Our Past, Your Future was a Museums Northumberland project celebrating the North East’s industrial and STEM heritage while encouraging young people to imagine future careers in science, technology and engineering. As part of the programme, I co-created an augmented reality (AR) artwork with Year 9 students from three secondary schools in Ashington, Wallsend and Newcastle.

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Working through a short creative micro-project, students explored the region’s industrial history, with a particular focus on the often-overlooked legacy of women working in STEM. Using the project’s digital map as a starting point, participants researched stories from the past and translated them into contemporary visual narratives.

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Through a series of hands-on workshops, students experimented with collage, illustration and storyboarding before developing stop-motion animations that were later integrated into an interactive AR artwork. By layering animation and digital media onto a physical collage, the project created a hybrid artwork that could be explored using a smartphone or tablet.

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The process introduced participants to new digital tools while developing creative thinking, collaboration and storytelling skills relevant to both the creative industries and the STEM sector. The final AR work was presented as part of Museums Northumberland outreach activity and exhibition programming, allowing audiences to interact with the animations created by the students.

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The project was delivered in collaboration with museum staff, STEM specialists from NUSTEM and digital designers, combining heritage research, creative practice and emerging technology to connect the region’s past with the ambitions of the next generation.