An international art exhibition will launch this November, coinciding with World Children’s Day. Children from all over the world will share their hopes, dreams and opinions through art.
The Visions of the Future exhibition is the brainchild of Omara Elling-Hwang, the UK-based founder of WriteUnite, a non-for-profit organisation she created at the age of just 16.
Working alongside educators, community leaders, parents and other non-profits, WriteUnite aims to ensure young people across the globe have a platform to express themselves, feel empowered and that they are heard.
The exhibition will draw on hundreds of submissions from children in 26 countries, across six continents, which were published in the WriteUnite Visions of the Future book earlier this year.
The Visions of the Future project saw young people from 3 to 18 years old reveal the kind of future they want to live in and included thoughts on global affairs through to individual concerns.
The next generation hold the key to solving world problems; they are future leaders, innovators and warriors – Omara Elling-Hwang
What emerged was a powerful, brilliant and beautiful testimony in words and pictures as to how the next generation really feel about the world as it is today, and how they want it to be in the future.
Now, this unique collection of their innermost thoughts and feelings is being taken from the page to the pavements. In 10 major cities around the world, their work will be showcased on street corners, at bus stops and on billboards as part of the exhibition running throughout November, coinciding with World Children’s Day on Sunday, 20th November.
The exhibition will also be curated into a virtual gallery space and include additional works from the Visions of the Future book.
Key themes
The exhibition, as with the book, will centre around a number of themes including peace, equality, environment, science and technology, Covid-19, kindness, education, and world views.
By amplifying the voices of young people, the goal is to inspire others – including leaders, governments and educators – to share in the ideas of the next generation.
Omara said: “The exhibition will encapsulate the experiences of young people living very different lives in very different countries but it will also expose how they often share similar hopes and fears – from girls wanting to live in a world free from gender-based violence, to finding a cure for cancer, reducing plastic usage, to eradicating racism and promoting equality.
“It will showcase their incredible understanding of global issues along with an aptitude for forward thinking ideas aimed at creating a better world for everyone.
“The next generation hold the key to solving world problems; they are future leaders, innovators and warriors. I hope that WriteUnite and the exhibition provides an often-missing platform for their voices to be heard.”
The shortlist
The work featured will be shortlisted from the Visions of the Future book and submissions made to the exhibition over the summer. A final selection will then be made by the WriteUnite’s Youth Advisory Group.
Youth Advisory Group member, Natasha, 16, who is from England but now living in France, says: “Simply by publishing the voices of young people from all over the world with different opinions, we can begin to make a difference and spread awareness about inclusivity. Innovative ideas concerning the environment and harmful societal norms can also be provided by youth, and the Youth Advisory Group can both find and amplify those voices.”
The online gallery exhibition will be featured on the WriteUnite website from Monday 14 November 2022.
Main image: Anne-Sissi, 11, from Canada
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