Braehead gives young people a voice

The plight of homeless young people will be brought sharply into focus with an exhibition of photographs in our central atrium.  

Braehead shoppers will see a series of striking photographs taken by young people affected by homelessness when the images go on display between Friday March 18 and 28. 

The Awards for All funded exhibition entitled ‘Waiting’ is a collaboration between charities PhotoVoice and Fairbridge and aims to raise awareness of the issue of youth homelessness in Scotland.

Top professional photographers, Brian Sweeney and Christina Kernohan have spent months coaching 11 young people in the art of photography. And the photographs on display show the stark deprivation and desolation of homelessness and the effect it has on people.

The young people, who are all under 25, attended a residential training course in photography as well as committing to twice weekly sessions. The skills they learned were used to create photo essays about their lives as they travelled around Glasgow.
Fairbridge, is a charity which aims to inspire positive change in disengaged young people, aged 13 to 25 by supporting them to develop their confidence and motivate them to turn their lives around.

Photovoice is an award-winning charity that encourages people to use photography to build the confidence to speak out about their life challenges, strengths, hopes and fears and build their personal and social skills.  Jane Martin, PhotoVoice’s Programme Manager, designed the project to raise awareness of the issue. “I was struck by the impact of the problem of youth homelessness in Scotland. I hope that through this project some of the young people affected by homelessness have an opportunity to build their confidence, speak out, and communicate what they think about this issue to a wide audience – from the general public to MSPs.”

Photographer Brian Sweeney said: “These youngsters are incredible, and we have seen a real transformation in many of them over the months.  They have learnt how to take photographs, but more importantly their self-confidence and motivation has grown.”
Gemma Cochrane is one of the youngsters who will have images on show and says: “This has been such a fantastic experience for me. It has helped me overcome some of my fears and really built my confidence so much so that I am looking at starting a college course. I think this would be a great experience for all young people as it makes you see things from a different perspective. ”
 

Braehead’s marketing manager, Lydia Brown said: “This is a very thought-provoking exhibition of photographs which will be seen by many tens of thousands of shoppers at Braehead. We’re delighted to be hosting the exhibition that raises the awareness of youth homelessness in Scotland and brings the excellent work of these young photographers to a wide audience. The project not only gives young people an expertise in photography, it helps them develop personal and social skills and provides the motivation to play a positive role in society.”