The Unicorn Theatre, the national theatre for young audiences, is thrilled to announce the launch of a one-of-a-kind art exhibition by internationally acclaimed artist Jessica Wilson and local children, I See You Like This. Opening at the Unicorn on 24th May, the exhibition is part of a national tour of Jessica Wilson’s participatory work to venues across England, in partnership with Sheffield Theatres, Theatre Hullabaloo in Darlington and Jelly in Reading.
The exhibition was created through a unique creative process which invited children to step into the role of art director, using the face of a parent or guardian as a canvas for an assembled photo-portrait.
With the increasing desire to document our lives through photos and selfies, children often find themselves the unwilling subjects of their parents’ cameras. Asked to smile, look natural, or pose in a particular way, they rarely have the opportunity to turn the lens on their parents. I See You Like Thisturns this dynamic on its head by inviting children to take the lead in the creative process, encouraging them to capture their parents from their own perspective.
Created by Australian artist Jessica Wilson, I See You Like Thiscelebrates the unique bond between parent and child, exploring how identity is shaped by this formative relationship. The process and resulting photo-portraits have been acclaimed worldwide, having toured Australia and Europe, and amassing a collection of nearly 2000 portraits.
Deepening their hyper local work, the Unicorn’s Creative Hub have worked with photographer Daisy Gaston and local families and schools to produce a set of portraits that will be on display at the venue throughout the summer. Each child artist was given the opportunity to select an object that represented their parent before art-directing their portrait-based artwork which was then captured by a professional photographer.
Running alongside the main exhibition, from 24th May to 1st June, I See You Like This: Create Your Ownwill offer a hands-on experience for Unicorn visitors and audiences to create their own portraits. This will provide an opportunity for children and parents to celebrate both their individual identity and shared bond.
Jessica Wilson, a leading figure in participatory art, is known for her ability to turn everyday experiences into extraordinary public outcomes. Her previous works include Passenger, an innovative bus-based project remapped in London for the 2019 Greenwich and Docklands Festival and later in Sydney for Art & About. Her first family-focused bus project, The Narrator, was created in Latvia and featured at Adelaide’s DreamBIG festival earlier this year as part of the Australian Performing Arts Market. Jessica’s new digital project, Child Nation, aims to further expand children’s interaction with their own communities and cultures.
Jessica Wilson comments, It is extraordinary watching how this experience plays out between each child and their parent. Parents step back from any need to frame the world for their child, and in the process often get a rare new understanding of who their child is. I have worked with thousands of parent/child pairs and I never get bored of seeing kids’ perception of their parents expressed in the most amazing and hilarious artworks. I love this project. I have worked with so many different parents and children and never tire of the beautiful bond between them and the subversive creations of the children.
Unicorn’s Artistic Director and co-CEO Rachel Bagshaw comments, The Unicorn often represents their first encounter with arts for children.I See You Like This offers a unique opportunity for younger generations to be the artist. This process chimes deeply with our own belief in making space for children to lead creative processes and be the expert in their own view of the world.
From previous parent participants:
It was an amazing experience. It was transformative and moving. … [This work] is packaged in a way that the audience could just see it as beautiful and sweet, but depending on outlook and life experiences, experience it viscerally, which unexpectedly occurred to me.
K’am P’i’n (Parent, Denver, USA)
Main Image: Courtesy I See You Like This