Report transcript in: Covid and the Community - Tray's Ideas

Please Report the Errrors?

Hello, Trey.

Do you

do you want to be called Trey or Tracy?

Tray is fine. Thank you.

Good. Good.

How are How are you today? You OK?

Yeah. I've had a nice day. Thank you. It's my mother's Day, and it's so

seeing my family and had some food and had a nice afternoon.

Yeah.

Are you OK?

I'm I'm Well, thank you. Yeah,

I'm doing well.

Um, good.

to start this interview, can I ask,

how has the coronavirus pandemic affected you and the people around you?

well, I I think I'm kind of getting used to it now,

but it's been very up and down.

You know, when it started, I was kind of like,

Oh, this is OK. I just got to hack it out for a couple of weeks.

I'll just sit in the garden and I was on the phone to loads of people and,

you know, it was quite sunny, I think, when it started.

So I was just topping up my tan and I didn't see

my daughter for about a month apart from she popped down.

One day

she just dropped me something off on the doorstep. And

but it was all it was a bit surreal, but it was kind of I was.

I did quite well for the first few weeks,

and then they opened it up again a bit, didn't they? And it it was very strange.

Like I had to go to town and post something

in, um

in the in the first in lockdown one.

And it was very eerie and to see all the

shops shut and hardly any people in town found it.

Quite. It was quite apocalyptic. It were quite.

It was like something that it was like being in a film. Um,

but I I I think overall, I've actually dealt with it quite well,

especially since they start allowed started allowing bubbles.

And my daughter's been my bubble. So I've seen her,

you know, pretty much nearly nearly every day. Um,

but it's, I don't know. It's

it's hard to tell what's what.

Sometimes I've had some very down days and some very weird days where I thought,

Is this my illness?

Or is this

you know?

Is this the bipolar or is this lockdown weirdness that's affecting everybody?

And it's it's hard to tell. Sometimes

it's hard to know exactly what

you know. I felt lonely. I felt isolated. But I feel like that anyway sometimes.

So it's hard to know if that's the lockdown or if it's

just, um, just part of my illness. Um,

I found some of it very tough, like usually my daughter comes down

in the daytime and then she'll go home 30

and I'll have my tea. But then I'm just kind of sat on my own, and

I'll just feel a bit

bit lost in the world. I think sometimes, and

I have had times where it's like the enormity of it has kind of built up,

and I've got really panicked thinking,

you know, it's a worldwide pandemic and

things are freaking out all over the place. What's going on and

I've tried not to look,

have not looked too much into this conspiracy theories and stuff like that.

But you can't help but come up. You know, if you're on social media, you can't help but

come across that kind of stuff. And

what are they putting in the vaccines? And it's all a big con and,

you know, it's just so the drug companies can make more money and stuff like that.

But you just have to

I don't know. I've just kinda

I've got my bubble.

I've got my friends that I speak to on the phone and stuff like that and

meet up for a socially distanced coffee with once in a while Now we're allowed

so But overall, I'd say it's been quite strange,

but I think I've coped with it quite well.

Yeah,

well, I I appreciate what you say is, especially with

me having bipolar myself. I

I know that that can be confusing

knowing whether the the emotional roller coaster is from within or without or

and

I I I think you do need to give yourself credit for how you've dealt with it all.

But, um,

have you have you found that being creative has helped you during

all these restrictions?

Definitely.

Um, I just Definitely. Yeah. I just moved into a new studio last January,

Um, with the Collaborate people. So I've been using that for a couple of months,

and then obviously it shut down and we weren't able to use it,

but I'd realised we knew the lockdown was coming,

so I'd gone and got some of my art supplies and brought them back home.

Um,

it it took me. I just brought my acrylics home, and, um,

that's it.

Um,

it took me quite a while to get into being creative. Like I'd had a couple of girls and

it won't really flowing. And then the one day it must have been nice weather again.

I was sat in the garden

and I picked a palette of about 12 colours.

