This week has been one where the dedication and enthusiasm of Art educators has made me realise how worthwhile it is to be part of that community and how pleased I am to be part of it. On Wednesday, I travelled down to Stockton to see a skills share session at the Ian Ramsey School. This was the first session set up by the Tees Art Educator Network which has been created by Lucy Newton, art teacher. I had a great welcome to the session and department by Wendy Turner who is the very enthusiastic subject leader at the school. It was the first time I have ever been offered toast as I walked into an art department ! Everyone was busy experimenting with encaustics and with stitch and print , which you can find out about on this link stitch and print
It was a lovely art department, you just felt the good vibes on arrival and took them away with you. This is all after a hard day at school as well, so well done TAEN and let’s get the next one planned !
Thursday: again after school, the Jefferson School of Creativity, at Excelsior College in Newcastle, opened it’s doors to 30 art teachers to do a fun session with Textiles. Lydia and Caroline encouraged us to look at textiles sketch and sample books and then shared a video with us, which showed footage of their Fashion Show from the summer term of 2010. After that dramatic and inspiring start we all got stuck in to experimenting with a very fine art approach to textiles, laminating threads and textures and then melting and stitching into them. Layering and folding and twisting and inventing new techniques alongside those which had been demonstrated. And, I have to add this, Lydia and Caroline laid all this on at the end of the second day of an OFSTED visit; now that’s dedication for you. It was so successful that we had to chuck people out at 7 p.m.
Saturday:more art teachers meeting up in Sunderland ! The alumni of the Artist Teacher M.A. course “class of 2009”, met to plan their exhibition “ In Spite Of…” which will be on show at The Place, Sunderland in April and May of 2011. Full details are on the exhibitions section of this website. We met at the Winter Gardens on a cold, windy, wet morning and walked in to find a big table of ladies all knitting, they meet on a regular basis and produce individual or group work on a theme. Today was knitted and crocheted cupcakes. I was so impressed at their knitting table and their creativity. The gallery space at The Place is excellent and it was useful to be able to sit and plan what we might do there. I think there will be a lot of making of art in the next few months.
