Young Conservationist and Britain’s Got Talent finalist to exhibit new artwork at Warrington Museum

Warrington’s ‘mini David Attenborough’ Aneeshwar Kunchala is to display new artwork in his hometown as part of a new exhibition with an environmental message.

Young conservationist Aneeshwar, who captured the nation’s hearts as a finalist in Britain’s Got Talent 2022, has teamed up with sculptor Val Hunt to present ‘Wake Me Up Before You Dodo’ at Warrington Museum, starting on Saturday, 29 July.

The thought-provoking showcase will look at many of the creatures at risk of extinction from tiny insects to magnificent beasts.

Aneeshwar’s goal is to show the beauty of wildlife through his art and how little changes in our lives can help a variety of creatures impacted by issues such as habitat loss, pollution, poaching and climate change.

It is the award-winning eight-year-old’s second exhibition after an incredible opportunity as guest artist at The Kennedy Center’s RiverRun festival in Washington.

Images of some of Aneeshwar’s favourite animals will be on display including the lemur leaf frog, Bengal tiger and Peregrine Falcon.

He said: “I hope we can all work together to save the animals and make sure the Earth looks beautiful."

“I am very excited to collaborate with Warrington Museum to showcase my artwork here in the UK for the first time. I had an amazing experience at my first art exhibition at The Kennedy Center, where I met lots of children and had a great time exploring some of the fantastic animals in my gallery.”

Aneeshwar will be joined by recycling artist Val Hunt, who ‘reincarnates’ rubbish to create animal sculptures with an environmental message, and there will also be specially curated items from the Museum’s own collections.

After almost 30 years as an artist, Val continues to be amazed by the versatility of ‘creative recycling’ and her favourite material to work with is drinks can metal.

Her special interest is transforming those interesting textures into striking and intricate images of endangered and extinct animals – and her work has caught the attention of people all over the world with exhibitions in Japan, India, the United Arab Emirates and the USA.

Producer Roger Jeffery added: “We’re really excited about launching Wake Me Up Before You Dodo at Warrington Museum at the end of the month.

“It is an eye-catching and family-friendly exhibition, but we also hope it makes people stop and think about the wider world around them and the animals we share the planet with.

“It ties in with a wider environmentally themed event in the town centre that same weekend where, among lots of other things, you can meet a giant sea puppet called Eko in Time Square and hear stories about the sea from a life-sized whale in Palmyra Square! We’re proud to be a part of it.”

Listings information

Exhibition title: Wake Me Up Before You Dodo

Dates: 29 July to 5 November

Admission: Free

Location: Warrington Museum & Art Gallery, Museum Street, Warrington, WA1 1JB

wmag.culturewarrington.org