Well, exactly 12 colours. I know, because I've used the same colours for

most of lockdown, and I just really enjoyed, um

what I created with that

using loads of colours and using that palette. So,

um, from then on, I got a bit more into it. Um

um and really enjoyed it. And really,

I stuck with those same 12 colours because I wanted to.

It was a bit it. I wanted it to kind of represent

the fact that we still had some freedoms, as in there's 12 colours to choose from,

but we were still quite limited.

So obviously there's, you know, the paint I was using.

They've got a range of about 50 colours, but,

um,

yeah, So after a couple of months, I've got,

I got I got more into the swing of it because I find it quite difficult to adjust from,

like, working in my studio to working at home. It's quite a big.

It's quite a big change for me. Like, if I move studio again, that'll

it'll be another couple. It just takes a while for me to settle down. Um, so,

yeah, I've painted,

I reckon I've painted

at least 200 paintings,

if not more. Um

and

yeah, it

I mean, I've used We were both Have

we?

We've both used, um,

being sorry.

You know, we've both been able to

be fortunate enough to be part of an organisation when it started, that was,

that really helped us

to know how much our creativity can help us in times of instability.

Um,

with that in mind, that is

so it

there's been times

when I've been

like this last year since this pandemic's been on,

I'll get I'll get quiet down,

and I'll just be sort of stuck on the sofa for four days and not really doing much.

And it's like, Come on, Trey, do a bit of

do a bit of artwork it'll make you feel better.

But if you're not, sometimes if you're not feeling inspired as such,

it's really hard to make yourself do it.

But,

like I, I hit a bit of a flat spot about six weeks ago,

and I've not done anything

creative for a week or so.

And it was like you've been wanting to make some cards for ages,

just go and do it And it was like, Oh,

I will in a bit Go on trade, go and do make some cards And I did and

it didn't

I didn't feel any better, actually, Really. As such,

however, I felt a bit better because I'd managed to produce something.

Sometimes creating art does have a really

lifting effect on my mood almost instantly,

but sometimes it, you know.

But I've had quite a few sessions where I've just made something

and just felt that tiny little bit better that

at least I've actually produced something that day,

not necessarily ever going to be considered my finest work, but

like I.

When I just went and made some cards, I was like, Oh, actually,

that was the perfect activity for today because it's not,

it's not like you're trying to create a

wonderful piece of artwork. I'll I'll do A

I'll do an air free sheet of I've been using alcoholics.

I'll do an air free sheet of that

and then chop it up into smaller bits to go in the cards.

And then there's a sort of repetitiveness of sticking everything

down and making sure it's clean and folding the creases

and putting it in its little plastic wallet and putting

a little stamp on the back and stuff like that.

So,

yeah, I have have definitely I I definitely definitely. I'm glad

that

I've had it become explicit through through, um,

that art is good for your mental health.

Um,

so,

yeah, it's it's it's definitely kept me going And I've had

Well, you won. You won a prize, didn't you?

So little things like having a competition on my Facebook page

that generated a bit of, um, enthusiasm and a bit of excitement.

And, you know, I gave away some of my artworks as

prizes. All that was the other thing. So I started working on paper

because

I am quite a prolific artist and canvas takes up a lot of space and I'm in a tiny

nine ft square

spare bedroom at the moment for my art. So I haven't got a lot of room.

So,

um, I started painting on paper

and I thought that might help make

because I get very art work.

I don't know about you, but I do get very attached to some of it.

And, um, I thought

if they were on paper, it might help me

let them go a little bit easier,

which it has done, so

So, yeah, I'd I'd I'd say

I I I think the longest I've gone without

painting or doing anything creative is like a week,

maybe 10 days.

But then I definitely feel

better,

even if it's just produced something. But sometimes it does just,

you know, I can be in a state.

I can be feeling a bit of an, you know, anxiety or depression or

I or just feeling a bit strange, feeling a bit off. You don't quite know what it is.

