My Story

Who I am

I’m a creative thinker with a heart for people and an insatiable curiosity about what helps us feel at home in ourselves and with one another. My work lives where art, meaning and belonging meet. It’s guided by a quiet belief that creativity can be a form of recovery, a way back to ourselves, and a way through the ache of being human.

How it began

Leah Bell Creative grew from the belief that art is so important to human connection that it is worth dedicating my focus full time to helping people experience and access it. After spending my twenties in high-pressure environments, from services for the unhoused, to work with the financial division of a renowned university, I began to listen more closely to my intuition and my body. I came to realise I had been living in survival mode for years, and decided it was time to reflect on who I really am and what I really want to do with my life. After years of discernment and not without a number of periods of getting in my own way, in 2025 I took a deep breath and stepped fully into this mental health and community space, seeking a slower, truer life prioritising creativity, personal development and building community.

My 'Hiraeth Harbour'

My practice weaves together what I’ve learned from years of learning and exploring the research and applying the relevant parts to my life and work: these have included addiction recovery, feminist spirituality, ancestral healing (in my case this is by discovering the welsh celtic traditions of my own ancestors), the phases of the moon, and the power of language and words on influencing understanding and therefore behaviour.

I’m drawn to the concept of hiraeth a Welsh word for an untranslatable, soul-deep longing for home. It isn’t always a place; it’s a familiar or intuitive way of being. I think of my work as a kind of harbour, a place to rest, reconnect and remember what matters. I often set intention for my comissions to provide those who observe it a combination of these concepts; a Hiraeth Harbour.

Intellect vs. intuition

As a (lapsed) member of Mensa UK, neurodivergent-aligned, and spiritually curious person, I value both intellect and intuition, but I have learned that intellect alone does not hold much weight without a foundation of trust in my intuition - and I find this through my art and self-compassion. My art seeks to provide you, the viewer and me, the creator, with a central meeting point, in this central meeting point crosses the threshold between time and space, beyond our tangible experiences, to align in some way with the common experiences of all people.

When I’m not creating, you’ll find me by the sea, salt in my hair following a cold dip in the ocean, sketching out my feelings, learning about my inner world or, on an especially good day, screaming the lyrics of All Too Well (the 10 minute version) whilst cooking a nostalgic dish.

Pilgrimage

Through my work, I hope to help others navigate and remember life’s steeper hills with gentleness, curiosity and courage as well as, in some cases, a touch of humour, and to find a home with me and others on the pilgrimage path of life.