Through its community projects and Arts Festival, Arts Alive has demonstrated that the arts can play a crucial role in bringing together the community.  Although Arts Alive has always worked successfully with young people and has a long established reputation in this field, the development of activities for adults, particularly the inter-generational projects, has been particularly pleasing.  

Arts Alive has become a more accessible community group actively engaged with the creative life of the communities in the area that takes in East Powys, West Monmouthshire, and the North Eastern section of the Valleys, breaking barriers for many participants who lack confidence to get involved with ‘art’.

IN THIS PLACE project was devised specifically in response to demands from participants and community representatives who want the opportunity to continue to explore their community and environment in creative ways. The projects encouraged exploration of our personal connections to the environment we live in through a variety of artistic media and focus again on wide participation and a focused community celebration each summer through the means of an exhibition and/or Festival.

The Arts also play a role in promoting health and well-being.  We focus on creative projects that allow people to explore creativity in a relaxing way but also on projects off-site exploring favourite places, viewpoints, paths and tracks.  We also intend to focus in on the visually dynamic industrially marked upland area that links northern valley communities with the Usk Valley.

Arts Alive has evolved a process derived from the experience of many years of running themed workshops.  An open forum of artists and facilitators evolve a creative menu on a given theme, from which items can be selected.  This means that a measure of freedom is retained within the overall framework of the project.