Inspired young citizens raise cash with outdoor art show
PICTURE: SmART Team members discuss their art show plans
A colourful new art show is taking to the streets of York thanks to a group of young friends who want to help their local community.
The enterprising youngsters are holding an open-air art exhibition to brighten York’s South Bank area and raise money for us.
Dec, Alfie, Sammy, Lily and Lellie are aged 11-15 and they’re taking part in the Lifestyle Challenge 2020 initiative run by North Yorkshire Police to inspire young people to make a difference to their local area.
The group, the SmART team, are making canvases from reclaimed wood and old bed sheets and selling them to local people for £10.
Residents are then creating artworks which will go on display at an exhibition to be held in Racecourse Road, York, on August 23.
The SmART team set themselves a £1,000 fundraising target, which they quickly beat before upping their ambitions to £1,500.
They’re busy making jams and chutneys to sell, and they’re planning a cake sale and other stalls to boost their takings further on the day of the exhibition.
Meanwhile, you can support the team yourselves here: https://bit.ly/31bgomY
Alfie said the SmART team came up with a few ideas before settling on the art exhibition. “We started by thinking about a mural but then we started to realise that might be too hard to get done. Then we thought about creating smaller works and then we thought about having an art gallery.”
He said people had already started to submit works and the team was looking forward to gathering a great collection of work. “Hopefully it’s going to be a good day,” he said. “We’ve done a lot of work and we hope it will raise money, but it’s not just about that, it’s about helping the community.”
Alfie’s mum Louise said she thought the SmART team had come up with an exciting idea. “I think it’s brilliant,” she said. “It’s given them purpose in what has been a difficult summer – they’ve been really, really busy, totally engrossed in doing something for their community.”
She said the youngsters had decided to support our charity as a local cause dear to people’s hearts, and some of their supporters had been helped by our services.
One of the artworks was from a woman who had travelled for radiotherapy on our minibus and she had created a picture inspired by her journey and the friends she had made while travelling together to Leeds. “It is really touching,” said Louise.
The community art gallery takes place on the August 23 on Racecourse Road from 3pm-5 pm. At the Knavesmire Crescent and Curzon terrace back alley there will be more alley art, with artists in residence holding workshops from 11am-2pm on the same day. Everyone is welcome to come along to both, but bookings are needed to attend the workshops. Please check the link above for details.
We’re attending the event with a stall ourselves, and would be delighted to meet people and chat to them about our work.
The SmART team’s project will be submitted into the Lifestyle Challenge 2020 competition run by North Yorkshire Police and if they win, they’ll be treated to a fabulous adventure holiday. We think they’d be deserving winners and we wish them lots of luck!