And there have been times when I've got into the studio and

picked up a brush or a palette knife and just thought,

Oh, I

feel OK now,

just not

not amazing but just, uh OK, I feel OK now. This is my brain's gone normal again.

So sometimes it is almost like flicking a switch. That just makes me feel OK again.

But not all the time. Otherwise, I'd just paint all the time on

and feel normal all the time. That'd be nice, wouldn't it?

Well, I know you put a lot of pressure on yourself over

your productivity, but it's good to hear that you do that.

You do enjoy the process as well and that you can feel

it.

Um,

do you think

if there'd been

some community classes, like an art group on Zoom,

do you think that would have inspired you and encouraged you

to to get up and do something and maybe give you a prompt?

Or do you think that would have been more pressure?

um, to be honest with you, I'm a bit late to the zoom game.

I've only I've only started in the last few months using it a little bit.

And I've done a couple of quizzes

with happy club care,

and I've done a couple of quizzes and

meets with collaborate, and I've had a couple of like one to ones like this,

but, um,

I'm not very organised. So if someone had said right at

three o'clock on Wednesday afternoon, we're gonna do,

I don't know.

Whatever we're we're gonna show you how to

make macro make plant holders or something.

I probably wouldn't just be all together enough to be joined in.

Um, so I I I I'm just not

I don't know May Maybe,

maybe

Maybe it Maybe it would have been helpful.

Or maybe it would have felt like pressure to be creative at a certain time. Or,

you know,

um,

within those kind of

right, it's three o'clock on Wednesday. We're doing this.

But, I

mean,

obviously,

we're in lockdown for another couple of

months or whatever with the meeting slightly.

But

maybe for next lockdown,

I might be more

open to trying stuff on Zoom. I've got a friend who she does.

She's done a She did a zoom poetry workshop the other day,

and she said it was really good really helpful for her.

And that was a

That was a full day thing that she did.

Um, but it's not something I've tried. So

to be fair, I don't think I've

I don't think I've had any invites to anything like that or seen anything

like that, you know, advertised. But

I I probably wouldn't have joined in, to be honest with you, Um,

that is another question.

This is gonna sound really weird, but I've got

you. What? Sorry.

It is.

Another question is how How would they get the

information out to let people know what was happening?

Hm?

Yeah,

well, it's so

I I you know, I do go on Facebook every day I go on instagram,

but it's very hit and miss with whose posts you actually see

and stuff like that. It's really frustrating because

you could have the best event planned

and invite all your friends and and

9/10 of them

don't actually see the invite. You know, unless you're

it's really hard work. Um,

because you'd think if it was going to be a computer workshop,

then the best way to let people know about it is via the computer.

maybe you need to have, you know, whoever's organising,

you know, if if

whoever's organising it needs to have a good email list of people to invite,

I suppose I don't

I don't really know. It's difficult.

It's difficult unless you've really got your ear to the ground.

Like unless I was checking.

I don't know, like, s two R website or the Creative Minds website Or

you know, any other, um, the recovery college or or anything like that.

Unless I was checking on their sites

once a week, I'd I'd probably miss

most of the info anyway.

It is it. It is really difficult these days to get to get stuff out there.

think they're very

pointers. Trey.

Um,

yeah.

Do you Do you think there'd be any other

any other pursuits that

you'd want to get involved in or see in your community?

Um, do you think there's anything practical that would help like like,

have you got the materials you need?

And

I'm good for materials right

here,

As if you remember from what we used to.

Well, I I've got a lot of, um, art making supplies.

Um,

which is one of the reasons why it gets so difficult when

I'm in my studio because I'm literally tripping up over stuff.

I've just I've got a lot of work. I've got a lot of stuff. I've got lots of different

because I do oil paint and do acrylic paint. And I do glass painting.

I do wax painting.

I started using alcoholics. I've got all my work in my back.

I used to do a lot of glass painting,

so I've got all that stuff. I've just got tonnes of,

um, art stuff, but

I don't know for other people, maybe. And and, you know, I've been

It's 15 years since we started. Um, something like that.

