As 2021 approaches, so does the next iteration of the Umbrella Project — an art installation aimed at raising awareness of neuro-developmental disorders, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dyspraxia.
More than 1,000 schools in the United Kingdom and around the world have been invited to participate in the Umbrella Project in 2021 by displaying umbrellas suspended from classroom ceilings and educating their students and community about the ability, talent, and achievements of neurodiverse learners. Beyond the U.K., schools in the U.S, Australia, Africa, India, Malta, and Greece already have signed up.
The 2019 iteration of the project had significant impacts in several ways — including ties to a Silver Screen legend.
While the umbrella has served humanity for more than 4,000 years, it can do more than keep us dry in a heavy downpour. Last year, a chance detour under an umbrella installation in rainy London brought together a film icon with a leading European neurodiversity charity.
In summer 2019, Patricia Ward Kelly, the wife and biographer of late Hollywood icon Gene Kelly — director, choreographer, and star of the Hollywood classic Singin’ in the Rain — was travelling through Europe. Forced to make a last-minute and unscheduled dash between terminals at London Heathrow, Kelly found herself directly underneath an installation of 300 umbrellas. Given the significance of an umbrella in the pivotal Singin’ scene which featured a soaked but joyful Gene Kelly in one of the most iconic sequences in film history, Kelly stopped, sensing something serendipitous about this chance detour.
The 300 brightly colored umbrellas that greeted Kelly and the millions of other passengers who moved through Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 during the installation’s four-month residency were part of the multi-city Umbrella Project, whose name stems from the use of ADHD and autism as “umbrella terms” for many neurological conditions.
From humble beginnings in Liverpool in 2017, the Umbrella Project has become an art movement that celebrates the intelligence, ability, and talent of every human being — including every neurodiverse individual, empowering and enabling the next generation of children and young people through a canopy of umbrellas — with each umbrella being signed by a neurodiverse child stating “My Superpower is …” It has become the largest neurodiversity art project in the world, and the Heathrow installation remains its largest and most ambitious installation to date. Heathrow is Europe’s largest airport and one of the world’s top international aviation hubs, welcoming more than 80 million passengers every year.
“The initial idea had been to use 30 to 40 umbrellas, but this grew to 300 umbrellas to fill the space,” said Jenny McLaughlin, the Heathrow Airport project manager. The installation aimed to highlight the importance of being a welcoming and inclusive place to work and to travel to and from.
Patricia Ward Kelly.
The installation of the umbrellas followed the introduction of several initiatives at Heathrow, including sunflower lanyards that allow passengers needing tailored help and support to discreetly identify themselves to Heathrow staff; investments in training, equipment, and signage to improve the airport’s accessibility; fully accessible assistance videos showing the support available; and the installation of a sensory room in Terminal 3, alongside a plan to deliver dedicated quiet areas across the airport. By providing a thought-provoking visual experience for those passing through the airport, Heathrow was also recognizing that traveling can be a challenging experience for many people, including those identifying as neurodivergent.
The airport continues an open dialogue with users to improve its assistance service and ensure every single passenger feels at ease when they begin or end their journey at Heathrow. “We have ensured that neurodiversity is included in all areas of diversity and inclusion at Heathrow, and within what we call Team Heathrow, which includes airlines, handlers, and other colleagues that work at Heathrow,” McLaughlin said. Compelled by the message behind the Umbrella Project at Heathrow, Kelly, upon returning to Los Angeles, connected with ADHD Foundation chief executive Dr. Tony Lloyd to ask how she could get involved in the organization’s work. During these exchanges, Kelly and Lloyd explored their shared goals of breaking down the barriers facing neurodiverse individuals the world over.
Kelly was made aware that Gene’s movies were being screened around the world in therapeutic fashion for patients with Alzheimer’s and dementia, and for “relaxed” events for young people with autism and various other neurodiverse conditions. Kelly was intrigued by the relationship between music and the mind and how music has been used therapeutically to help individuals overcome their obstacles.
Kelly ultimately became an ambassador for neurodiversity and a patron of the ADHD Foundation.
“I am grateful to (the foundation) for allowing me to share the beautiful mission of the Umbrella Project with the celebration of Gene’s legacy,” she said. “It seems a most fitting alliance.”
In celebration of this new partnership, a special performance of Singin’ in the Rain was performed live on BBC TV underneath the colored canopy of umbrellas at Heathrow Terminal 5 — the very spot where Kelly had, by chance, first engaged with the humble umbrellas just a few months earlier.
“To have a brand such as Heathrow seeing the value of this was inspirational,” Lloyd said. “And the public installation outside T5 was breathtakingly beautiful.”
Click here for more information about ADHD Foundation. You can follow Patricia Ward Kelly on Facebook and Instagram.
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As 2021 approaches, so does the next iteration of the Umbrella Project — an art installation aimed at raising awareness of neuro-developmental disorders, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dyspraxia.
More than 1,000 schools in the United Kingdom and around the world have been invited to participate in the Umbrella Project in 2021 by displaying umbrellas suspended from classroom ceilings and educating their students and community about the ability, talent, and achievements of neurodiverse learners. Beyond the U.K., schools in the U.S, Australia, Africa, India, Malta, and Greece already have signed up.
The 2019 iteration of the project had significant impacts in several ways — including ties to a Silver Screen legend.
While the umbrella has served humanity for more than 4,000 years, it can do more than keep us dry in a heavy downpour. Last year, a chance detour under an umbrella installation in rainy London brought together a film icon with a leading European neurodiversity charity.
In summer 2019, Patricia Ward Kelly, the wife and biographer of late Hollywood icon Gene Kelly — director, choreographer, and star of the Hollywood classic Singin’ in the Rain — was travelling through Europe. Forced to make a last-minute and unscheduled dash between terminals at London Heathrow, Kelly found herself directly underneath an installation of 300 umbrellas. Given the significance of an umbrella in the pivotal Singin’ scene which featured a soaked but joyful Gene Kelly in one of the most iconic sequences in film history, Kelly stopped, sensing something serendipitous about this chance detour.
The 300 brightly colored umbrellas that greeted Kelly and the millions of other passengers who moved through Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 during the installation’s four-month residency were part of the multi-city Umbrella Project, whose name stems from the use of ADHD and autism as “umbrella terms” for many neurological conditions.
From humble beginnings in Liverpool in 2017, the Umbrella Project has become an art movement that celebrates the intelligence, ability, and talent of every human being — including every neurodiverse individual, empowering and enabling the next generation of children and young people through a canopy of umbrellas — with each umbrella being signed by a neurodiverse child stating “My Superpower is …” It has become the largest neurodiversity art project in the world, and the Heathrow installation remains its largest and most ambitious installation to date. Heathrow is Europe’s largest airport and one of the world’s top international aviation hubs, welcoming more than 80 million passengers every year.
“The initial idea had been to use 30 to 40 umbrellas, but this grew to 300 umbrellas to fill the space,” said Jenny McLaughlin, the Heathrow Airport project manager. The installation aimed to highlight the importance of being a welcoming and inclusive place to work and to travel to and from.
