Make Your Mark

The spark What gave me the idea?

In June 2026, I took part in the Create With × EVOLVE Tech for Good Hackathon in Brighton. The challenge was to build something useful for a local non-profit organisation.

The problem What was I trying to solve?

Figment Arts is a community interest company that makes art with neurodivergent and learning-disabled adults in coastal West Sussex.

Make Your Mark describes itself as a small corner of that work: a place by the sea to be creative together, share a bit of your story and feel proud of where you live. No skill level. No right answer. Whatever you bring belongs there.

The experiment What did I build?

A shared canvas. Visitors pick a colour and a shape, add a word if they like, and leave a mark that stays for the next person. As the marks add up, new colours unlock for everyone.

Artist spotlights, where work made by neurodivergent and learning-disabled artists in the community sits alongside a few honest words about what shaped it, with ways to send appreciation or connect through the Figment Arts team.

A gentle “share your work” form, reviewed by the team before anything appears, and a pointer to the crowdfunder for Port Studio, a permanent, accessible home for the artists at Shoreham Port.

Behind the build Tools, design and decisions.

Built with Lovable. The tone follows Figment Arts’ own words: made with care, at our own pace, with everyone welcome.

The learning What did it teach me?

For me, the exciting part wasn’t simply building an app. It was seeing what could become possible when creative thinking, accessible technology and human-centred problem-solving come together.

The current reality Where the project stands.

Make Your Mark is live as a hackathon build, with Figment Arts’ story right there on the front of it.

And yes, I’m rather proud of this one.

Back to the workbench