Salford Shopping Centre has become home to a variety of different monsters.
These creations take the form of sculptures created by Salfordian artist Beryl Bouvier and lead into a workshop where Salford residents can create their own sculptures.
Beryl uses this workshop as a way to promote mental health awareness as well as starting positive conversations around taboo subjects.
“I feel like creation is good for mental health. I feel like if we have those kind of sessions available to people to start playing around with sculpting, maybe it turns out actually you know this is something they really enjoy.”
The workshops, named Monster Jams, allow for a safe place for all Salford residents to express their creative freedom as well as share a space with like-minded people. Additionally, Beryl hopes that the workshops can shed light on more unique issues.
“Over the last six years I’ve become much more cognisant of what’s going on politically in the world, what’s going on with technological development and I feel like no one knows, we’re not really having like many conversations about it.
“I feel like if I could have that kind of conversation and start having those conversations around biotechnology, we can get ahead of it before it becomes an issue.”
Beryl aims to help shape the conversation around biotechnology as well as body modification through their art. While AI takes over the technological space, Beryl hopes to start more conversations around how we look at the technology in our lives and how it can benefit us.
“The school of transhumanism I represent is techno-gaianism, it’s a position that suggests using biotechnology to have a better relationship with nature. So for example, using fungi for bioplastics and to clean oil spills, capture carbon from the atmosphere.”
Beryl uses their art as a way to provoke ideas of positive conversations around more taboo subjects.
“When people discuss things like biotechnology, synthetic biology, it’s always that Frankensteinian kind of feel. But I feel like that’s just because there’s been no positive representations of body modification. Having those positive conversations about something so taboo could benefit so many people.”
The workshops are open to the public starting on February 7 and take place each Saturday until February 28, hosted by Salford Grit Studios.
