Children and young people, Moving Stories, Projects

Let Me Be Brave

Inspired by the work of disability arts murals Let me be brave sets out to challenge perceptions about learning disability using visual art to communicate feelings and ideas through the creation of a large-scale mural sited in a public square in Haverfordwest’s Riverside Shopping Centre.

Young Pembrokeshire People First, a youth group, which is part of Pembrokeshire People First – a well established advocacy and peer support network for people with learning disabilities, worked with spacetocreate community arts to design and create the mural.

Work on the project took place over 6 Wednesday afternoon sessions during the Spring and summer of 2014. The first two sessions provided an opportunity for the group to explore key messages that they wanted to get across as well as experimenting with a range of art techniques, such as collage, stencils, photography and projection.

The following four sessions focussed on designing and painting the mural onto four 8 foot by 4 foot boards. The title for the mural emerged from the design workshops and comes from the motto of the Special Olympics Let me win, but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.

The mural was unveiled to the young people and an invited audience of friends, family and staff by Pembrokeshire County Council Cabinet member Simon Hancock on Wednesday 30 July 2014. A short documentary film about the project has been made by Sharron Harris.

The documentary follows the process from designing the mural to it’s public unveiling. It includes participants’ positive reflections on the experience of producing and exhibiting their own work as well as public reaction at the unveiling in Haverfordwest.