Street art with the power to change lives comes to North-West community

Street artists Christian Fenn (aka Seca) and Hayley Garner (Aylo) are bringing their eye-catching murals to Fleetwood in a community engagement project designed to help its people and the place.

Christian, from Blackpool, and Hayley from Rochdale, have been involved in projects in Mexico, Morocco and the USA, and are delighted to be working on an initiative aimed at helping people on their doorstep.

Christian said: “I have got a passion for helping change people’s lives for the better. I support the underdogs. There are people living in communities like Blackpool and Fleetwood who don’t get the life chances that others do in different parts of the country for a whole host of reasons. I want to do my bit to try to change that.

“We are looking at using mural art to help transform Fleetwood with ten murals across the town which will help bring pride and hope to local people - and also bring visitors into the town to see the murals which will help support the local economy. Fleetwood is the ideal community to be doing this. It needs something to help lift the community. So why not get it known as an arts town - using art as a vehicle to spread hope and positivity?

“We will be running community workshops, and each mural we do will be inspired mostly by the group we do the workshops with. The end result will be that Fleetwood itself becomes an art museum which injects pride back into the town for residents and brings in visitors from all over to come and see the art.”

The Big Heart Project (https://www.thebigheartprojects.com) - ‘Transforming Our Towns One Mural At A Time’ - aims to leave a lasting legacy of positivity and change in Fleetwood and beyond. Each mural will be interactive with a QR code so people can listen and see on their mobile phones the stories, creativity and artistic thinking behind each image.

Christian said: “There’s the visible inspiration of seeing art like this across a community. Then when you hear the stories behind them it takes the experience to another level. It really helps people to engage with the murals and gives the artwork even more power to change people’s lives for the better.”

“Hopefully this will start bringing people into the town and help to turn around Fleetwood’s fortunes as a place and raise the aspirations of people living here to be the best they can be. Art like this can really lift a place. It’s using art as a tool for regeneration. I really saw the power of murals to do that in a community in Morocco where I worked on a similar project.”

The Big Heart Project is run by Butterfly Effected, a Community Interest Company (CIC) founded by Christian and co-directed by Hayley, which uses art, storytelling, and therapy to inspire and support individuals facing adversity, with a focus on addiction, mental health, LGBTQ+ rights and child poverty.

Starting as a website collecting stories of triumph over hardship, it now includes large-scale murals, workshops, and therapy sessions.

Christian, a former heroin addict, relates to those who find life a struggle and hopes the art will bring comfort and confidence to local people, and help them find their own more positive path.

Christian said: “I have got a passive addiction. Thirteen years ago I was in a really dark place. I almost died. I became a self-employed artist 10 years ago. I found something which helped me find a way forward.

“Everyone needs something to tap into, to relate to. I started painting and traveling and realised the power of art, not just for me, but for other people and for whole communities. There was a 16-year-old girl who saw one of my murals and shared with me the effect it had on her life.

“She said she had previously self harmed and had mental health issues. She read an article about me and, inspired to find out more, she went to see one of my murals. She said she could feel the energy from it. I did not know until that moment that art had the power to heal. I thought that if I could change one person’s life for the better, perhaps I could help more people with their mental health.”

The Big Heart Project will involve a range of international street artists. As well as Seca and Aylo, other artists already confirmed include Bane and Lei Mai Leamow. The project relies on donations from businesses, organisations and individuals.

JJ Fitzgerald, who is from Fleetwood and founded Evolution which refurbishes social housing across the North-West from its headquarters in Blackpool, is one of the first to back the project with a four figure donation.

JJ said: “Personally and professionally I believe we should be doing everything we can for the people in our communities who might not have the opportunities that others do.

“This project is inspiring. It is about helping people and the wider community on so many levels. As someone who is passionate about Fleetwood and the surrounding area I fully support what Christian and Hayley are doing for the local community.

“Giving people better life chances and putting Fleetwood on the map to help the local economy are causes close to my heart so it feels absolutely the right thing to do to back this project. I hope it inspires other people, businesses and organisations across the Fylde Coast to give their financial support too and help change people’s lives for the better.

“Fleetwood is on the up. There’s the new bypass, the direct rail link to Poulton is firmly back on the political agenda and in the longer term there’s the tidal barrier project. An initiative like this in the meantime shows the faith and commitment in the Fleetwood community which I fully support.”

For more information or to donate to this project visit https://www.spacehive.com/thebigheartproject

For more information about the the wider projects visit https://www.thebigheartprojects.com and for Butterfly Effected visit https://thebutterflyeffected.org