Christmas card competition offers young adults with learning disabilities the opportunity to get creative

Think18 supports young adults with learning disabilities across West Sussex and is asking participants to paint winter through their eyes, on a canvas provided by the charity.

Founder Tessa Denison, who lives in Chiddingfold, said: “We have noticed how therapeutic art has been, especially during the coronavirus lockdown, for young adults with learning disabilities – it is integral to their creativity and mental wellbeing.”

The charity wants participant to have fun painting their own interpretation of the winter theme in their own creative way – be it a snowy scene, a Christmas tree, lights on a dark night or a robin.

Getting crafty with glitter, tissue paper, buttons, and other materials is also encouraged.

The overall winning design will be printed as the Think18 Christmas card, which will go on sale to raise money for the charity – and the artist will be credited and win £50.

All the finished canvas art will be auctioned off on the Think18 website, with all the money raised going towards the running costs of its online art workshops and other projects which have been popular since the start of the pandemic.

How to enter

• Email [email protected] to register your interest with your name and home address. Think18 will then send you a blank canvas to get you started, along with a stamped address envelope to return your finished piece to them.

• Return your winter themed art/craftwork to Think18 using the envelope provided along with the completed competition entry form. Closing date for entries is October 20, 2020.

• Please note, all entrants will need to have signed the Think18 media consent opt-in box to consent to us to share your design with relevant internal and external sources. This form will be enclosed with art packs. All those eligible to take part must be aged 16-35 years with a learning disability and registered with Think18.

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