We are a sustainable social enterprise, a Community Interest Company (CIC), that runs creative courses, wellbeing projects and events in nature.
Restore, refresh and reconnect at our 6-acre site, where we grow food using permaculture principles. Whether it’s painting or planting, walking or writing, treat your inner creator to a nurturing time in our studio or on the land. Courses and events have included:
• Food forestry; foraging & preserving
• Tree nursery; free tree sprees; tree-planting
• Sculpture with clay, paperclay or willow, figurative or abstract
• Sketching with words; poetry
• Painting; mark-making; drawing
• Botanical printing; natural dyes; fibres from the land
• Acoustic concerts; contemporary dance; words & music soirees
People come to visit Creative Beings for many reasons. Some want to support the Food Forest by volunteering on the land. Others like to lead courses or suggest ideas for experimental creative collaborations. Some want to help our events to run smoothly. Others prefer to spend time in peace and contemplation, enjoying the views from our old oak benches and breathing in replenishment from the natural world.
If you're looking to visit, then here's how to find us.
Creativity is a natural state for humans however we can find ourselves burying and losing our claim on this innate capability.
At Creative Beings events, people often say that they get as much, if not more, out of the process as they do from taking away a 'final' output. In a hectic world full of pressures, expectations and 'to do' lists, it's great to be able to find the time and space to appreciate the acts of crafting, experimenting, making meals and talking together.
We believe that we can learn so much from the natural world, from its peace, its flow, its energy, its adaptation and its endurance. That's why we set most of our courses and events in beautiful surroundings. Some courses include a walk. Others are fundamentally based around walks, as we explore the land nearby, the foods that it holds and the regenerative principles used in our Food Forest, and beyond.
We also believe in supporting and nurturing community, whether that is with the people who live near us or those from further away who feel connected to what we are about.
Above all, we believe that creativity and creative processes help develop resilience and antidotes to modern living for all human beings. And we believe that we are all creative beings.
It's official. The East Devon National Landscape (the new name for the East Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) has awarded Creative Beings CIC 'ambassador' status. This is because we share philosophy and goals on preservation of the natural environment, regeneration, education and decarbonisation.
You can see some of the things that we are involved with as part of our net zero journey and our on-site permaculture food production.
We love experimenting, trying new things and exploring collaborations. Indeed, proceeds from our courses are used to fund similar activities with harder-to-reach-groups. Some of these collaborations have included: