Three South Tyneside stations are now displaying artwork to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Tyne and Wear Metro
The artwork comes as part of a project carried out by The Cultural Spring alongside County Durham artist Laura Brenchley and several local community groups.
The project has seen a partnership with Nexus which owns and operates Metro and was funded by Arts Council England as part of the Metro Community Takeover project which also celebrated the network's 40th anniversary.
The colourful artwork has been made using large-scale collages which are made up of individual tiles which were created by community groups and can now be enjoyed at Hebburn, Chichester and Bede stations.
The project saw groups and schools take part including Hospitality and Hope's Wellbeing Hub, Hebburn Sea Cadets, Lord Blyton Primary School, Monkton Academy, alongside groups from Bilton Hall Community Trust and NAAFI Break South Tyneside which is an organisation set up for veterans by veterans.
Watch – Metro Takeover – Community Artwork in South Tyneside:
The Cultural Spring's Project Director, Emma Horsman, said: “Our Metro 40 project was a lovely one to work on with local community groups, and I think the results will be enjoyed by Metro passengers for years to come.
“Artist Laura Brenchley asked people to think about what the Metro meant to them, and what memories they had of the system. The groups then produced tiles using cut-outs from old magazines and recycled materials – the tiles were then used to create large collages of memories.”
Artists Laura Brenchley said: “I'm really, really, happy with the end result and excited that something so great has been created using everyday materials. What has been particularly powerful about the project has been the stories behind so many of the tiles – and how proud everyone is of their own contributions and the final collages.”
Alison Collins, a teacher at Lord Blyton who led the school's work on the project, said: “There were about 20 children from Years 5 and 6 involved in the project and they loved working on it – learning more about the area in which they live as well as learning new artistic techniques.
“They've loved seeing their work in the flesh too.”
Laura said she particularly enjoyed working with Hospitality and Hope: “Working with Wellbeing Manager Kerry Bell and the team there was great and we got some fantastic stories – there was one about a pit pony and another story about woman making an escape on the Metro.”
Adiatu Kamara provided one of the Hospitality and Hope stories on a tile, said: “I came here from London and didn't understand the way in which the ticketing system worked – I thought it was the same as London's Oyster card and what I paid would get me to Newcastle.
“Obviously it didn't and I was fined and that was reflected in my tile,” she added.
Joe Mills, Chair of NAAFI Break South Tyneside revealed that approximately 28 veterans had taken part in three sessions with Laura, and went on to say: “I was astounded at the reaction to the project, and family and friends became involved and not just our veterans.”
Rebecca Ditchburn, Stakeholder Relations Office at Nexus, said: “We started working on the project with Laura and Emma at The Cultural Spring in 2020, looking to find a variety of groups to work with.
“It's been great hearing all the stories and what the Metro has meant to so many people. The result is something special – artwork that can be enjoyed for years to come.”
The Metro Community Takeover has seen new energy brought to the system through the art forms of dance, song, music and visual arts projects, and has seen major regional arts organisations including Sunderland Culture, Dance City and The Cultural Spring take part.
