An immersive new exhibition at Bridewell Studios and Art Gallery is offering visitors a powerful reflection on resilience, creativity, and grassroots resistance in Liverpool.
Stories of Solidarity, which launched on Friday 20 June to an audience of around 100 guests, is a collaborative project developed in response to the summer 2024 protests that impacted communities across the city.
The evolving creative research project brings together researchers from the University of Liverpool's School of Allied Health Professions and Nursing and Department of Psychology, Asylum Link Merseyside, and Afloat Theatre to explore how acts of belonging and solidarity emerged following a wave of far-right violence that targeted key community spaces.
Through theatre, zine-making, and visual art, Stories of Solidarity honours the courageous and creative responses that followed, offering a platform for collective storytelling and reflection.
The exhibition launch featured a moving performance by Afloat Theatre, co-produced with people seeking asylum at Asylum Link Merseyside-one of the sites directly targeted in 2024. Led by theatre-maker Phoebe McSweeney, the performance wove together lived experiences and personal narratives to embody the exhibition's themes of resilience and community.
Designed by artist Jo Wilson with support from Dr Emeri Curd, the exhibition features vibrant and deeply personal artworks developed through trauma-informed workshops held across the city. These include sessions at Asylum Link Merseyside, the Abdullah Quilliam Mosque, and community-led venues such as Granby Winter Garden and Squash Nutrition. Alongside original artwork, visitors can view zines created by community members and placards used during counter-protests.
Mr Mumin Khan, CEO of Abdullah Quilliam Mosque, who attended the launch, said: "It's a very innovative and fulfilling project of human aspects. It brings people's inner soul out to express their feelings and fear they hold in silence."
Interactive elements, including a live zine-making station and a 'Messages of Solidarity' board, invite the public to participate and contribute their own voices to the project. These elements will inform the final phase of the initiative: the Liverpool Zine, a city-wide publication that brings together stories, artwork, and interviews collected throughout the project. The zine will be published later this year.
Attendees included representatives from the University of Liverpool, Liverpool City Council, National Museums Liverpool, and various arts and community organisations. Guests described the event as an essential space for creative reflection, dialogue, and connection.
Katie Foulkes, an MSc Occupational Therapy student at the University, reflected on the experience: "This was collaborative, stimulating and completely heartfelt."
Another guest noted: "This project is so necessary to counter the overwhelmingly negative or sensational media coverage that focused mainly on rioters. We need more solidarity and friendship-and art and performance will bring us together."
Stories of Solidarity is supported by funding from the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), and continues to evolve through public engagement and creative collaboration.
The exhibition is open to the public from Saturday, 21 June to Wednesday, 25 June, from 12:00 to 4:00pm daily.
Free entry - all welcome
Dates: Sat 21st - Wed 23rd June
Time: 12pm - 4pm
Venue: Bridewell Studios and Art Gallery
Entry: Free - book at: Eventbrite link
