We The Curious brings to life giant outdoor art exhibition of photography by and of GCSE students

A new exhibition in Millennium Square will be a ‘thoughtful and creative exploration of identity’ by Year 11 students. 

A new project, coordinated by Bristol’s science centre and educational charity, We The Curious, will see artwork created by photography students from Bristol Brunel Academy (BBA) displayed in a free outdoor exhibition on Bristol Harbourside’s Millennium Square from Saturday 7 October.

The students, who are all in Year 11 at the Speedwell school and completing a GCSE in photography, worked with Bristol-based photographer Ilayda Akarca to create their images, as part of a module around the chosen theme of identity. As part of the project, the students were welcomed as visitors to The Royal Photographic Society and The Martin Parr Foundation.

Using the location of Kings Weston House, the students were tasked with thinking about how they could be represented here, and brought photos of their younger selves to include in their images. The exhibition title, ‘What you can’t see, you don’t know,’ was chosen by the students.

Julian Welsh, Special Projects Producer at We The Curious said: “Many people who live in Bristol don’t regularly come into the centre. With the generous help of our funders, this project has carved out a space for the students from BBA to show their amazing work for all the city-centre visitors to see, and perhaps give them more of a feeling that this is their space too.”

The project has been funded by Bristol City Centre Business Improvement District (BID), Life With Art and Marks & Spencer, and will offer audiences a unique opportunity to consider how yesterday's surroundings can inspire conversations about who we are today. 

Vicky Lee, Head of Bristol City Centre BID, said: “It’s really important to us to fund projects like this, where young people in Bristol are not only gaining qualifications for their future, but are also exploring their creative potential. It’s a privilege for us to be able to help share young people's creativity with city centre audiences.”

‘What you can’t see, you don’t know’ is a free exhibition comprised of 28 images created by the students of Bristol Brunel Academy. Visitors can see the exhibition at any time of day, from Saturday 7 October 2023 in Millennium Square, Bristol Harbourside.