One of the highlights of last year’s FUTURES festival was the launch of Exeter’s ‘We Still Have a Chance’ legacy mural. Commissioned by the University of Exeter Green Futures COP27 Team and Art Work Exeter, this mural is a message of hope towards ending the climate crisis and creating sustainability at the heart of the city.
With funding from the Knowledge E Foundation, Exmouth-based artist Gary ‘GARf’ Cook was chosen to design this mural after a public vote at the 2023 British Science Festival. Taking his inspiration from We Still Have a Chance: 12 Climate Stories for 12 Days of COP27 Climate Change Conference, GARf’s final piece is the first large-scale public artwork created as part of Exeter’s Public Art Strategy.
Exeter has a strong connection to both the arts and sustainability, with the UK’s top five most influential climate scientists working at the University of Exeter, and the city itself being a UNESCO City of Literature. The new mural, located near Exeter City Library, unites these two vital aspects of Exeter living, and has already attracted enormous support and media attention, including from Greatest Hits Radio Devon.
In an article by the University’s GreenFutures team, Stuart Crewes, Creative Director of Art Work Exeter described reactions to the mural as “positive, with people saying that it brightens up an overlooked corner in the heart of the city. The representation of city landmarks of the present shows a place that is future-facing, positive and dare I say, hopeful.”
The launch itself took place at Exeter Library on the 28th of September and gave residents the opportunity to hear from the team behind the mural, as well as offering a range of interactive activities. Seen by over 2500 people during the FUTURES festival alone, the mural has quickly embedded itself in Exeter’s cultural landscape, demonstrating the city’s commitment to change, and aims for the future.
If you would like to learn more about We Still Have a Chance, you can find their work here.
To get involved with FUTURES 2025, please contact per@exeter.ac.uk.