How it all began...
We are a young organisation but the ideas behind our organisation were growing over forty years ago.
My story
Fran Lee - Founder
Childhood
When I was younger, I loved arts and crafts, but at home, money for art resources was scarce - I dreamed of one day having an easel or oil paints but made do with toilet rolls and cereal boxes. At secondary school, I was fortunate to have amazing teachers who inspired me as I discovered ceramics, textiles, art and photography. I went on to college to broaden my horizons, but my education stopped there as I went into the world of work.
Career
I am a multi disciplinary creative, I have over twenty years experience working creatively across TV, events, fashion and interiors. I have worked as a consultant at The Design Museum, London and for Salisbury City Council. I have been involved creatively with performances by international artists from Lizzo to Robbie Williams and have styled the closing ceremony for the Mens 2020 Euros plus much more. I have been really fortunate for the opportunities and experiences I have had.
Appearing on season three of BBC1's Interior Design Masters with Alan Carr made me realise that great interior design can change how you feel and experience the world around you for the better and that that was what I wanted to focus on.
Motherhood
As a mother of two children, I discovered that schools don't 'teach' art like they used to when I was a child. The emphasis on STEM subjects far out weighs a focus on the arts - I began to become concerned that children like who I was are missing out. Meanwhile my daughter as a type 1 diabetic, has spent a lot of time in hospital and doctor's surgeries. Plain, faded interiors that I have sat in feeling low that don't reflect the community or inspire joy.
2024
I volunteered at the beginning of 2024 to design the interior of The Happy Hub in Queens Park. It is a thriving community centre led by HLEP that brings together different organisations and groups and hosts numerous events and workshops for the local community. It is a space that I have never left and now belong in and it is where the thinking around all of the above culminated in the creation of FLOURISH.