So I've been using, uh, as a tool for my well being for quite a long time.

Or, you know, on when I've been when I've had the opportunity to

But, um, you know, maybe people who

I tell you what actually I think would probably be good

might be

something for people who've never been into that, you know,

to have some really basic kind of,

um,

skills given and maybe some material. So,

you know, if you if you've identified 10

black and Asian women because you've mentioned the the the

thing

to do with this interview, you know,

if you identify however many people and say right, we're going to give you some.

We're gonna give you some water colours, and we're gonna give you some,

Maybe not water colours, actually, because they're difficult.

We're gonna give you a small set of acrylics,

and we're gonna give you some oil pistols, and we're gonna give you the right paper,

and we're gonna give you some canvas,

and we're going to give you the right brushes because that can be really daunting.

You know, if you went into colour graphics and you'd never been in before,

you wouldn't have a clue where to start.

You wouldn't know what brushes went with what paints.

You wouldn't know why certain brushes needed different. Why?

Paints need different brushes. You know it.

It can be quite overwhelming.

I remember when I first started painting I got water colours

because I could clearly see that they were water

colours and I could clearly see water colour paper.

And I could clearly see watercolour brushes. But I was really scared to,

um this is before we had the studios.

But yeah,

I was really sort of scared to ask questions and

look ignorant and not know what I was doing.

So,

you know, I messed around with water colours for a few years at home, Just

not as often.

You know,

if if maybe if someone had clearly said to me

then this is really good for your mental health.

I would have used it more.

But as it was, I I painted quite sporadically just when I was in the mood.

But I didn't have any

encouragement.

Our support, whereas a We had a lot of encouragement and support, didn't we? To

express ourselves and stuff, but

I don't know it.

Yeah,

maybe, um,

I'd like I mean, I'd I'd like to see everybody being able to

use creativity sometimes

to help themselves.

I'd love to see everybody tap into it because I think we've all got it.

And especially, like

the kind of work I do where you don't need to be a draughtsman.

You don't need to be able to draw something that looks realistic.

You can just mess about with colours and hope for the best

and and see what happens and experiment and stuff. So

sorry, I've I've, um I think I might have gone off subject there a bit,

but, um,

no,

no, I don't know.

It would be great if we could convince everyone

in the world that they can be creative and

knock Knock them out of this idea that they're no good at that or they can't draw.

Yeah,

I know a lot of people have started out thinking that they can't draw and then

being able to just really enjoy splashing paint about and

yeah,

under it

when?

If if they can see that there's people who've

got really famous artworks in museums and galleries that can't

draw more than a stick, man

don't know. But

yeah.

And, um,

yeah, we, um,

speaking of the black and Asian minority ethnic communities,

do you think that,

er your ethnicity has influenced the way that

you've dealt with the pandemic and it's affected you?

Not really. I don't think I mean,

I'm stressed. I'm half Jamaican. I'm half Yorkshire.

But I definitely identify more with the Yorkshire side

because I've been born and grown up here,

Um,

so I don't know, but

it's been very isolating,

and it we've all been sort of stuck in our little cocoons at

home and trying to get through and make the best of it and

have our little bubbles and, you know,

dash to the supermarket in our

masks and gloves and

and get what we need and come back home. And I don't I don't I don't think my ethnicity

has had

much difference than if I'd been white or Asian or

any other. Um,

me personally. Anyway, I I don't really think it's made much difference to the to the

to how the pandemic has affected me.

Um,

yeah.

I wish I had a better answer for you than that. But that's it.

That's fine. No, no, there's no right and wrong answers.

The right Answer your answer to me.

And And

I'm really grateful for what you've shared with us today.

And and,

Yeah, I owe you one.

You can buy me a coffee when we're allowed out again.

Yeah,

OK, you can hold me to that.

Thanks, Trey.

Well,

no problem, Rene. See you later.

Bye.

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Posted By

Author

Rene

Post date

16/03/2021