“I’ve done my own paintings, but never anything as big as this!”

ACT’s young Learners got creative in Cardiff city centre, at a special art project to recreate celebrated murals that had been accidentally destroyed.

Several colourful murals, on columns behind the old Debenhams site, were thought to be lost forever, but they have been recreated inside the Capitol Centre, by Learners and professional artists attending the PWSH! art project.

One of the best pieces the young painters made together was a large artwork that showed people of different races and creeds, united together. Creating numerous pieces inside empty shop units, they were guided by esteemed artists who worked on the original murals, including Beth Blandford (Blandoodles) Temeka Davies (Noble Sol) and Amber Smith (BeanHead). All enjoyed the sessions, which were part of ACT’s Enrichment Programme, to give learners great experiences.

Catering Learner Caitlin Boyce, 17, from Cardiff, said: “After lockdown, this creative project is really good, to bring people together, to do something interesting.

I prefer pictures that have messages, so obviously this one has a message to it. It’s really good that it’s about bringing people together, from different cultures.

She added: “From this project, I hope to get experience of freehand painting, as I’m interested in this type of street art. I’ve done my own paintings, in art books, but never anything as big as this!”

Katie Schaffer, Enrichment Manager at ACT, said the Learners will be proud to see their artwork displayed for shoppers in the bustling Capital Centre.

She said: “ACT have been really excited to join the PWSH! project at the Capitol Centre in Cardiff to create some amazing art, working with Welsh artists. Our learners have had the opportunity to work with a variety of different people and to explore their creative sides.”

PWSH! is an ongoing and evolving project, with long-term artwork on show across the city. It was set up to enable visual artists with a Cardiff connection to decorate their city centre, on large public canvasses.

Click here for more on the exciting training opportunities at ACT, including those on the new Jobs Growth Wales+ programme.