CityLife

Moss Side – a place to enjoy life

MOSS SIDE may often be talked about as a dangerous place. Perhaps, however, this isn’t so.

Pupils from Manchester Academy are exhibiting their stories of finding a home in Moss Side, and finding a place often far safer than the world they moved from. As of July 7, Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) will host the pupils’ stories.

The pupils, having been brought up around the world, challenge frequently-held perceptions of Moss Side as a place to drive your car through fast, doors locked, and heck, even if you get a speeding ticket, at least you’re ‘safe’.

One pupil talks about the fighting in her home country of Somalia, mentioning how her mother died in an explosion. She also talks about the ‘very sweet cakes’ her mother used to bake. These anecdotes of sharp perceptions create tell of Moss Side as a place where, as another student remarks, ‘I am enjoying life.’

Multitude of art forms

At Manchester Academy students come from across the world, including Afghanistan, Eritrea and Somalia. They also speak 63 languages. Nigh on impossible, then, to not discover something new at this exhibition.

A multitude of art forms and modes of expressions join up to make this exhibition: poetry, prose, photography, paintings and video monologues. As for what made this possible? It’s part of an on-going project. Following a public vote in December, Manchester Academy won one of MMU’s new Public Engagement Fellowships.

Dr Linnie Blake, project creator and MMU Public Engagement Fellow, said: “The stories are fascinating and reveal what an exciting community Moss Side has. They tell of the incredible journeys many students have taken to get to Moss Side and show their incredible energy, intelligence and creativity.”

Stories will be on display in MMU’s Link Gallery, just off Oxford Road. See the link on the side for more information.