Youth Voice through Art – Now You See Me, an exhibition in Littlehampton

What happens when you give young people the opportunity to make artwork for their town? To say the things that they need to get off their chest? As part of our Young Cultural Changemakers programme in Arun, we worked with students at the West Sussex Alternative Provision College in Littlehampton over a 5-month period to develop their creative and leadership skills. With local artists, they explored their feelings about their town, themselves, and issues and experiences of youth violence.

The result is ‘Now You See Me’. A series of powerful, thought-provoking posters displayed inside Littlehampton Train Station that combine the young people’s own words and imagery. Outside the station is a bold colourful mural, designed to brighten perceptions of the town.

Beccy East, Placemaking Creative Producer for Arun says ‘The work these young people have produced is powerful and makes a fierce commentary on their feelings about the world they are growing up in. We are extremely grateful for the partnerships that have supported us to platform these often unheard perspectives in our town.’ 

The mural outside Littlehampton station. Photo by Tayler Forrester

Reception

An image of the mural was posted on the popular local Facebook page, Littlehampton. The mural itself received an overwhelmingly positive response, and particular praise was given to the young people when more information about the project was given by commenters. It currently stands at 881 positive reactions, 141 comments which are mostly positive and 39 shares! Below is a selection of the lovely comments it received which demonstrate the success: 

“Can you tell [the students] they have made the town a better place to live please”

“I absolutely love this, nice to see [Littlehampton] showing itself some love!! The creativity is fab!! Will there be more to come?!”, “It’s great, the town needs a bit of colour”, “They have done a fantastic job. Love it, nice to see some artwork”, “Love it, nice to have some colour in this grey town”, “It’s good init. And it gets the kids to do something they are proud to show off giving something back to the town.”

The students involved in the project have fed back that they are proud of their work, with 100% of those that fed back saying that the project had increased their confidence. Here are some comments from the group: “I have learnt to try new things”, “The project was good and the wall looks great”,

“The project has given me confidence to try new things even when it takes time to learn them”

Alongside the posters we included a QR code to encourage the public to give feedback on the exhibition. All respondents agreed that the exhibition had changed their perceptions of young people’s experiences in the town, and that they would like to see more exhibitions by children and young people in the town. It was also agreed by all that the exhibition has a positive impact on Littlehampton, with one person saying it “Makes sure these young people are involved in the community and shows us what they can do.” We also asked “Did anything about this exhibition surprise or interest you?” and received these responses:

“The words young people have written in the artwork were hard hitting, we see you now!” 

“I’m not surprised as all young people have talents. They just need the support and resources to be able to show their skills.”

The response to this work is a demonstration of how projects that centre the voices of young people foster a strong sense of community and support. It has started conversations and changed perceptions. At Artswork we support young people to use creativity to express themselves and feel empowered to share their truth to create change. 

Additional information

The exhibition will run over several months at Littlehampton station and it is hoped that the mural will make a meaningful long-term addition to the town. The project has been supported by the Safer Arun Partnership which brings together a number of agencies to jointly work to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour across the District.

Artists involved in the project have included Priority-154 (graphic art, spray painting) Audioactive (song-writing, rap), Exploring Senses (digital art and 3D printing) and Lindsey Smith (photography). 

This exhibition is one of fifteen creative commissions resulting from the first year of our Young Cultural Changemakers programme, supported using public funding by Arts Council England. The programme runs across five areas in the South East; Arun, Dover, the Isle of Wight, the New Forest and Slough. The project empowers young people through training and creative opportunities, supporting them to lead creative projects that they feel will positively impact their communities. It centres youth voice and utilises creativity for change.