Art by Post

Designed by artists and inspired by our art collection and artistic programme here at the Southbank Centre, Art by Post booklets were available for any individual or organisation seeking creative resources, including care-givers, those living with dementia or long-term health conditions, as well as practitioners and professionals working in social and healthcare settings.

Art by Post began in May 2020 and since then has worked with 17 artists to create 11 creative booklets and sent out over 40,000 booklets to date. Each booklet guided participants through a series of activities to spark their imagination, keep their mind active and help them stay connected to others. 

We included a Freepost envelope for artwork and booklet responses to be sent back to us, many of which will be included as part of our exhibition Art by Post: Of Home and Hope.

You can view all of the previously produced booklets and their supporting resources on our website.

View resources 

Sign up 

There are four different referral options. Please make sure you fill in the correct application form.

• Sign up to receive Art by Post for yourself. Sign up here 
• Sign up a friend, family member or someone you support. Sign up for someone else 
• Sign up for your group or organisation. Group/organisation sign-up

• Sign up for our bespoke programme for care home settings. Sign up for a care home

What’s next for Art by Post?

In addition to monthly activities by post, Art by Post continues to offer interactive sessions with guest artists on Zoom, on the telephone and where possible, in person, providing an opportunity to take part in creative activities, connect with others and have some fun. 

There are also opportunities for participants to get involved with other aspects of our artistic programme here at the Southbank Centre, such as the Southbank Centre Archive.

More than 4,500 people across the UK are signed up to receive our creative activities each month. Our community stretches from Aberdeen to Truro and Bangor to Dover, our youngest participant is 18 and our oldest is 103 – and we’d love you to get involved.

Activities were paused over the summer of 2021 while we prepared for our exhibition, Art by Post: Of Home and Hope, but we have now reopened applications for a limited number of postal participants to receive our new monthly activity cards. 

We also continue to accept applications for organisations to keep up to date with our activities and groups by email.