Author: gabby

The Corner Shop and Portals into Other Worlds

The Corner Shop & Portal into Other Worlds celebrated the corner shop as a familiar but often overlooked part of Southampton’s cultural and social heritage – places of everyday exchange, community connection and gateways to different cultures from around the world.

Created by British-Asian artist and curator Darrell Vydelingum, the project was inspired by his own memories of growing up and by Babita Sharma’s book The Corner Shop: Shopkeepers, the Sharmas and the Making of Modern Britain, which explores the role of immigrant-run corner shops in shaping modern Britain.

Seven independent shops across Southampton took part, representing businesses and communities in Bargate, Bevois, Freemantle and Shirley. The stories and oral histories of the shopkeepers were captured for Southampton City Archives, creating a lasting record of the people behind these businesses and their contribution to the city.

The project brought this heritage together with new creative work. Fashion Design students from Winchester School of Art researched the shops and created a ‘visual love letter’ to corner shop culture, with fashion shoots staged inside the participating businesses. Accessories were created by Southampton Women’s Integration Group, while newly commissioned shop signs featuring playful phrases reflecting ideas of human connection and community were installed at each shop.

The resulting photography, fashion and stories came together in a free three-day public exhibition at Solent University’s Spark Building in December 2024.

Through oral history, fashion, photography and public art, The Corner Shop & Portal into Other Worlds shone a light on the people and places woven into the everyday life of Southampton – celebrating the corner shop as both a community hub and a reflection of the city’s multicultural identity.

Home Theatre Southampton

Home Theatre Southampton brought an internationally developed model of community-led theatre to the city, creating intimate, one-of-a-kind performances inspired by the stories and experiences of local people.

Originally developed by Olivier Award-winning theatre director Kerry Kyriacos Michael MBE with Brazilian director Marcus Faustini, the Home Theatre model has previously been delivered in locations including Brazil, London, South Africa and Ireland. In October 2024, Southampton Forward brought the concept to Southampton in partnership with Solent University and Kerry Kyriacos Michael.

The project brought together more than 100 participants and 33 creative professionals, including directors, theatre makers, stage managers and filmmakers. Eleven households from across Southampton became Community Hosts, sharing their stories, interests and experiences with local theatre makers. In response, each artist created an original performance as a ‘gift’ for their host, performed in their home for an invited audience of family and friends.

The result was 11 unique pieces of theatre rooted in the lives and experiences of Southampton’s residents, exploring themes including identity, friendship, family, belonging, imagination and the natural world.

Each performance was also captured on film, creating a lasting record of the project. In January 2025, hosts, creative teams, friends and families came together at MAST Mayflower Studios for a special screening of The Making of Home Theatre.

Multi-Stories Chapter 3

The third and final chapter of Multi-Stories took place at Westquay on 17 and 18 May 2025, completing three years of transforming the multi-storey car park into a permanent public street art gallery.

Chapter 3 centred on the theme Connections, inspired by the idea that we have more in common than sets us apart. New murals across Levels 4–6 connected the artworks created on other levels during the previous two chapters, bringing the evolving gallery together across the car park.

Artists painted live throughout the weekend, with new work from established street artists alongside commissions supporting local and emerging talent. Opportunities included commissions for Southampton-area artists from different creative disciplines to create work for art frames, providing a route into live painting for artists who were not necessarily already working within street art.

Artists involved in Chapter 3 included Ben Scott Hawkins, Jennifer Mon, Charlene Man, Sadie Were, Kathy Williams and Finn Kelly, with artist interviews filmed during the event capturing some of the people and creative processes behind the new work.

Public participation remained a central part of Multi-Stories. Workshops included graffiti canvas painting, badge-making, life drawing and large-scale chalk-and-tape floor art, alongside another Community Wall Design Competition.

Skateboarding and roller skating sessions gave beginners opportunities to learn alongside Southampton’s skating community, while breaking performances and workshops, DJs and street performances brought music and movement into the car park. South Coast Makers Market also returned, showcasing independent makers and sustainable UK-made work.

Joe Ross returned as a Multi-Stories producer, focusing on emerging artist commissions, workshops and the community wall, alongside the wider project team and partners.

By the end of Chapter 3, Multi-Stories had transformed the car park into an extensive permanent collection of graffiti and street art spanning its levels – bringing together work by leading national artists and Southampton talent and leaving a major new piece of public art in the centre of the city.

Multi-Stories Chapter 2

Multi-Stories returned to Westquay on 18 and 19 May 2024, expanding the permanent street art gallery created the previous year and bringing another weekend of live art, music, skating, dance and creative participation to the multi-storey car park.

More than 30 artists created new large and small-scale permanent murals, bringing together internationally recognised street artists including EPOD, Mr Cenz and Captain Kris with Southampton and regional artists including Slam, Pogo, Ralf and Ayem.

