Students takeover Manchester Libraries Instagram account with lockdown images

The takeover will display Art and Design students work in a digital exhibition.

Art and Design students at The Manchester College are set to take over Manchester Libraries Instagram account, in an online exhibition of the work they have produced during lockdown.

The images record students’ creative experiences during lockdown and reveal the importance of everyday things, family, pets, gardens and creativity. The photographic records document personal, intimate responses to the crisis and are a fascinating record of these strange and unusual times.

The images reflect a range of moving human emotions, situations and settings, from the tranquillity of traffic-less streets to family bonding, connections with nature, loneliness and heightened creativity.

The Instagram takeover replaces a planned week-long display of work at Manchester Central Library and will start on Monday 15 June.  A new set of images will be added to Instagram each day of that week.

The first images will be available to view online from Monday 15 June via Library Live, with a direct link to the Manchester Libraries Instagram pages to view in more detail. 

Maria Foran, HOD for Art and Design at the Manchester College, said "Though College campuses have been closed during lockdown, our students have still been incredibly busy and creative. Their images are a living breathing document of this strange and challenging time in our history"

Manchester City Council's Executive Member for Skills, Culture and Leisure, Councillor Luthfur Rahman, said: "Manchester College students have responded to the coronavirus pandemic by creating a series of emotional and personal images to document their experiences of what it has been like to live through these difficult times in our city.  It's really inspiring to see the College and our libraries team finding ways to work in partnership during the pandemic."

Get more information about the range of Design and Visual Arts courses available at The Manchester College and to see how you can still apply to join in September.