start rebuilding my life. This is an ongoing journey, in which the arts provide both an escape route and a daily routine, which I utilise and rely upon in times of acute stress and to build 'recovery', my new normal.

A Creative Transformation

21/07/2026

It is a huge honour to be chosen for the Arts In Medicine Fellowship Cohort 11. I can't wait to begin! I am excited to connect with a community of global experts, explore innovative models of arts in health, collaborate with peers who share my passion, engage my lived experience in new dimensions and apply all this to expand my work with A Creative Transformation and the National Arts in Hospitals Network.

06/07/2026

I have been professionally and existentially not present for a while, but I am re-emerging. This journey has been incredibly challenging, has revealed so much. During my recent admission to an acute ward, I could not stop painting (producing a series of very dark pictures, elephants and mandalas) and writing (hypergraphia, with 7 volumes of poetry and auto-fiction). I want to engage my lived experience and make a position about what I experienced and what can be done now. In the context of psychosis after brain injury, art allowed me to express, relieve, reform my life and build my recovery, in the face of sheer catastrophe. Another crucial factor was/is medication (and coming to terms with this). Now I am picking up my work with A Creative Transformation and the National Arts in Hospitals Network, with even more compelling data about and . There is a lot to say and do. I have talks coming up at the International Consortium on Hallucination Research conference in Munich, plus a panel at the International Society for Psychological and Social Approaches to Psychosis in New York (with ACT Trustees Roxana Baiasu and Tony David).

04/06/2026

The elephant series (a vision), ongoing. These paintings bring me hope and strength during a difficult time. I am currently an inpatient on an acute psychiatric ward. My condition is still connected to my original . Current challenges began after a mTBI - bad concussion - which my hypersensitive 🧠 reacted badly to, because of the permanent effects of the major TBI. Now I am doing all I can to enact . This is what keeps me going on this scary ward: painting, writing, self-expression. “She believed she could, so she did…”.

02/04/2026

We are thrilled to announce that the film we made with Headway Surrey, “Art and Nature: Living with a Brain Injury”, has been selected to screen at LA1 Shorts 2026, a film festival taking place in Lancaster this Autumn. We will be a part of the ‘Health & Wellbeing Documentary’ screenings at Lancaster University Health Innovation Campus. This will bring great exposure to A Creative Transformation and provide a big opportunity to share and disseminate our strong message about how art, creativity and nature help us to live with an acquired brain injury. A huge thank you to all the stars in the film, the clients at Headway Surrey, as well as the staff at Headway Surrey and Adam Dickens for all his help with editing.

A comment about the film from one of its stars: “It gives “outsiders” a better understanding of how a brain injury is a hidden disability that affects people in very different ways. It’s all about being able to try to understand how a brain injury affects every single person differently.”

Let us celebrate and enjoy the moment. Watch out for more details and media as the festival approaches.

From co-producers Lorna Collins and Beth Lowe

20/03/2026

We have been very busy behind the scenes and I am now thrilled to announce that is a registered charity. As a Charitable Incorporated Organisation we will expand and support more people living with using all the arts. Huge thanks to our trustees (neuropsychiatrist Tony David, philosopher Roxanna Baiasu , artist/actor Eleanor May Blackburn and artist/creative health expert Frances Newman) and our loyal community. There is so much we can and will do now. Watch out and join us!
https://acreativetransformation.org

10/12/2025

05/12/2025

Yesterday, after 26 years of being detained, diagnosed and/or defined by mental health services, I discharged myself. This was not done lightly. It has been some journey -- being a revolving door patient with a complex set of psychiatric illnesses, after a severe brain injury. I live with what is called "an enduring condition": organic hallucinosis. This is not going to go away. So much of my life and work involves describing how I use art and creativity to cope with the constant visual/audible/tactile experiences. Life goes up and down, but I live well. I reached the limit of what care the medical team could provide for me, founded my own coping mechanisms, established my base foundations (sleeping, eating, resting, being creative, being with my animals, taking medication) and now I am free.

01/12/2025

Hear the incredibly inspiring story of Eleanor May Blackburn, trustee of 'A Creative Transformation'. Eleanor had a severe brain injury and stroke when she was 18. Listen to her speak about this experience, turning catastrophe into creativity, embodying everything we do as an organisation: https://youtu.be/Ta8lyWyyXP4

Please please help us help more people with brain injury or neurological condition by donating to our crowdfunding campaign. Every donation is so important and makes a real difference. Donate here: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/acreativetransformation?utm_medium=FA&utm_source=CL

Please share Ellie's story and help our campaign - for Christmas!

Hear the incredibly inspiring story of Eleanor May Blackburn, trustee of 'A Creative Transformation'. Eleanor had a severe brain injury and stroke when she w...