Betsy Lewis-Holmes, Programme Director

Betsy comes from an arts and exhibitions background, and has over fifteen years experience in arts project management. Prior to working for Art & Soul, Betsy managed various projects in arts including commissioning artwork for hospitals through Richmond Arts Service and ran a volunteer ‘arts for health’ programme with UCL Museums, taking museum objects to those in hospitals and day centres. Betsy has recently completed a PhD in medical history with the University of Exeter. 


Gwen Ramsay, Artist and Artist Educator

Gwen is a talented artist and artist educator who is passionate about encouraging everyone to be creative. Since 2007, Gwen has worked with schools, young people and adults as well as families on creative learning programmes privately and in Museums including the Tate Modern, The London Transport Museum and The Royal Academy of Arts. Gwen pioneered many social prescribing projects including ‘Chat and Draw’ at Orleans House Gallery and ‘Prescription for Arts’ at the Dulwich Picture Gallery. In the rest of her week, apart from painting and walking her dog Gus, Gwen manages Culture4Keeps, which is the arts and culture service for Children in Care in Kingston and Richmond, and does occasional sessions for the John Soane museum.

Shan Rixon, Art Therapist

Shan has a background in anthropology and documentary photography and is drawn to visual narratives connected to personal identity, community and social justice. Before retraining as an art psychotherapist, Shan worked for over a decade managing and facilitating arts programmes for young people in galleries such as Tate and The Photographers’ Gallery, with co-production at the heart of her practice. She currently works as a psychotherapist in schools, devises and delivers wellbeing workshops for adults and manages Arts in Health programmes in the NHS. Shan runs our fortnightly online group. 

Michelle Hazell, Art Therapist 

Michelle is a qualified and HCPC registered art psychotherapist. She trained at Roehampton university, after a long career as a teacher working with children with complex learning needs and disabilities. Michelle’s art therapy practice has been with young people (in the NHS) and adults at a community mental health and wellbeing charity.

Michelle is passionate about bringing out peoples innate creative spark and helping them to use their creativity for health and wellbeing. Michelle is a prolific art journaller and bookbinder, creating books and filling them with collage, paint, text and thread. She also loves to feel connected to nature and the seasons by using natural materials to create ephemeral or more lasting artworks. Michelle loves to bring people together to be creative and share art knowledge and experience.


Morgan Sinton-Hewitt, Workshop Assistant

Morgan supports all our online workshops and joined Art & Soul in 2021. She is an artist with experience of making work across different media which spans the past 20 years. As an educator, she has 14 years of experience in designing and facilitating socially engaged art with communities, schools, galleries and individuals. She has worked with particular emphasis with SEND groups and individuals and believes that everyone has a voice, a story, the capability and right to make art. Morgan has a first class undergraduate in Psychology and has collaborated with different interdisciplinary researchers and artists on different research projects relating to embodiment. 
 

Maddy Howell, Marketing

Maddy is a freelance writer and digital marketing specialist with experience working on art projects that showcase diverse cultures. Taking the lead on digital marketing for Folkestone-based arts organisation CT20 - Diverse Cultures From The Margins over the pandemic, she fronted a rebrand that aimed to position the institution as leaders in accessible culture. Trained in journalism and culture, she is passionate about telling stories, helping others to communicate openly, and encouraging brighter futures for those in the arts and outside it. Throughout the pandemic, her podcast Sounds Of Solace aimed to open up conversations surrounding mental health and music, encouraging difficult discussions at a time where they were most vital.