Art to combat stereotypes and mental health arrives at Southside

S.M.I.L.E-ing Boys is a free exhibition that has opened at Southside Shopping Centre.

The exhibition is a culmination of eight weeks of creative workshops with 60 Black boys from local schools, including Battersea's St John Bosco College and Ark Bollingbroke Academy.

The S.M.I.L.E (Send Me Inspiring Loving Enegery)-ing Boys project is a research led creative-project created by the artist Kay Rufai and backed by Wandsworth Council.

The exhibition and workshop aims to address the mental health needs of Black boys whilst also combating the negative stereotypes of this demographic in the media and society.

Through his identification of eight factors responsible for happiness Kay designed the eight weeks of creative workshops with 13-year-old Black boys involving poetry, film, discussion based art sessions and photography.

Ark Putney Academy also took part.

This is not the first exhibition of its kind, Kay has worked with over 300 boys from across ten London boroughs and displayed their portraits across the capital.

Kay Rufai said: "The S.M.I.L.E-ing Boys project has provided me with the opportunity to realise a vision of creating a humanised version of Black boys while advocating for a more care-centred approach to supporting their mental well-being. It is the project I needed when I was 13 and never had, which is bringing me healing and joy simultaneously."

#One S.M.I.L.E-ing Boys participant, Sashon, said: "I enjoyed it because I could express myself a bit more than I would in normal classes and it's like a free environment where you could just talk about how you're feeling and I feel more educated with what's going on around me. It made me realise some deeper things."

Cabinet member for community services and open spaces Cllr Steffi Sutters said: "Kay Rufai's poetic film Black Future was commissioned as part of Wandsworth Borough Council's Black History Month cultural programming in 2020, and we are delighted to continue to support and champion Kay's work into 2022 with this project.

"The health and wellbeing of Wandsworth's children and young people plays a significant role in our vision for arts and culture in the borough, and the S.M.I.L.E-ing Boys project is a brilliant example of how creativity can make a positive impact on the mental health and well-being of our communities."

You can visit the exhibition at Southside Shopping Centre until Friday February 25, located outside the Waitrose entrance in Wandsworth Town.

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