On the 25th of March (2023) The Whitworth gallery (Oxford Road, Manchester) hosted an autism@manchester event: Beyond Words, exploring the communication experiences of autistic children through visual arts. The event was a full day of activities, including an exhibition, workshop and talks. There were approximately 65 attendees across the day, many of whom were from local families with direct links to the autistic community. It received universal praise from the autistic and non-autistic attendees. It was funded by the ISSF public engagement fund.
The exhibition itself, included installations from two commissioned sources. Firstly, from professional Ukrainian artist, Anastasia Khmelevska, and secondly, from young neuro-divergent art students at PInc College (Manchester). In total, there were 20 images generated directly in response to our commission (one submitted after the event), all of which can be seen in our online gallery (here). Below you can see the work of Anastasia Khmelevska.
And here are the images from PInc students that we displayed at the exhibition:
The images explored original quotes from autistic children collected as part of an academic research project, undertaken by event lead Dr Alexandra Sturrock. This research, titled In Their Own Words, was published in 2021. The quotes themselves were so vivid that they instantly intimated the need for visual representation. A first wave of seven quotes were discussed with autistic community groups(Aspire and Autism@manchester). Then Dr Hannah Guest (main collaborator) developed sketches and sourced Anastasia (our primary artist), to represent our ideas in her own fantastical and otherworldly style.
Our remaining quotes were then sent to PInc College, with the broad brief that the students select any quote that spoke to them and interpret them as they chose. Over the winter term, the teachers offered structured support to facilitate the student’s work, by breaking down the process of selecting images, colours and materials. In the end, 13 pieces of creative and individualised artwork were generated by 11 students. Two also allowed us to present their workings as part of the exhibition.
On the 25th of March, the Garden Studio at The Whitworth was turned over to the event. As well as the exhibition, there was a full day of workshop activities, which asked visitors to think about the remaining quotes from the project and generate their own images along the theme. The workshop area was bustling with autistic children and adults and family members, involved in painting and drawing all day.
The event also offered volunteer work opportunities for four BSc Speech and Language Therapy students from The University of Manchester and three work experience students from PInc College. The volunteers supported visitors to access the exhibition and take part in the art workshop, although one PInc College student was there primarily to photograph the event for reportage (images found in the online gallery). As this was a neurodiverse inclusive event, the volunteers were also available to help attendees find quiet spaces and work on their art in a way that best suited them.
Pictures from the event provided by Verena Kennedy and Amelia Birtwistle PInc college, staff and student photographers
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