Big Draw 2025: Connecting Art, Nature, and Community in Newham

The bond between artistic creativity and the natural world is timeless and profound. Nature has long been our muse — inspiring imagination, shaping artistic expression, and teaching us the beauty of collaboration and renewal.

In the London Borough of Newham, where green space is limited to just 0.71 hectares per 1,000 people, the least of any London borough,  many children grow up without access to a garden. Art in the Docks aims to change that by weaving art and nature back into everyday life.

Deeply rooted in the local community, Art in the Docks works closely with families and children to explore what inspires and excites them. From tomato planting projects to sunflower-growing competitions, our initiatives have encouraged young people to grow, nurture, and connect with their surroundings.

Together with local beekeepers and gardening groups, we’ve helped transform balconies and patios into “Bee Friendly” habitats, one garden at a time.

Photo submitted by participant in our Sunflower Challenge

This autumn, we are thrilled to announce a major new chapter: The Big Draw 2025. For the first time ever, this national celebration of creativity will take place in Newham, and we are proud to be leading it.

The centrepiece of our Big Draw 2025 programme, will be our ‘Bee Friendly, Bee Happy’ activities - uniting art, environmental learning, and community participation in new and exciting ways.

Across schools, libraries, and community centres, children will explore the vital role of bees through storytelling, art, and hands-on activity. They’ll create bee-inspired drawings and decorate flowerpots, planting nectar-bearing spring bulbs timed to bloom just as bees awaken from their winter rest -  a living symbol of art and nature coming to life together.

The Big Draw 2025 will not only spark creativity but also nurture environmental awareness and a sense of shared purpose among Newham’s young people. Through colour, imagination, and collaboration, we’re helping every child discover how small acts: a drawing, a flower, a balcony garden, can make a big difference.

Stay tuned for updates on The Big Draw 2025 and join us in celebrating the harmony between art, community, and the natural world.