Art works: Bea Giaquanto's multi medium exhibition marking Framework's 25th anniversary

The exhibition is called From Trauma to Hope to Independence. It is a commissioned exhibition celebrating Framework Housing Association’s 25th Anniversary and is a creative response to working with both Framework service users and staff through art and spoken word workshops, and individual sessions and interviews.

I was selected as the featured artist for this project, but because of how I wanted to work I invited Inge Tong and poet David ‘Stickman’ Higgins to be my collaborators. Both are wonderful artists with vast experience of working creatively with groups of people with empathy, attention and care.

The set of three works I created for the exhibition are rooted in the moving and powerful conversations with service users and staff about their personal experiences and the opportunity to experience a ‘behind the scenes’ insight to the North Nottinghamshire Street Outreach team in Mansfield. 

One piece, Caught and Held, is a response to the description of Framework being a safety net – having caught people and prevented them from ‘falling through the cracks.’ The work also captures a profound moment in an art workshop at a women’s project where, whilst making small pinch pots, participants shared their personal stories about their individual uniqueness, and similarities of experience. Each ceramic vessel is unique, and representative of an individual supported over a safety net.

Coperta is a mixed media work created from the archive of Framework Annual Reports – 25 years of printed documents telling the story of the charity and the impact it has made on people’s lives. I recycled many of these documents and transformed them into handmade paper, stitched together creating a patchwork blanket. This ‘blanket’ is a metaphor for the safety and care that has been discussed and valued by so many of the individuals that myself, Inge and Stickman met and worked with during the workshops.

Night ‘til Dawn is an ambient soundscape installation created from background noises experienced by people who are rough sleeping. Walking around the exhibition, you become aware of the different sounds from locations that are places to rest; water flowing under a bridge, traffic noise, a car park, footsteps on the streets, the night time economy and the dawn chorus.

My creative process always starts with meeting an individual or group who have experiences and stories to tell. For example, refugees, care leavers, people with eating disorders. I work therapeutically with them (I am trained counsellor and art therapist). My art practice involves as a response to everything I have learned from them. I never tell another’s story, that is certainly not mine to tell. My work becomes a window into an experience – sensitively and respectfully, I hope. 

From being a small child I always created, made, collected, curated things. The world and people are my inspiration. I moved to Notts in 1986 to do a year of Textile Design at Trent Polytechnic and then transferred to the Creative Arts Degree. In 1993 I did an MA in Fine Art at Nottingham Trent Uni.  I have always been inspired by the 1960s Italian art movement ‘Arte Povera’ and I love the work of many artists, especially, Ai Weiwei, Cornelia Parker and John Newling.

There is a lot I could say about homelessness, but I want to thank all the Framework service users and staff for sharing your experiences. I am in awe of your resilience and courage. We should all remember that each of us has a story to tell and deserves dignity and respect.

From Trauma to Hope to Independence takes place at St Mary’s Church between Tues 17 – Sun 22 November. A virtual exhibition takes place in Nottingham Central Library on selected afternoons in January 2027 and at Stealth during Beat the Streets Festival on Sun 31 January 2027.

frameworkha.org