Chapter 2 continued Multi-Stories’ focus on creating opportunities for emerging artists. Six art-frame commissions were again offered to local artists, while several artists who had received emerging commissions in 2023 returned to take on larger-scale murals, including Joanna Rose Tidey, Olivia Crawley and Edgar Lushaju. Other artists featured across the 2024 programme included Emma Tuck, Lauren Marina, Tom Hewitt and Jeru Nomi.

Alongside the live painting, visitors could get involved through free graffiti, life drawing and chalk-and-tape workshops, as well as a community wall design competition. The winning design, created by 11-year-old Joseph, was later transformed into a permanent mural with Hampshire artist Kev Munday.

Skateboarding and rollerblading were again central to the weekend, with We Skate Southampton providing demonstrations and opportunities for people to learn new skills. Breakdancing took place alongside a programme of Southampton musicians and DJs spanning genres from across 60 years of the city’s musical history.

New for Chapter 2 was the South Coast Makers Market, bringing independent makers and creatives into the programme and broadening the range of ways people could experience and take part in the event.

Paintshop Studio returned as creative producers for the artwork, with Joe Ross of Good Idea Today leading on emerging artist commissions and creative community workshops.

Chapter 2 built on the first year by adding new artworks and activities while also creating progression opportunities for artists who had first become involved through Multi-Stories in 2023.

Multi-Stories Chapter 1

Multi-Stories began in September 2023 with a two-day creative takeover of Westquay’s multi-storey car park, bringing together street art, music, skateboarding, breakdancing and hands-on creative activity.

Developed by Southampton Forward in partnership with Westquay, with Paintshop Studio leading the visual identity, art curation and production alongside Joe Ross, the first chapter transformed Levels 7–10 of the car park into an interactive urban art gallery.

More than 40 artists took part, creating over 30 permanent large and small-scale murals. Southampton artists Ricky Also and Bonzai collaborated with Squirl on The World is Yours, a major external mural overlooking the city, while artists including Flukez, Flash, Nathan, Raeos, Aron, Ralf, Kushty and Ayem created work throughout the car park.

Six commissions were created specifically to give new and emerging Southampton-based artists an opportunity to take part in a large-scale live art event. Joanna Rose Tidey, Olivia Crawley, Tom Hewitt, Mural 23, Edgar Lushaju and Hilton Kazingizi each created work for art frames on Level 7.

Elsewhere, Carleen de Sozer created Pillars of the Community, drawing on stories gathered by Black History consultant Don John to celebrate Black stories from Southampton.

The weekend was designed to be experienced as well as viewed. Visitors could watch artists painting live, take part in graffiti masterclasses and drop-in art sessions, try skateboarding and breakdancing, and experience performances from musicians and DJs from Southampton’s music scene.

Chapter 1 established the foundations of an evolving permanent street art gallery at Westquay, creating opportunities for established and emerging artists while inviting people of all ages to encounter and participate in street culture in the heart of Southampton.

City Reflections

Illuminating the Archives

The second iteration of City Reflections was a free heritage trail of six large-scale animated projection artworks across six historic buildings throughout Southampton’s Old Town and city centre that audiences could explore at their own pace.

Each projection was shaped by a Community Curator working with their community – including older residents, diaspora communities, LGBTQ+, neurodivergent and young people – embedding lived experience, memories and new perspectives into the artworks.

The projections explored themes including migration, global exchange, creativity and belonging, reimagining the stories, people and objects that have shaped Southampton’s past.

Delivered in partnership with Southampton City Council and creative producers Light Up Trails and Double Take Projections, the programme was designed to be accessible, with free entry, looping screenings, audio descriptions for each projection and British Sign Language (BSL) interpretation at each location.

By combining large-scale projection with community-led storytelling, City Reflections created a shared, city-wide experience – inviting residents and visitors to engage with Southampton’s history in new and inclusive ways.

City Reflections

Celebrating Southampton’s Community Legends

This project transformed Southampton’s medieval city walls at Westquay Esplanade with a large-scale animated projection and soundscape celebrating more than 350 Community Legends, nominated by local people in recognition of their contributions to the city.

Sponsored and hosted by Westquay, City Reflections ran daily over nine evenings during February half-term in 2025, alongside pop-up projections at five community venues across Southampton.

Central to the project was a city-wide community nomination campaign, delivered in partnership with Our Version Media CIC. Their expertise in community engagement helped us reach communities across Southampton and encourage broad and diverse participation, resulting in more than 350 people being nominated and celebrated through the final projection.

The stories of 40 Community Legends were explored in greater depth. In late 2024, these nominees were invited to Solent University, where students captured portrait photography and filmed interviews with them. The resulting images and stories were woven into City Reflections, putting a particular spotlight on 40 of the people behind the nominations and the contributions they make to Southampton.