Schoolchildren are helping to create the UK’s longest art exhibition, stretching for 57 miles.
Running along the Transpennine rail route to North Yorkshire, it will see paintings, photographs and drawings placed at stations – all created by pupils from nearby schools.
For each young artist, the works speak to how they feel about the place they call home.
Teenage artist Imaan Ashan, from Great Academy Ashton in Ashton-Under-Lyne, told ITV News it did not “feel real” to see her small painting turned into a giant print over the station entrance.
Imaan sees her painting as “something personal”.
She said: “That’s the exact shape of the mountain right outside my window and I’ve always wanted to paint that.
“I think this is the biggest thing I’ve ever done. I’m proud that I finished it because I was actually a little bit unsure about whether I was going to get it done.
“Now it’s on the wall, I’m happy that I actually tried.
“When you get an opportunity in life, you’ve got to just take it.”
Fellow pupil Emmanuel Adekoya described his ink pen drawing, now displayed across one of the station’s shelters, as showing Ashton as a “diverse town” where “no-one is forgotten, big or small”.
Emmanuel said: “I tried to include different varieties of people because a lot of people come to Ashton.
“We all work as a community, so I thought it would look nice in the picture.
“I usually have to come through the train station, so it’ll be a nice surprise to see every time I come.
“It’s a fun experience because you don’t really get to do stuff like this and go out of your way to make art that you can see around town.”
ITV News has followed the exhibition since 2024, watching its creation behind the scenes, and our cameras were in the classroom as the teenagers put pen, pencil and paint to paper.
The project was the idea of renowned painter Chris Cyprus, from Mossley, in Tameside.
After surviving cancer twice over, Chris wanted to give young artists an early opportunity to showcase their talents that he did not have as a teenager.
Chris told ITV News that to “shine a light” on their artistry was “a proud Dad moment.”
He said: “When I was their age, I was shouting from the rooftops that this is what I want to do, but I didn’t know how to do it.”
“I didn’t really have that sort of support,” he added.
“It means a lot – something I’ll be deeply proud of.
“It’s usually what other countries seem to do really well with arts.
“I’m just hoping that this will be the start of something that might change our perception of how important the arts are in the UK.”
Kate Howell, from Great Academy Ashton, believes each teenager brought something different to the display at the station.
“They all have a different viewpoint,” she said.
“We’ve got a very diverse community, kids from all over the world. Seventy two flags fly here.
“Many languages are spoken, but… they all know what’s going on and they have a firm attachment to the town that we live in.”
