ARTISTS across the borough still have time to enter this year’s Dawn Jones Art Prize, which invites entries from people with experience of mental health.

Those who submit their work to Dudley and Walsall Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust are in with a chance of winning one of two £100 prizes.

Fourteen shortlisted entries will be exhibited at the Forest Arts Centre in Walsall throughout August and the two winning entries will also be exhibited long-term in a public building.

The competition was set up by Maureen Jones nine years ago in memory of her daughter Dawn.

Dawn tragically committed suicide in 2005, at the age of 25, following a long battle with depression.

Mark Axcell, the trust’s chief executive, said: “We’re really pleased to be supporting this competition, which we hope will raise awareness and reduce the stigma that is often associated with mental health.

“We know that art can be therapeutic for many people, and we’d like to encourage anyone with an interest in art – whether as a beginner or as someone more experienced – to get involved and enter our competition.”

Dawn’s mother, Maureen, added: “It has been very rewarding to hear so many people say things like they had given up art when they were ill, but that the Dawn Jones Art Prize had inspired them to start getting involved in artwork again.”

Entries into two categories – ‘what makes me happy’ and ‘what I am hopeful for’ – are invited from anyone with experience of mental ill-health, whether that’s personal experience of problems, caring for someone with problems or working in the area.

Artwork can be completed using any medium, or combination of media, as long as it can be hung onto a wall.

This year, the trust will also be accepting poetry.

All work should be accompanied by a short paragraph about how mental health has touched the artist’s life and how art helps them.

Full competition guidelines can be found at www.dwmh.nhs.uk/artprize.

The deadline for entries is Monday, July 31.