What I learnt about coaching and supervision from an abandoned caravan, some graffiti, a boatshed, and an unloved stretch of coast line….

Some of you may know that from 2022 to 2024, I spent two wonderful – and at times extremely challenging -  years at Newlyn School of Art in the stunning landscape of Cornwall, stretching my creative muscles and pushing past the edges of my artistic comfort zone. It was an experience that went beyond just developing as an artist—it shaped me in ways I hadn’t anticipated. It sharpened my focus, restored my balance, and  - unexpectedly - deepened my understanding of my coaching and supervision practice.

Fishing nets, Sandy Cove, Newlyn

This new blog series is my way of sharing those insights with you.

Sandy Cove – You Notice What You Notice

It’s Session Four of Defining Practice at Newlyn School of Art and this time we’re diving into photography. Our brilliant programme leader, Faye Dobinson (if you're on Instagram, check out her work), is joined by the equally fabulous photographer James Hankie. The Cornish weather, true to form, has gifted us with relentless mizzle, a stubborn chill, and zero chance of sunshine.

Faye announces that we’re heading out to the beach with our cameras for a few hours.  We rug up, bundle into cars and set off.

Our destination? Sandy Cove.

Sounds idyllic, doesn’t it? A charming little Cornish cove, perhaps with fine white sands and waves lapping gently at the shore?

Hmm, not quite.

Sandy Cove is, in fact, neither sandy nor a cove. It’s a small, unassuming stretch of coastline just east of Penzance. No dramatic cliffs, no sheltered bay. Instead, it’s a rough mix of shingle and pebbles, framed by a boat repair yard, graffiti-covered retaining walls, and a scattering of abandoned relics—tyres, forgotten toys, rusting cars, and burnt out caravans.  It’s the kind of place that looks like a post-apocalyptic film set. A graveyard of forgotten things. A place where stories once lived and then simply... stopped.

And yet, it was perfect.

Sandy Cove, Newlyn. Filter applied

Seeing Through a Different Lens

Faye’s only instruction before setting us loose: "Notice what you notice.”

Twelve of us, cameras in hand, wandered off in different directions. Some props were available if we wanted them —coloured acetates, mirror fragments —but mostly, it was just us, our eyes, our cameras, and this odd little place. At the end of the day, Faye set us a task: go home, review your photos, choose two, and send them to her.

The next morning, Faye had arranged our chosen images into a gallery, and what we saw was extraordinary.  Twenty-four photographs, each so different that you’d think we had visited entirely different locations.

Same place. Same weather. Same time. And yet, completely different perspectives.

One of my friends, Rosie, had embedded a found, small figurine into her images and captured something eerily poignant. Another, Lara, discovered a thick, coiled rope to something both playful and powerful. Some focused on the way light glinted off the wet pebbles, others honed in on the rhythmic lapping as the water gently washed onto the shore.

Fire, The boat yard at Sandy Cove

And me? I was drawn to the flow of water trickling down a wall, the hidden details of the boat shed, and the way a red Perspex sheet transformed a dilapidated caravan into a dystopian fever dream.

The Boat Yard at Sandy Cove

The Power of Perspective

This simple yet profound exercise encapsulated something essential: We all see and experience the world differently.  We can stand in the same place, experience the same moment, yet perceive it through entirely different lenses.   This realization struck me not just as an artist, but as a coach and supervisor.

Abandoned caravan, Sandy Cove. Filter applied

In coaching, our job isn’t to tell clients what to see—it’s to help them notice what they notice. To recognize that their lens is uniquely shaped by their experiences, their stories, and their unconscious filters. Noticing what you notice is a critical skill in coaching because it enhances awareness, deepens understanding, and fosters meaningful insights -  for both the coach and the client. As coaches we must also remind ourselves that our own perspectives are also shaped by bias, by history, by habit.

Here's how it helps: 

Heightened Awareness & Presence

Fundamentally,  coaching and supervision are co-creative processes where awareness and dialogue shape transformational learning.   This requires our full presence and deep listening. By paying attention to our own observations—such as patterns in speech, emotions, or body language—we can help clients uncover their own unconscious beliefs and behaviours.

Intuition & Curiosity

Heightened awareness enables coaches and supervisors to explore unspoken or overlooked aspects of a client’s thinking. Noticing what naturally stands out in a conversation often stems from intuition.  The ability to recognize subtle cues allows for deeper, more meaningful questions that guide the client toward self-discovery.   This aligns with the Gestalt approach which encourages noticing present-moment experiences to increase self-awareness.

Graffiti, Sandy Cove

 Uncovering Blind Spots & Cognitive Awareness

Coachees often have cognitive blind spots—patterns of thinking or behaviour that they may not recognize on their own.   And so do we as coaches and supervisors.  We – and our clients -  often rely on unconscious biases, making an external perspective crucial for deeper insight. We get caught up and may struggle to recognize own own thinking traps. By noticing inconsistencies, recurring themes, or underlying assumptions, coaches can help clients expand their perspectives.  To do this, we also need to pay attention to our own blind spots, biases, and unhelpful thinking patterns.

Conclusion

Sometimes, the most powerful shift comes not from forcing a new perspective, but from simply becoming aware of the one we already hold. Ultimately, noticing what you notice allows coaches and supervisors to go beyond surface-level conversations and facilitate meaningful transformation.   Start with noticing what younotice to better support your clients do the same.  Next time you go for a walk, really look around you and see what attracts your attention.