a space for artists who experience houseboundness
About
Led by disabled artists, Hermit’s Lantern works to make the invisible become visible by providing opportunities & development to artists who experience houseboundness. Our mission is to build an online hub that centres community and skill-sharing, as well as increasing connection to the arts from home.
Our Story
The idea behind Hermit’s Lantern takes inspiration from the arts spaces that developed online during national lockdowns in 2020 and 2021. These programmes proved how our industry could adapt to include those at home, with hybrid options providing exciting potential for innovations in access as lockdowns eased. Sadly, through a combination of lack of awareness and lack of funding, many organisations have now backtracked to focusing solely on in-person development work, seeing a major loss of opportunities for artists who experience houseboundness. We seek to fill that gap, and advocate for our peers in the industry to follow our lead.
Why do we use the term housebound?
We recognise that the word “housebound” comes with negative associations — to this day, it is used within ableist structures such as the medical model to normalise the social exclusion and institutionalisation of disabled people who would otherwise be active & visible in public, if supported appropriately. However, as acknowledged by Chronic Illness Inclusion:‘Many people with severe energy impairment use the term “housebound” (and likewise the term “bedbound”) to capture a crucial, often painful, aspect of our lived experience that profoundly defines our world and our identity. […] Identifying ourselves as “housebound” does not mean we don’t want or need better assistance to improve our lives. In fact, acknowledging the existence of a housebound disabled population, as opposed to disabled people trapped at home due to social neglect, is crucial to providing lifeline domiciliary services to people with severe energy impairment.’Hermit’s Lantern uses this definition and endeavours to provide one such domiciliary service — we believe the experience of houseboundness deserves attention within the arts, and we extend our definition to include all artists who are unable to access in-person community spaces due to physical and/or mental health conditions’ impact on their lives.
Our work
Our flagship series of on-demand workshops & worksheets for members of our community who would prefer to develop at their own pace.
Our programme of live remote workshops, events, & socials for artists looking to develop their skills & community at the same time.
Our space for educating arts employers & programmers on the reality of houseboundness and the importance of domiciliary access.
