Drake Circus hosts pop-up art gallery thanks to local schools

Plymouth’s premier shopping destination, Drake Circus, has partnered with local schools to create a colourful pop-up art gallery within the Centre.

The project is a collaboration between local schools High Street Primary Academy, Stuart Road Primary Academy and Pilgrim Primary School, with pupils of all ages getting involved to create the giant canvasses showcasing key aspects of the city’s history in an ode to the upcoming Mayflower 400 commemorations. 

The idea for the project came from Andy Clarke, a member of the Drake Circus Car Park team, after hearing customer comments about how one of the stairwells in the mall could use a bit of colour. Now what was previously a plain, grey stairwell is awash with ships, flags and many recognisable Plymouth landmarks thanks to the pupils’ colourful interpretations of the Mayflower story.

Samantha Redmond, Art Coordinator from Pilgrim Primary School said, “We were delighted to take part in the Mayflower 400 art project at Drake Circus. The children enjoyed reflecting on the project’s core values of freedom, humanity, imagination and future and how to portray these through their artwork.”

“They are very proud of their efforts and we’ve all thoroughly enjoyed the experience.”

The canvasses are displayed across each level of the stairwell leading from the Drake Circus car park to Marks & Spencer. Centre Director, Greg Lumley said: “We’re delighted to have had an opportunity to partner with local schools and create the twelve canvasses, which have not only significantly brightened up the journey to and from the car park, but also showcase the city’s heritage in a very colourful way!”

Drake Circus is Plymouth’s most popular shopping destination with over 70 of the UK’s top brand names and biggest stores in the region under one roof. For further details of what’s happening at Drake Circus visit www.drakecircus.com.