Royal Borough mayor views students' artwork at Busy Buttons exhibition

A Windsor-based charity helping youngsters achieve their potential through using imagination and creativity welcomed the Royal Borough mayor to its exhibition on diversity last week.

Busy Buttons CORE Charity, based in Windsor Yards, is an independent volunteer-led charity working to help children of all needs and abilities to find their potential using creativity and imagination through activities such as its alternative provision, holiday programmes and creative courses in term-time.

On Saturday, October 14, the charity hosted ‘IMAGINATION UNLEASHED: The World of Busy Buttons’ – an art exhibition and workshop showcasing the artwork that has been created by young people at the charity over the years.

The event for the Windsor Fringe Festival was a celebration of inclusion, creativity, diversity and imagination.

Louella Fernandez-Lempiainen, the chair and one of the founders, said: “We’ve never had an exhibition before, and we don't know why we never did it before because we work with all the arts and we have some amazing artists here.”

A total of 192 visitors got the chance to view a plethora of art pieces completed by young people over the years at the free-to-enter exhibition.

Other treats on the day included a workshop costing £10 per person for the public and charity merchandise including new t-shirts and calendars was also being sold.

Following the event, a general exhibition continued to be open for the public to visit from Monday, October 16 to Friday, October 20.

It was attended by around 100 people.

The exhibition has featured at least 550 pieces of artwork, some of which include a giant octopus created using sewing and upcycling, big lamps, paintings, pop-up books and puppets.

As well as individual art pieces, ‘The One Life’ community engagement project, which more than 1,000 people participated in, has also been on display. The project saw the Victorian ‘rag rugging’ technique used to make the world map on a sphere using different coloured recycled fabric.

Royal Borough mayor Cllr Neil Knowles visited the charity’s exhibition on Friday, October 20 and spent time looking at the artwork and speaking to students.

Louella said: “The aim was to tell the world about this little creative hub that we have here and all these children’s amazing work that we've done over the years.

“[It has been] fantastic. It has been such a great opportunity for the children to showcase their work.”

Louella revealed that the charity is looking to sell ‘The One Life’ community engagement project artwork to raise funds for the charity. Contact the charity at: community@busybuttons.org

The exhibition is still open for visitors to come by appointment.

For more information and to book a time contact: community@busybuttons.org