A fabulous encounter and experience. Evoking a sense of home from an authentic multicultural perspective - a significant expression of a theme so poignant and vital in our present time - profoundly stirring images and text from a community given a space and means to express their sentiments. Loved the installation 'Where is my home?'. The stunning yellow walls contrast with themes to do with capture and containment as well as singing of freedom and the imaginary landscape - powerful and rich with symbolism and personal imagery. Beautiful! Thank you.
- Gallery visitor, November 2023
Creating Place is a collaborative project between Sheba Arts, The Turnpike Gallery, and SWAP (Support for Wigan Arrivals Project) in Leigh. This involved a year-long outreach and engagement programme, resulting in two ambitious exhibitions. We worked with a group of 14 individuals from refugee communities through weekly creative workshops to explore different art forms, and reflect on what 'place' means to each person.
In co-creating with artists, local communities explored the themes of 'home' and the future of society. The resulting work is displayed at the Turnpike Gallery, and will be there until Saturday 16 September. Over the course of the exhibition, visitors are invited to respond and add to the body of work. Sheba Arts' associate artists, Beena Nouri and Ahmed Elzber, spent two months as artists-in-residence to create their solo exhibitions. Working with creatives and community members, they reveal hidden aspects or untold stories from the Wigan and Leigh area. Sheba Arts member Reem Alazemi also supported on this project as a Coordinator. Head to our blog to read an interview between lead artist, Beena Nouri, and Sheba Arts board member, Maddie Wakeling.
With thanks to The Turnpike Gallery for their support in this collaboration. "When I was observing vibrant and distinct colours in my surroundings back home in Sudan when I was a kid, they tend to leave a lasting impression on me and create meaningful connections between me and those surroundings. The vividness of those colours becomes embedded dominantly in my mind. Whenever I approach colours now, I become intertwined with my memories and the environment and scenery it was inspired by, leading me to a deeper connection between colour and my memory in my artistic expression, with hopes to evoke a certain mood or response that can tap into the viewer’s collective memory..." Ahmed Elzber on the important of colour in his work |