A multimedia exhibition created by young refugees and asylum seekers is opening at the Museum of Croydon tomorrow to mark 10 years of the charity Play for Progress.
Forever We Can Be Full will bring together original artwork, photography, music, poetry and personal testimony created by and with young people supported by the Croydon-based charity.
The exhibition launch is in the atrium of the Museum of Croydon on Wednesday May 27 from 6pm to 9pm. Entry is free.
Play for Progress supports unaccompanied young refugees and asylum seekers through music, creative arts, therapeutic support, education and casework.
With the Home Office’s primary asylum intake unit based in Croydon, the borough has a disproportionate number of young refugees.
Working from a trauma-informed approach, the charity creates safe, creative spaces where young people can build relationships, access support and discover their potential. The charity boasts creative collaborations with the likes of the V&A and Handel Hendrix House.
Over the past decade, the charity has worked with more than 1,000 young people aged 13 to 25 from over 20 countries, many of whom arrived in Britain alone after experiences of displacement, separation and trauma.
“Forever We Can Be Full offers a different way to encounter those stories,” said a spokesperson for Play for Progress.
“Rather than statistics or headlines, visitors will see and hear work made by young people in their own words, images and sounds, exploring themes of identity, home, belonging, memory and hope.”
The title of the exhibition is taken from a poem written by a young person supported by the charity:
Forever We Can Be Full
I place the earth with the seed
You nourish each day with love
We will soon pick our fruits
Forever we can be full
Bridget Banda, the executive director of Play for Progress, said: “Our co-founders started Play for Progress 10 years ago because they believed that every young person, regardless of where they came from or what they had been through, deserved a space to be themselves, to create and to belong.
“Forever We Can Be Full is a celebration of what becomes possible when young people are given that space. It is about creativity, courage and community, but it is also about asking people to look beyond the headlines and see the young people behind them.
“This exhibition belongs to the young people who made it. Their voices, their music, their stories and their imagination are at the heart of it.”
Tomorrow’s launch event will feature live music, storytelling, artwork and the chance to meet Play for Progress founders, team members and young people involved in the exhibition. Guests will also be able to take part in creative workshops in art, music and poetry.
The exhibition at the Croydon Clocktower on Katharine Street runs to August 31.
- You can find out more about Play for Progress by clicking here
- Tickets for the May 27 launch event are free. To book yours, click here
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