Lorna Carmen McNeill
Artist
“Mesmerisingly beautiful. When I feel I need uplifting I put on my headphones and watch the 2 minute video I made of your work and feel energised! It's amazing!” Shirley-Ann Dixon, Artist, London
"I create art to connect with something greater than myself. I am fascinated by human potential for transformation and how it connects to the evolutionary cosmology and the Journey of our Universe. This passion stems from childhood wonder and a challenging personal journey to find connectedness within nature, the cosmos and all things.
A previous career as a health professional ( ) informs my interest in well-being and creativity. I am now
committed to facilitating meaningful reflection, connectedness and transformation through my work and art
practice. I work to unite newer light, digital and interactive technologies with fine art and sculpture. Using a wide
range of materials and methods, I work rapidly to transcend the rational mind and capture the essence of what I
am connecting to. My final pieces are the manifestation of extensive sensory experimentation via drawing (pencil,
charcoal, pastels, inks), painting (watercolour, acrylic, oils), sculpture (wire, clay, paper, thermoplastics, fibreoptics),
exploring corresponding movements with the body, and animation through light, film and kinetic technologies.
I find multi-disciplinary, diverse and multi-cultural work compelling as it enables the possibility of unexpected creative discovery at the edge of the disciplines. Working to go beyond the familiar, creates the space for new dimensions to open up.
My aim is to facilitate others to connect with inspiration and their individual passion through viewing my installations or participating in my workshops. I hope that my work triggers a process that reveals that at this moment each individual belongs and can make a unique and meaningful difference and contribution to the evolution of our universe. My installations are an invitation for the viewer to live their potential, to enter an immersive experience of
a greater reality: a dynamic world of connectedness, and creative processes."
EDUCATION
2019- 2020 Post Graduate Certificate in Education, University of Greenwich
2018 Level 3 in Education in Training
2016 Arts Award training - Bronze and Silver, experience in Gold.
2010-2013 The Art Academy, London – Diploma in Fine Art, Sculpture and Painting (First)
1989-1993 Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh - BSc (Hons) Nutrition and Dietetics SRD
1980-1983 Goldsmiths College of Art, London - Degree Course
1979-1980 Camberwell College of Art, London - Foundation Art Course
TEACHING AND FACILITATION EXPERIENCE
Apr '21 - June 21 Create to Connect, Nottingham City Arts - Series of Online workshops to prevent Covid Loneliness
Arts Medicine Lab grant, collaboration with Luke Brown Dance Company
Jan '21-present Founder and Creative Facilitator Arts Medicine Lab
Oct '20- present Visiting Lecturer, Hertford Regional College
Oct '20-Jan '21 Founder, creator and teacher - Life Drawing Re-Imagined - Online art class
Nov 2020 Facilitator/workshop Leader - Tell Me a Story - Art as Transformation
2019-2020 Lecturer in Art and Design, Course Leader, Level 3, New City College, Epping Forest Campus,
Teaching Levels 1-3 and Foundation
2013-present Tutor at the Art Academy and Creative Team Development Manager - Teaching core skills in drawing, painting, mixed media and sculpture, developing and running a range of Unlocking Creativity courses, Exploring Movement through Mixed Media, skill development courses for young artists, facilitating Creative Team Building events.
Feb 2019 Workshop for Young Carers, 'Hear Us Shout,' Oaklands College, St Albans
Mar 2019 Workshop for Health and Social Care Students: 'Health and well-being through the Arts', Epping Forest College
Dec 2018 Tutor for life drawing course, St Francis' Hospice, Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire
Jun 2018 Awesome Elements – day workshop for STEAM day at Aureus School, Didcot
Apr 2018 Celebrating the Life Force through colour, form and Texture – Workshop for Association of Biodynamic Massage Therapists, Royal Society of Medicine
Mar 2018 Light in the Tunnel – Shining a Light on Didcot’s high tech past and future – facilitating interactive art project at Global Citizenship Day, workshops and final installation for Aureus school, Didcot.
Nov 2017 Arts and Mental Health Training Day, Langley Academy Workshop Workshop and presentation on Unlocking Creativity. Uniting Head, Heart and Hands, Happiness Matters Conference
2016 Developing and running art-science workshops for children of all ages at Langley Academy (Arts Council Award and Residency)
2016 onwards Bronze, Silver and Gold Arts Award training for all ages
2015-2016 Creative team development manager, the Art Academy: running and developing creative team building for the corporate world and social and charitable groups
2016 -present Mentoring Xtra.Art, Young Artist collective (ages 17-21), Slough
2015 Creative Royston, Lantern making workshops for all ages of 350 young people to create Tree of Light
2015 Wac Arts - Developing and facilitating creative workshops for different groups of young people with learning difficulties (Arts Council Award and Residency)
Prior to this many years experience of workshop and training programme development and facilitation for health professionals and clients of all ages and backgrounds.
Lorna is a multi-media artist, teacher, facilitator and change agent. She has been involved in creativity and creative facilitation for over 30 years. Her artwork is immersive, sensory and experiential to inspire people to achieve positive personal and societal transformation, improve well-being, and soothe the human soul. She has exhibited widely and received several Arts Council and other Awards to develop her artwork and for community development. Lorna originally trained and practised as a Clinical Nutritionist and behaviour change agent within the NHS, community, research and the private sector. She worked extensively with psychologists, training health professionals in core counselling skills, cognitive, behavioural and motivational strategies for achieving lifestyle change, as well as running innovative courses on finding inner nourishment to enhance mental, physical and spiritual well-being. She is interested in how different art forms can mutually strengthen and support each other to infuse creativity into the heart of life. Rather than questioning how creative you are, she invites you to explore what you can do with the creativity that you intrinsically already are.