Artists, Creatives and Volunteers
Journalist and copyeditor Astrid Hofer has interviewed some of the wonderful people that have worked with NBAM throughout the years. Read the interviews to meet the artists, creatives and volunteers behind some of our work!
Amanda Horwood, Painter
Painter Amanda Horwood has a background in the arts as well as interest in physchotherapy and uses both to support marginalised people through her workshops. “It’s about empowerment”, she explains. “When you paint, you decide if you paint a landscape or a portrait and what it looks like, you are the creator of an environment. Many people I work with have experienced losing control, being kept against their will, being given treatment that they might not agree with and having others making decisions about their lives. Art workshops give them the opportunity to take back control while meeting people in the same situation.”
Amanda’s interest in the arts developed at a young age and was inspired by – her cats! “I wanted to draw them and I got obsessed with their eyes. A lot of my characters still have big, cat-like eyes”, she says. Apart from cats, she loves “bright, joyful colours”. Amanda describes herself as a bit of a “teenage rebel” who ended up working in a clothing shop as she was unable to get into college. However, a “traumatic event” involving a fire and “losing a couple of cousins” changed her view: “I realised that life was limited. You only get one chance to do what you want to and I was wasting my life.”
She studied Fine Arts in Leeds and Arts Therapy at Goldsmiths in London and has been working at non-profit organisation ELMS since, supporting people struggling with their mental health. Having experienced depression first-hand, she sees “parallels between workshops, teaching and therapy groups as they all give support.” Her work with NBAM started through her friendship with Neesha who she describes as “a role model who meets people on equal level” and someone with “a very positive outlook that believes in others and their potential”.
Amada admires everyday people such as a friend who “is a single mother with an autistic child, a psychotherapist and a university teacher all in one” as well as her Grandmother who “starting painting in her fifties and travelled to Russia by herself to learn the language.” When she is not working, painting or teaching, she loves music and watching films, naming “Short Cuts” by Robert Altman as her favourite.
Esther Neslen, Sculptor
“Ever since I was a little kid, I wanted to be an artist,” says Esther Neslen. A graduate of Staffordshire University where she specialised in sculpture, she worked as a graphic designer graduation and in animations for children’s programmes before deciding to re-visit her roots.
“After graduation I never wanted to make sculptures again. But the desire to use my hands and sculpt things was so great that I started again,” Esther explains. “The most interesting part for me is not the finished product but the process of making it, so I ended up in teaching. I especially love having people make large scale work together as it’s exciting to see how they interact.” These days, she teaches all over London in person and online sculpture workshops including for NBAM participants.
Esther believes that art should be easily accessible: “Neesha and I both think that everybody should have an opportunity to be creative. And our job is to encourage people to explore their creative identity, especially those who wouldn’t otherwise have an opportunity to do so”, she explains. “It’s what makes the NBAM projects so fulfilling.” The principle also applies to where she decides to exhibit her works: “I don’t like galleries very much. I’d rather put up my sculptures in public spaces where people can see them without having to go somewhere to experience art.”
Besides being an artist, Esther also calls herself “a passionate socialist and an activist”, advocating for causes like anti-racism and environmental issues. Among her upcoming projects is a so-called forest flash mob at the E17 Art Trail, seeing kids and adults dressed up as trees to protest against deforestation: “We have to remind people that the impacts of global warming, flooding, droughts and hurricanes, haven’t gone away just because Covid-19 is dominating the news. People also tend to forget that there was an environmental element to how the virus developed.”
Esther is an admirer of Swedish climate warrior Greta Thunberg: “She has completely changed the discourse on the environment almost single-handedly and I think that’s quite spectacular.” Another woman she is very fond of: “My friend Esme who is an ambulance driver and a brilliant marxist theorist.”
Ines Alberty, Creative
Ines Alberty is NBAM’s marketing and digital design wizard. Originally from Lisbon and currently based in Glasgow, Ines has been passionate about the arts since her teenage days: “In Portugal, you have to pick an area of study in high school and I chose visual arts. It has been my path ever since.”
After graduating, Ines studied art and design in London, then went on to work in various commercial sector jobs. “My first few job had left me a bit disillusioned by the industry. The environment I was working in didn’t match my idea of what art could be or how it could contribute to people’s lives. I was looking for something within the arts but in the non-profit sector, something with a cause associated to it,” she says. At the community- focused Studio 3 Arts she crossed paths with Neesha.
NBAM’s focus on marginalised people was what attracted Ines, a long-term volunteer in the social action field, from day one. “Many think the arts are only for certain people or you need a certain talent but I don’t believe in any of this. The arts can take you to a better mental space, distract you but also generate new thoughts, new ideas and new conversations,” she explains, adding: “I like how thoughtful Neesha is with every little aspect of her projects. She establishes meaningful, ongoing relationships with her participants.”
In her free time, Ines can be found exploring the Scottish outdoors or creating her own pieces of art at home: “I couldn’t imagine life without the arts. I play the guitar, I sing and I write music together with my partner. Creating a song excites me way more than playing someone else’s,” she tells us. “I also paint and I write poems, I have written a lot lately. I don’t have a favourite form of art, they are just different ways of expressing how I feel or taking my mind off when I am struggling. They also help me draw inspiration to my digital work, serving as creative prompts.”
When asked about the woman she most admires, she names Portuguese illustrator Clara Não: “She is around my age and not only a great illustrator but also a feminist. She is very vocal and active in transmitting these ideas through her work.”
