Therapeutic Landscapes II
Therapeutic Landscapes:
Ritual, Folklore and Wellbeing
12th & 13th June 2026
The Art House, University of Worcester, Castle Street, Worcester WR1 3HN
The Therapeutic Landscapes Conference brings together researchers, practitioners, artists, and community organisers exploring how place, environment, and landscape shape experiences of health, wellbeing, care, and belonging.
The conference creates space for interdisciplinary dialogue alongside more experimental, creative, and practice-based approaches to understanding how landscapes are lived, felt, and made meaningful.
“Brilliant speakers and amazing program”
Attendee, Therapeutic Landscapes 2025
Why Therapeutic Landscapes, Now
Interest in folk culture, seasonal ritual and the healing power of place has moved from the margins into the mainstream, and not just in academia.
In the wake of the pandemic, the question of what the arts can offer public health stopped being a niche concern. The creative health movement has established what many practitioners already knew: that making things, gathering together and engaging with the natural world has a measurable effect on how we feel.
At the same time, there is a zeitgeist moment happening around folk culture specifically. Ideas that were once considered disreputable within the academy, such as magic, ritual, the carnivalesque, are being taken seriously as ways of understanding creativity, community and well-being.
The researchers and practitioners working in this space have largely been doing so in isolation, without a shared language or a place to gather.
Therapeutic Landscapes exists to be that place.
Building on Last Year
Following the sell-out success of last year’s conference, this year’s gathering builds on the energy, conversations, and collaborations that emerged. Feedback from participants highlighted the value of creating a space that felt both intellectually rigorous and genuinely welcoming, where early-career researchers, established scholars, and practitioners could think together across disciplinary boundaries.
This year’s conference extends that ethos, with an expanded programme and an increased emphasis on dialogue, reflection, and shared inquiry rather than formal presentation alone.
Therapeutic Landscapes 2026
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The Program
Two days of research, performance, workshops and conversation.
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The Speakers
Sharing from thinkers, makers and practitioners from across the field.
What People Loved Last Year:
“Meeting like-minded people and finding my tribe.”
“Felt like a retreat – validating and healing.”
“Diversity, depth and breadth of speakers.”
What to Expect
The conference will feature a mix of paper presentations, panels, creative and practice-based contributions, and opportunities for informal discussion. Alongside the event itself, this conference website will function as an ongoing resource, hosting presenter profiles, selected papers, creative work, and curated materials that continue the conversation beyond the event.
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The Art House University of Worcester Castle Street, Worcester, WR1 3ZQ
By Train Worcester Foregate Street station is a five-minute walk away. Exit the station and turn right onto Foregate Street, then left onto Castle Street after around 200 metres. The Art House will be on your left.
By Car From the M5, take Junction 7 and follow signs for Worcester City Centre. The Art House is on Castle Street, just off the A38 to the north of the city centre.
Parking The nearest public car park is The Moors (WR1 3ED), a short walk from the building.
By Bus The nearest bus stop is The Tything on the A38, approximately a five-minute walk away. First Bus services 31, 31A and U1 connect the City Campus to the city centre bus station.
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Lunch isn't provided as part of the programme, but you won't be short of options, the Art House is right in the heart of Worcester city centre, with a good range of cafés and restaurants all within easy walking distance.
If you'd rather bring your own lunch, there are plenty of spots nearby to sit outside and the venue has welcoming communal spaces.
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The following website has information about local accommodation: Stay In Worcester
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Here’s a link to the full accessibility guide for the venue at the Art House: Your Accessibility Guide
The Art House
University of Worcester,
Castle Street,
Worcester WR1 3HN