Chelmsford Museum’s Chelmsford Creatives have been working closely with the British Science Association and Anglia Ruskin University to develop a project to record and reflect upon young people’s experiences of boredom in lockdown.
The collective had previously been collaborating on a series of events for the planned British Science Festival in Chelmsford in 2020, which is now postponed until 2021. However, the group recognised that it was becoming all too apparent that young people were being significantly impacted by the pandemic and their voices needed to be heard. The Boredom Project was born.
“COVID-19 has affected every member of the collective in a different way, and it’s really important that the pandemic’s impact on young people as individuals isn’t lost through national debate and statistics. What has been clear from our first workshops, is that “boredom” has been a significant shared social experience of the pandemic. In the future, Chelmsford Museum will look back on this time and ask: ‘how did people cope?’, in the same way we do now with other turbulent moments in history.”
Sammy Oxford – Chelmsford Creatives Coordinator
Visit the British Science Association blog to read more about the background to the project.
GET INVOLVED! Make history for future generations.
Are you, or do you know, a 15-24 year old living in Essex?
We are looking for creative work by young people (aged 15-24) in Essex that reflects experiences of boredom during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Submit your poetry, art, photography, painting, short stories, non-fiction, comics, lyrics call-to-action, musings, doodles – anything we can put onto paper!
THEMES: your boredom, your family/friend’s boredom, boredom & social media, the boredom economy, boredom & mental health, boredom & privilege.
A resulting zine will be available for free online and in print.
Submissions to sammy.oxford@chelmsford.gov.uk by 10th of August 2020
- A5 Size 1
- 2 pages max
- JPG or PDF
- Please include your name, age and town
Interested in becoming a Chelmsford Museum Chelmsford Creative? Visit Chelmsford Creatives online for more information.