Liz Griffiths, Artist
Liz Griffiths is a full time artist specialising in abstract paintings. Her colourful works, inspired by places from cities to rural landscapes, can be seen at exhibitions all over London as well as online. At NBAM, the artist encourages participants to explore their creativity through “intuitive painting” as she calls it:
“I believe that everybody can paint. Many people in my workshops are very talented, a lot of them are very sensitive. I do hope that they enjoy the experience because I find it very encouraging to get people to do something creative” Liz runs in-person courses but also creates kits people can use at home: “Not everybody has access to the internet, or feels comfortable using it, so we send out material they can work with.”
Liz’ own creative journey began as a child when she spent all her free time painting. However, she only enrolled in a degree at the age of 30: “I did a course in English literature, Spanish and art but ended up spending most of the time in the art room because that is what I really loved.” After graduation, she ran a student shop while continuing to paint on the side. However, at 45, she packed her bags and went off to Argentina. “It was a spur of the moment thing, I just needed a change,” she tells us. “I stayed there for a couple of months to experience living abroad and to improve my Spanish.”
Upon return, she enrolled in another arts course and made her passion a fulltime career. At NBAM, Liz loves the teaching experience which, she says, felt “perfectly natural to me” but also the social aspect and Neesha’s can-do-attitude: “She is so positive and inclusive and really inspires people. She makes me want to inspire others as well.”
Liz describes herself as a bookworm always curious about new reads: “Contemporary fiction is my thing. I don’t watch telly, so in the evening I read.” Besides her favourite book characters, she gets inspired by people she meets in her everyday life: “I look up to every woman who works at a care home for minimum wage. They just need to be appreciated so much more than anybody famous.”
Natasha Antonio, Volunteer
Natasha Antonio has been a volunteer with NBAM since day one. A travel agent from the age of 16 and now a full time carer for her third child, she values the chance to work with people from all walks of life, while learning new skills herself on the way.
“Volunteering gives you the opportunity to meet people you would have never met otherwise. It opens your eyes to the world around you, it gives you a purpose and makes your life more fulfilled. You feel part of a team, a greater something. It’s fantastic,” she says. Natasha’s roles within NBAM change by the project and see her helping out with organisational tasks behind the scenes on one day and mingling with workshop participants the next.
“I am passionate about giving hope, helping and uplifting people. NBAM’s projects can hopefully make people feel a bit more comfortable in their own skin and reduce stress. It’s also about the feeling of being together, of being part of society. Art is like magic: You might be able to express something you can’t bring out vocally. As for myself, I learn a new skill every day through volunteering which I can pass on to my children, skills that also enrich my CV,” Natasha tells us.
Born and raised in London, she has always had an interest in the arts. She is passionate about music, loves female singers such as Emeli Sandé and P!nk and enjoys going to galleries. Gardening is another of her hobbies: “You could call growing your own flowers and vegetables an art. It’s very therapeutic and mindful.” One of the things Natasha missed most during lockdown was traveling: “I was a travel agent for 20 years. I like being outdoors, doing things and seeing things.”
When asked about her biggest role model, she immediately names her little sister – who is also the founder of NBAM: “Neesha has gone out in the world on her own, she got her degree, she set up NBAM, she has been a volunteer and she keeps giving opportunities to others. Neesha is completely selfless. She wants to share her love of life with others. I really appreciate being able to volunteer with her.”
Sharlene Carter, Dancer and Creative Producer
Talula Noor, Artist
Talula Noor is an expert on everything craft, design and textiles. The Londoner has studied various areas of arts from portraiture to photography and fashion before focusing on the latter as her main field. She is also a trained massage and beauty therapist, a carer, a former assistant teacher and her families’ go-to person for altering, repairing and redesigning clothes – a skill she also teaches part-time.
“I am constantly inspired by people and things around me and I like to do a lot with my hands,” Talula explains. “While I use computers for online research, I still enjoy sampling textiles with my own eyes, going to exhibitions and reading actual books. I probably have over 1000 about arts, crafts, textiles and styles.” It seems fair to call Talula a recycling wizard as she creates pieces of art from all kinds of everyday things including oxygen tanks, lids of coffee jars and old books.
She also designs children’s clothes, bags and postcards mostly using materials she finds at home. Talula’s interest in social arts sparked when she was a live-in carer for an arts therapist for ten years. “I learnt a lot from her, from supporting other people to actual art therapy,” Talula says. “As a result, I created my own crafts therapy niche. I feel it’s important for anybody to have something creative in their well-being bubble, no matter if it’s crafts, reading, creative writing, music or dance.”
When asked about NBAM, she talks about her good relationship with Neesha: “Teaching is more fun if you like the people you work with and I certainly like working with Neesha. We have a similar kind of humour and respect each other.”
Besides creating arts, Talula loves listening to music and cooking veggie dishes. She dreams of having a house with lots of bunnies and going vegan at some point. Talula admires celebrities such as Mother Theresa, Oprah Winfrey and Whoopi Goldberg but also names women in her daily life as her role models: “The art therapist I took care of still inspires me all the time. And my Mum who was very creative and never wasted a thing, not even onion skin.”
Vicki Busfiled, Dancer and Choreographer
Vicki Busfield is a trained dancer wearing many hats: Besides teaching classes for toddlers, older people and everyone in between, she is a choreographer, a producer, a creative manager and the founder of her own company ‘DashDotDance’. Focusing on inclusive practice. Her mantra is that everybody can dance. “I work with people with and without disabilities, with schools, children’s community centres and people with dementia,” she says. “It’s not just about dance skills. It’s also about gaining self-confidence and helping people grow as individuals. And when it comes to disabilities, it’s just as important to increase awareness among non-disabled people, that having a disability doesn’t mean people can’t do the things they want to do.”