Art venues across England, Scotland and Wales were selected to take part in the Alexandra Reinhardt Memorial Awards 2024–25, working with young people and their support networks on four exciting artist commissions. The commissioned artists worked within each organisation to create works that encapsulate the skills, imagination and unique perspectives of young people.
I was selected to work with young people at 20-21 Visual Arts Centre in Scunthorpe. Over a program of 6 workshops we collectively created a number of pieces in response to the theme of Healthy Eating. These included 2D and 3D work as well as film and music.
3 of the finished pieces were chosen by the young people to go on tour as part of the final ARMA exhibitions.
The resulting exhibition ‘Make now, think later!’ prompts us to move beyond present challenges and be active participants in shaping a different reality. This involved mapping and place-making, and for others, an invitation to playfully explore sensory experiences.
Artist Alexandra Reinhardt experienced her own personal challenges, facing long-term illness and disability; she used her artistic practice to articulate, and at times, escape her physical and mental health. She described her making as a ‘creative frenzy’ – channelling her frustrations, ideas, and emotions. The four ARMA artist commissions have taken different approaches to the award.
The first exhibition in the tour is at the Oriel Davies Gallery in Newtown, Mid-Wales.
Here are some installation photographs of the pieces made at 20-21.
Tony Wade 