The Arts Society Falmouth

Young Arts Funding

The Project

In the summer of 2016 we helped fund a project that fell under the remit of Young Arts helping a Penryn based charity, Spectrum, in its work to support people living with autism and their families. Autism is a lifelong condition which affects an individual’s ability to communicate, to empathise with others, and to integrate into normal society. The degree of disability varies considerably, but it can be enormously challenging for the person concerned, and for their families.

Together with street artist Marc Craig, Spectrum worked with the young siblings of children who have autism, to give expression to the challenges, the aspirations and the achievements that such families experience. The result of this collaboration was a mural which Marc painted on the walls of the tunnel leading up from the quay car park to Church Street in Falmouth. This joyous, dramatic and colourful mural includes some of the children’s hopes for their siblings and pride in their achievements, however small, which mark their journey along what can be a long and difficult path in life.

Our Packet Ship logo (used when we were known as Falmouth DFAS) was also incorporated into the mural as an acknowledgment of our sponsorship of just under £1,000.

The Process

This vibrant piece of community art aims to promote autism awareness.

Five siblings of people with autism designed the unique mural in a series of workshops, alongside Marc Craig of the London based street art collective, Phsychodoodlz . Marc then spent a week carefully painting it onto the walls of the tunnel, before the children helped with the finishing touches.

Each child had five elements to put into the mural. These were:

• Designing their own fish as part of the Falmouth theme.
• Choose one quote that meant something to them.
• Something that reminded them of Falmouth.
• An achievement their brother or sister with autism had made.
• A personal goal the children would like to achieve.

Throughout the mural, you will also see images depicting all the senses often associated with autism.