Creative Lunches: Connecting Communities through Art and Food

About Us 

We’re Nicola and Emily, Practitioner Researchers at The Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge. Nicola is interested in arts and cultural education in the early years, while Emily’s practice focuses on (older) adults living with chronic health conditions and non-visible disabilities. In early 2025, we teamed up to see what might happen if our practices came together. The result? ‘Creative lunches’ – an intergenerational project where art and food bring people together.  

About the Project 

Taking inspiration from a temporary exhibition of 16^th century paintings by a Dutch artist, de Heem, we wondered what would happen if we used these artworks to inspire creativity, conversation, and connection across generations. Partnering with local organisations and a creative practitioner, Xenia Horne, we developed a series of inclusive, multi-sensory creative workshops in two areas in Cambridge: Romsey Town and Arbury.  

Each programme followed a simple rhythm: 

• early years workshop 

• older adults' workshop 

• combined intergenerational workshop 

  
  

Workshops were designed to engage participants through multi-sensory creative activities, inspired by the paintings, which culminated in a shared lunch together, in community spaces. ‘Creative Lunches’ wasn’t just about making art – it was about nurturing connection and a sense of belonging. By bringing together people of different ages, we discovered new ways to connect people, artworks, and ideas through shared practice. 

"Thank you for the mix of senses - music, smells, looking, words, and invitations and non-judgement. A lovely couple of hours being ‘held’ and contained. I needed this today." - Older Adult 

Image description: A colourful map showing the location of The Fitzwilliam Museum at the centre, with the Meadows Community Centre and Ross Street Community Centre at the top and right of the map - both show the Cambridge City Council logo and colourful text describing the intergenerational workshop series for each with children and older adults.

Session Content 

At the heart of each session was a commitment to creating an atmosphere of welcome and hospitality. Participants were warmly greeted at the door and invited to make themselves comfortable in the space. Throughout the project we reflected on different configurations of furniture and resources that would create an inviting and inclusive environment for our diverse participants, considering the variety of needs and interests of each group. We aimed to provide enticing invitations to explore without overwhelming people in a new environment. 

“Thank you very much for such a beautiful workshop. I feel in harmony with myself and my daughter enjoyed it too.” - Parent of a one-year-old 

We projected images of de Heem’s paintings into the room, alongside opportunities for participants to touch and play with related objects, including large seashells, metal candlesticks, fruit and flowers, fabrics in a range of textures, and a large plastic lobster which was popular with all age groups! Meanwhile, soft harp music helped to create an atmosphere that was stimulating and relaxing.  

Image Description: A colourful collage illustrating community collaboration around The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge. At the centre is the museum’s logo with text “The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.” Surrounding it are logos, icons, and illustrations representing partners and participants including Cambridgeshire County Council's Sensory Support Team, Cambridge City Child and Family Centre, Cambridge Older People's enterprise, and Cambridge City Council's Independent Living Service. There are images showing a creative practitioner playing a hard, and images of arts materials, fruit, cinnamon sticks, and a lobster representing the sensory and creative experiences.

Adapting to Each Group 

Responding to the moods, energy levels, and interests of each group, Xenia offered suggestions for ways in which participants could explore themes and ideas from the paintings that resonated with them. There were opportunities to draw, and the high-quality range of materials provided – sketch books, coloured pencils, black canvasses, paint sticks – meant that participants with differing levels of vision, dexterity, and confidence could explore in their own way.  

While the paintings themselves show a still, silent moment in time, they reference all kinds of movement and sound-making. Our participants explored this through creating sounds and simple movements based on favourite objects and images. Scents were passed around to evoke associations with the paintings and engage the senses. By sharing ideas beyond verbal language, participants had opportunities to communicate and collaborate in ways they might not have tried otherwise. 

“Coming together with friendship, a happy experience, Thank you! The music was just wonderful.” - Older Adult 

Shared Lunch 

The shared lunches were a vital part of each workshop, with participants, practitioners, and members of partner organisations taking time to rest, refresh, reflect – and most importantly, connect! During intergenerational workshops in particular, participants were keen to sit next to and engage with people of different ages to themselves, but even in the age-specific sessions there was a desire to make new connections. Sessions finished with final collaborative reflections, and sharing out any leftover food to take home! 

Celebratory Event 

We celebrated the project with an event held at the Museum that was open to everyone. There was music in front of the paintings in the gallery, as well as collaborative drawing activities, close looking, and sensory exploration of objects in the Creative Studio. This was attended not only by previous participants, but a wide variety of other museum visitors of all ages from families with young children, to school groups, and older adults. 

“I feel like it has changed my relationship to taking children to museums and seeing them more as a place to be respectful, but for them also to enjoy. Not the silent strict place I remember as a child.” - Parent of a one-year-old 

What did we learn? 

Intergenerational programmes are complex!  

Every participant is unique: their age is just one part of their identity. Instead of making assumptions about the needs and interests of young children or older adults it is important to find ways in which everyone’s contributions can be recognised and nurtured. In an intergenerational team it is important to listen to one another, to learn from one another’s practice, and to work together to ensure that everyone in the room feels valued, included, and respected. This may include sharing specialist expertise and peer training around inclusive practices for specific participant groups. 

Creating spaces for shared interaction and engagement takes care and time 

Building a sense of connection and community does not happen automatically but needs intention and careful support. Equally, connections cannot be forced. We found that gentle invitations and allowing people's curiosity to guide them was effective in facilitating moments of shared joy and discovery. 

People are interested in connecting with those of other generations 

We were struck by the enthusiasm from participants of all ages to be with those of other age groups. 

“Lots of fun. Lovely to be with parents and young children 😀❤️” - Older adult 

“We really enjoyed meeting the other people, both young and older, who took part in the project. We would definitely come to more such events in the future.” - Grandparent of a one-year-old 

Key takeaways 

• Provide a range of activities and materials to empower participants to engage in ways that feel comfortable - offering a choice is an inclusive way of engaging people. 

• Spend time considering how the room is set up to ensure that everyone feels welcome, safe, and comfortable to be able to engage and connect. Many different set ups are possible, but participants will appreciate you having considered their needs in thoughtful and responsive ways. 

• Be intentional about creating an inclusive, intergenerational space: neither a children’s space for adults to observe, or an adults’ space where children are tolerated, but an accessible space where everyone feels able to contribute.