Our Children on Water - European exhibition of international art

The RSC hosted a unique European art exhibition, Our Children on Water  as part of the International Year of Chemistry. Launching at the Chemistry Centre in London, the exhibition then toured a number of major European cities throughout 2011.

Our Children on Water is based on a highly successful RSC project in South Africa where children produced paintings depicting their experiences on water. Earlier this year, children from three African and six European countries were asked to create art based on the title 'Water: Refreshment or Responsibility?' The resulting collection of artwork displays breathtaking imagination and shows children's views on water from many different, thought-provoking perspectives. 

Our Children on Water also draws attention to the role of chemists in industry and academia in providing safe and clean water around the world.

Zoe Heaton (RSC member) visited schools in Ethiopia to help them take part in Our Children on Water. In one school the main theme of the day was contamination. Many pictures were centred on a river, showing how it becomes contaminated by different sources, including factories, food and cooking waste, open toilets, washing and farm animals.