"Deviance and Difference" at Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery is curated by artist and writer Oman Yousefzada and features artworks created by his students-recent graduates from the Masters in Fine Art Programme at Birmingham City University's (BCU) School of Art, alongside iconic pieces from Birmingham's art collection, including works by Francis Bacon, Donald Rodney, Barbara Hepworth and Hew Locke.

In this display, Yousefzada has created a way for these different artworks to dialogue with each other, combining pieces from Birmingham's collection with his de-colonial

teaching practice at BCU's School of Art. Audrey Lorde's quote "If I didn't define myself, I would be crunched into other people's fantasies for me and eaten alive" was an inspiration for the exhibition.

Text excerpt from Lee Sharrock’s review on Forbes

Mengyao Qin

Scilla, 2024

This piece is about the changing season, in the transition from spring to summer, the natural landscape is blooming with the fresh scent of the time. The colour is light and bright, as if they were hope seeded by wind. It is refreshing and reassuring moments in life that you know there is something new growing nicely.