Funded by the National Lottery, we set out to normalise men having conversations about their own and others mental health. Partnering up with local businesses and organisations, we wanted to offer an alternative to what’s already out there. What if you could do something creative in your local barbershop or pub, a place where you go regularly, meet a bunch of guys, learn something new and see where the conversation takes you?
Between October 2022 and March 2023, we invited 35 men to do just that to help us make beer mats, sports cards and an Alright Mate? podcast to get everyone talking about men’s mental health. Alongside recording interviews, we made portraits using wet plate photography and built something we called The Tower of Strength, using pyrography and blocks of English Ash.
“I had no expectations apart from learning something new but the conversation ebbed and flowed from the serious to utter nonsense..”
Dave (Project participant)