See Me
"If people see me in the street, and know that I'm in care, they probably think that I'm a bad person... I used to think that about children in care, before I came into care."
'See Me' is an art exhibition by young people in care, first shown in Luton in December 2008. Photos, paintings, installations and a powerful audio track combine to give us a vivid picture of what it's like to be in care. The work and words are from young people themselves, and their stories are both moving and inspiring.
The work took over nine months to complete with young people designing and creating each piece. As they did so, they talked about their experiences of being in the care system, their feelings about what had happened to them, and their hopes for the future. The recordings of these conversations became the audio accompaniment to the exhibition.
The idea for the title came from young people themselves describing being in care as feeling 'invisible' to society. Their work was a way to express themselves and become visible again.
The exhibition is part of LCET's wider work with young people in care, including running therapeutic groups and supporting the transition into independent living.
The response to the exhibition was huge with hundreds of local people visiting and extensive coverage from the BBC and other local and national media. As a result the exhibition was shown at Greenbelt Arts Festival in the summer of 2009. We are also making some of the material available to download from this page. Income from sales will go towards further developing our work with young people in care.
See Me Booklet
A full colour booklet containing some of the most powerful images from the exhibition and extensive quotes from the young people who created them. Beautifully designed and printed, this is ideal for giving to professionals, foster carers, and others who need to know more about the emotional impact of being in care.
£4.00
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See Me Soundtrack
Play sample.
Over twelve minutes in length, young people talk about how they came to be in care, their experiences of the system and where they hope their lives will lead. Articulate and impassioned, they challenge us to reconsider how we see young people in care.
Challenging listening for training sessions, professionals, foster carers and anyone who is interested in understanding more about this issue.
Available for immediate download as an mp3 file.
PRS licensed.
£15.00
You need to be a member and logged in to be able to buy this product. It's free to sign up and will just take a minute of your time.
See Me Presentation
Twenty four of the most powerful images from the exhibition, including the images displayed on this page, together with quotes from the young people who have created them. They come with and without the quotes and highlight some of the key pressures the young people face.
Useful for presentations in schools and colleges, training programmes and to help anyone understand what it feels like to be in care.
Available for immediate download as a Powerpoint file for PC or Mac or as a Keynote file for Mac.
£15.00
You need to be a member and logged in to be able to buy this product. It's free to sign up and will just take a minute of your time.
