New environmental-action street art unveiled in Bristol by acclaimed artist

Wednesday 21 August | Jen Forster

A beautiful new piece of climate action street art has been unveiled as part of a new collaboration between We The Curious and Jody Thomas, the acclaimed Bristol artist behind the world-famous mural of Greta Thunberg.

Image credit: Alex Smye-Rumsby

 

The new piece, entitled ‘Cause’ and located above the popular water features in Millennium Square, references the iconic film poster of the film ‘Jaws’ and aims to highlight the devastating environmental impact of single-use plastics on the Earth’s oceans.

This is Jody Thomas’ second piece of artwork focussing specifically on environmental issues, following his headline grabbing mural of Greta Thunberg.

This partnership comes following We The Curious declaring a climate emergency in June, the first science centre in the world to do so, We The Curious joined Bristol City Council and University of Bristol with a public declaration to become carbon neutral by 2030. The aim of the declaration is to inspire both organisations and individuals to take action. The current programming theme for We The Curious is focussed on environmental action and represents the next step in a sustainability journey that the centre first started in 2011.

Jody Thomas said:
“When the idea of the ‘Jaws’ poster came up my first thought was: where would this have the most impact? I immediately thought of Bristol’s iconic Millennium Square and the recent news I had read about We The Curious’ declaration of a climate emergency, with their focus on sustainability and environmental impact. The square is a very popular and high traffic walk through for many people and would set the perfect stage for the piece.”

Chris Dunford, Head of Sustainable Futures for We The Curious added:
“We are excited and honoured to have Jody’s new artwork in We The Curious’ Millennium Square. A big part of our work is to raise awareness of the ways that we humans are damaging the world around us, and to couple that with bold action to reduce our environmental impact.

Since April 2019 thousands of visitors have pledged their own ‘promise to the planet’ as part of our Change Makers activity, and it’s a conversation that our venue teams are having daily with our visitors. We have found that art is a fantastic way to explore these big, challenging issues. Since 2015 we have hosted a range of sustainability-themed murals and sculptures in our public spaces and we are proud to have Jody’s piece as the latest addition.”

With beehives and solar panels on the roof, a dedicated tank that ‘recycles’ and redistributes heating and cooling, pollinator hotels and public art installations that highlight climate change, embedding sustainable practices is a commitment We The Curious takes seriously.

-ENDS-

For further information, images, or to arrange a press trip to We The Curious, please contact Jen Forster – PR Manager, on 0117 9157 152/07967 334 152 or jen.forster@wethecurious.org

You can also follow We The Curious on Twitter (@wethecurious_) Facebook (wethecurious) or Instagram (@wethecurious_). For more information, please visit www.wethecurious.org

 

Editor’s Notes :

About Jody Thomas:
Jody Thomas is a Bristol based artist and designer he began painting in 1988 at the now infamous Barton Hill Youth Club in Bristol developing a strong black and white figurative style alongside other Bristol artists: Inkie, Cheo and Banksy.

He has exhibited at the Royal West of England Academy, the Affordable art Fair in New York, Singapore, Hong Kong, London and Bristol and had 2 sell out solo shows at the Weapon of Choice Gallery & Eventspace in Bristol. Although not officially 'Graffiti' in the strict and traditional sense of the word he considers himself more an aerosol artist. His work takes inspiration from fashion and film and takes a strong, graphic and noirish take on photorealistic portraits. http://www.jodyart.co.uk/about

 

About We The Curious:
We The Curious was previously known as At-Bristol Science Centre; an educational charity with an aim to “make science accessible to all”, it opened in 2000, and welcomed over 5 million visitors in the past 17 years. At-Bristol relaunched as We The Curious in September 2017, with a new vision that is committed to creating a culture of curiosity.

We The Curious is an idea and a place for everyone. Our venue on Bristol’s harbourside is a bit like an indoor festival, with all sorts of different experiences, where you can interact with exhibits, test stuff out and participate rather than just visit.  We’re all about empowering everyone to ask questions and get creative - with boundaries removed between science, art, people and ideas - a culture of curiosity.

 

We The Curious – sustainable futures:

  • Since 2010 We The Curious has reduced energy consumption by 27% (390 tonnes of CO2 per annum) - that's enough CO2 to fill the Planetarium 242 times!
  • We The Curious is home to a large photovoltaic solar panel array - big enough to power 13 UK households
  • The rooftop of We The Curious is also home to a colony of European Honeybees
  • Millennium Square car park is Bristol’s first LED lit car park, it also has electric-car charging points
  • We The Curious has played host to interactive art installations including the Bristol Whales, Tap into Bristol and the Energy Tree on Millennium Square. In 2018 Luke Jerram’s Inhale sculpture was installed in the building, and artist Anna Higgie worked with University of Bristol’s Cabot Institute to create a climate change mural for the exterior of the building.