The Changeable Nature of Stories

Location: Leeds Arts University Library, Blenheim Walk, Leeds LS2 9AQ

This exhibition is available to view from 10:00am - 4:00pm Monday to Saturday by appointment only for external visitors. To arrange a visit, please email libraryadmin@leeds-art.ac.uk. Staff and students are not required to make an appointment.

Since childhood Nell Heys has been fascinated with storytelling and the ways that stories can shape themselves into new forms with every retelling. Her work honours the same tradition, rewriting well known fairy tales and turning them into something new, contextualised by her interest in folklore, feminism and themes of transformation and human connection to nature. Her illustrations focus on the strange, whimsical and symbolic, hiding narrative within highly decorative designs, to create a visual labyrinth full of clues and hidden meanings.

Created for her final degree show at Leeds Arts University in 2024, ‘Beauty & Beast’ ‘was inspired by Heys’ discovering that the original author of the tale was a woman. A critique of the 17th Century marriage system, the beast was a metaphor for the real-life fears of young girls who didn't know if they were to marry a prince or beast. This original message, and the knowledge that it was written by a woman is information that has been lost over time. Inspired by the works of Angela Carter, Heys’ own retelling follows the character of Beauty, trapped and alone, who has lost the knowledge of her true name. Only by shedding her skin and accepting an innate beast within, can she finally recover it.

This year, Heys was a recipient of Leeds Arts University’s Creatives in Residence scheme, which provides support for recent graduates to realise their ambitions to develop and work on a specific project. With the support of this scheme, Heys has created her second book, ‘Pandora’, a retelling of the myth ‘Pandora's Box‘ and drawing on ideas in Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein’. Seeking to reframe the misogynistic undertone of the myth, Heys researched the origins of the tale, and learned that Pandora was much more than the familiar legend suggests. In Heys’ ‘Pandora’, Gods rule the earth and create a monster to punish humans for stealing their fire, but the creature, made from earth, twig and stone, may have more power than they ever thought she could.

Leeds Arts University Library is pleased to present ‘Beauty & Beast ‘ and ‘Pandora’ with additional books selected by the artist from the university’s Special Collection.

Part of Leeds Arts University Collections, the Special Collection is a teaching and learning resource for students and researchers. We share items from this collection in a rolling series of small exhibitions in our Blenheim Walk Library.

Guided tour: 17 June 2025 1:00pm–1:45pm

Location: Leeds Arts University Library, Blenheim Walk, Leeds LS2 9AQ

‘Beauty and Beast ‘ and ‘Pandora’ are shown alongside books that Nell has selected from the Special Collections. Join us for a guided tour with the artist to learn about her illustration work and the research, concepts and processes involved in making her books.

Booking is essential and places are limited. Click here to book your place.