Learning Lab

In the Learning Lab, we focused on a big question: how do we understand and interpret the creative work young people produce?

Young people created artworks exploring loneliness using a range of creative approaches. These pieces were then explored together by young people, artists and researchers.

Rather than one group leading the interpretation, each perspective was treated as equally important. Young people brought their lived experience, artists brought insight into creative practice and expression, and researchers contributed ways of thinking about structure and meaning.

Through this process, participants didn’t just test existing approaches. They worked together to shape something new.

This led to the development of the RESPOND Framework – a youth informed way of engaging with and interpreting creative work. The framework reflects what mattered to participants in the room, helping ensure that creative outputs are approached with care, curiosity and respect for the experiences behind them.

Importantly, the RESPOND Framework does not try to simplify or reduce what young people create. Instead, it supports a way of staying close to meaning, allowing creative work to be understood in ways that feel authentic to the people who made it, while still supporting shared reflection across arts and science perspectives.