Sedgemoor buses transformed into art galleries

The project was born from a new partnership between art initiative Seed and Buses of Somerset.

Seed is the first South West based CPP (Creative People and Places) – an Arts Council Funded initiative all about allowing more people to choose, create and take part in arts and cultural activity, creating opportunity within Sedgemoor’s towns and parishes.

During the third lockdown members of the community worked with professional artists to turn the buses into a joyful and thoughtful space for people's journeys.

Under the banner Art First, four local artists have been collaborating with members of the public to co-create visual artworks and creative writing pieces to be displayed on 30 Buses of Somerset vehicles.

There will also be an online gallery of all the work created alongside film of the creative sessions that people at home could follow along with.

Artist Fiona Campbell created the project All The Colours which has produced images which literally move.

Members of the community sent in collages and images of one particular colour which Fiona has imported into her chameleons as photo mosaics to be lenticular printed.

Explaining the effect, Fiona said: "Lenticular prints are holographic, making images almost cinematic.

"As the bus moves, or viewers move past the image, the chameleon will change colour depending on viewpoint, and the chameleon’s eyes will rotate."

Jem Dick and Sharon Jacksties are delighted to be amongst the team of artists working with Art First.

Jem and Sharon appeared at Bridgewater bus station informing and entertaining passengers by reciting their poem about the project.

Sharon said: "We are hoping that artists and writers will enjoy how their work has been collated with each other's as we integrated poems and pictures, each providing an interpretive context for the other."

Spoken-word artist Karl Bevis traveled the bus routes to gather ideas of what we find beautiful, as part of his project The Joy Of Tiny Things.

"Many of those I spoke to at bus stops gave me a funny look to start with, but we quickly gathered dozens of ideas of the things we find beautiful," Karl said.

"The tiny details around us – from smiles on grandchildren to circling seagulls or a spicy curry."

Karl used countless suggestions from his many conversations to create a series of pieces. Even the bus drivers were involved with their own poem about life on the Somerset bus routes.

Keep your eyes out for the Art First buses throughout June and July.

For further information, visit www.seedsedgemoor.com/artfirst.