News

A bright, colourful 30-foot mural, designed and painted by young people on our Creative Pathways programme in Barrhead, has been unveiled at their final showcase event.

As part of the 14-week programme, the participants have been working
on the mural for the outer wall of the ARC Community Centre over the past
month.

They used materials
that would normally be seen as unsustainable – such as artificial grass – to
create an artwork intended to speak of the importance of sustainability.

Inspired by the natural world,
the mural includes exotic plants and animals from a variety of global.

The event also exhibited video, prints, photography and crafts produced over the course of the project, giving participants’ friends and family the chance to see them.

This project has
been funded by Barrhead Housing Association, the Scottish Government’s People
and Communities Fund and the Big Lottery Fund’s Our Bright Future initiative,
which encourages young people to lead environmental change in their
communities.

As well as picking up a
number of artistic techniques – both by hand and using computers – over the
past 14 weeks, the young people have received one-to-one support with
job-hunting and interview skills.

Over half of the participants
have since moved into employment, education and training, with interviews
coming up for others.

Callum, 18, is one of the
participants who will be starting a college course. He speaks enthusiastically
about the different the course has made to him.

“I’ve really enjoyed Impact
Arts. I feel it’s helped me a lot. It’s been great to engage with the local
community and other charities in the area to find out what is important to
people about the environment.

“It’s also opened my mind a bit. My creativity skills were
quite lacking when I came here, but I’ve tried to take part in as many
activities as I can. As a result, my creativity and my ability to change things
on the fly has improved a lot.”

Alistair, 18, has enjoyed working on creative projects with
other people his age.

“It’s been amazing. I feel I’ve achieved so much, and made a
lot new friends. The social side has been a big part of it.

“The best part has been being able to work creatively on
computers, and also the new techniques I’ve been able to try – like making
prints and 3D models.

“The tutors have been amazing. You couldn’t ask for better
people to work with. I’ve also got help with interviews, and I’m a lot more
confident going into them now than I was previously.”

The course has been led by Impact Arts’ artists Heather
Gault and Kaitlyn DeBiasse.

Lead tutor Heather says: “It was an amazing afternoon,
having the opportunity to celebrate the achievements of a very special group of
young people.

“They have been so enthusiastic, have really made an effort
to engage with the community on the project, and have thrown themselves into
new things.”

“The fact so many attended meant a lot to them and showed
the value of all their hard work over the summer.”

Next week, Impact Arts will be starting a new
12-week project for unemployed 16-24 year olds, also based at the ARC Centre.
If you are interested in finding out more, please visit www.impactarts.co.uk, contact Aileen Lynn
on 0141 575 3001 or email alynn@impactarts.co.uk.