About Us Now returns to Derry offering free fun-filled STEAM activities this autumn

Following spectacular light shows in March and coding and poetry workshops in Derry schools, About Us Now will offer fun creative STEM and poetry activities linking to the theme of connectivity and the Universe.

Stemettes and The Poetry Society, in collaboration with 59 Productions, are delighted to be returning to Derry for a day of hands-on STEAM sessions for the whole family and open to the public on Tuesday, 1st November 2022, 10.00am to 4.00pm at Newmarket Street.

Commissioned as part of UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK, About Us Now - Derry will involve physical STEAM learning activities planned for ages 7 - 25 to encourage participants to learn skills such as 3D modelling, illustration, HTML and poetry development.

About Us Now - Derry is part of About Us, the first in a series of ten sensational projects commissioned as part of UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK, a ground-breaking UK-wide celebration of creativity in 2022. Earlier in March this year, they organised spectacular light shows in Guildhall Square and Waterloo Place, transforming the historic location into a vast canvas combining awe-inspiring live projection-mapped animation with poetry, music, and beautiful live choral singing to create a unique spectacle.

On the day they will celebrate STEAM learning with the aim to build skills and encourage young people to collaborate in Derry and surrounding areas.

Dr Anne-Marie Imafidon MBE, Co-founder and CEO of Stemettes said: “I’m excited to be serving the local community in Derry and to be bringing the arts and STEM together for young ones to explore their creativity and place in the world. New skills, good food and fun connections to peers and role models are guaranteed!

Judith Palmer, Director, The Poetry Society, said: “We’re delighted to be working with even more young people this autumn from Derry, with an exciting interactive programme of events harnessing young people's creativity.

“About Us celebrates the creativity at the heart of both STEM subjects and poetry; these events are a chance for young people to explore how these disciplines intersect, to learn about career pathways in STEAM, and to try their hand at modelling, design and poetry writing. We can't wait to see what young people create in this next phase of the project.”

Lysander Ashton, Project Director, About Us and Director, 59 Productions, said: “59 Productions are really excited to continue the work after the spectacular shows earlier in the year and to dive deeper into the incredible stories of how connected we all are.”

About Us Now is a collaboration between 59 Productions – the award-winning design studio and production company who created the video design for the London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony; Stemettes – the award-winning social enterprise working to bring young women and non-binary young people into Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) careers; and The Poetry Society – one of the UK’s most dynamic arts organisations.