1. Emma Bryant
57, Gubyon Avenue, London, SE24 0DU.
Tel: 07958 185 709. Email: emmasarahbryant@icloud.com
I am an experienced heritage education professional with expertise in
programme development and workshops for schools and colleges. I specialise in
participatory projects and co-curation. I have created innovative and ground-
breaking projects for which I have received international acclaim. I have an up
to date knowledge of the national curriculum and trends in provision for 5-18
year old students. I have a strong track record of delivering creative
programming in heritage settings. I work with and advise prestigious heritage
organisations both in the UK and internationally.
Employment
Education Officer, at the Wallace Collection, London, May 1999-present.
(4 days per week)
• I created and manage the award winning schools programme. I develop
highly successful and sought after workshops and have overseen the growth
in student visits from 440 visits to 12000+ per annum. The programme is
oversubscribed with many schools returning year after year. Feedback is 98%
‘excellent’ or ‘very good.’ Teachers rarely rate a session as ‘good.’ A ‘fair’
or ‘poor’ rating occurs perhaps once per academic year.
• I ensure that the programme is responsive to changes in the national
curriculum and that workshops support it and enrich students learning. The
collection and it’s objects are essential to, and at the heart of, the offer. All
workshops include a practical element i.e. object handling and plaster
casting to provide opportunities not available in the classroom.
• I ensure that workshops cater for a range of learning styles and academic
abilities with specific programming and adjustments made to regular
sessions.
• I manage the schools budget. I recruit, train and manage a team of twenty
educators, who are experts in their fields. I teach, give public talks and
curate displays.
• I work with the curatorial, conservation, press and marketing, facilities,
security and events departments who contribute to workshops and study
days.
• In 2014 I re-developed the school section of the website to make it more
user friendly and to provide online teachers’ resources.
• I deputise for the Head of Education managing the department in her
absence.
• Schools Programme projects include:
- Young Curators programme, where pupils aged 8-11, give regular tours to
the public.
2. - 'Shhh…It’s a Secret' exhibition for families, curated, designed and
interpreted by 8-11 year old pupils.
- A film with the Young Curators for other Primary school pupils about
what to expect when visiting the museum.
- Masterclasses for sixth-form students ranging from History of Art to
Security Management.
- ‘Careers Open Day: What’s it Like to Work in a Museum?’ An annual
event involving all departments which gives sixth from students the
chance to find out about the various careers in museums.
- Workshops for students with learning difficulties, with armour handling,
role-play and art.
- Collaborative projects with The Prince’s Trust, Wigmore Hall, The
National Army Museum, The National Portrait Gallery, Donmar
Warehouse, Royal Collections, University College London
- A ten year partnership with the London Borough of Camden Education
Department for Gifted and Talented and Widening Participation
students.
Other work includes:
1990-2000 Gallery Educator National Portrait Gallery, London, delivering the
schools programme for Secondary School students
1990-1999 Freelance gallery educator
1987-1991 Tutor, Morley College, London, Community Art and Craft Class.
1986-1989 Artist in Residence Hughes Fields School, Deptford, London
1985-1987 Visiting lecturer, Goldsmiths College, London, Art Teachers Training
course
1985-1999 Self-employed artist, various exhibitions and community projects,
including creation of murals with patients in psychiatric units and school pupils
Consulting
• Woburn Abbey, advising on starting up a Young Curators programme
• Chiswick House, advising on the education aspects for a Heritage Lottery
application
• New Light Charity, advising on setting up artist residencies in primary schools
in Yorkshire linked to an exhibition at the Bowes Museum.
• Espacio Fundacion Telefonica, Madrid, advising on the developing of a co-
curated exhibition with school students
Papers Given include:
• September 2015 ‘Takeover Day at the Wallace Collection’ for the Association
of Leading Visitor Attractions, Portsmouth
3. • February 2012, ‘Battling Shakespeare: the Fantasy and reality of Elizabethan
Fighting’ at the Challenging History Conference, City University, London
• October 2010 Co-curation and the Public History of Science and Technology at
the Science museum. This paper was presented with two ten year old pupils
from the Shhh…It’s a Secret team.
• February 2004 ‘Starting from Scratch: The Museum Education Programme at
the Wallace Collection’ at the National Museum of Art, Bucharest, Romania
• October 2003 ‘The Wallace Collection: A Museum for All’ at the ‘Seminar in
Management of Museums in the 21st Century’ organised by the British Council,
CONACULTA and the Universdad Iberoamericana, Mexico City
Select Publications:
• Curator, The Museum Journal, Wiley-Blackwell/California Academy of
Sciences- ‘A Museum Gives Power to Children’ 2011
• 1001 Paintings You Must See Before You Die, Cassell Illustrated 2006
• Times Educational Supplement article: ‘Knight in Shining Armour’ 2004
Qualifications
1983-1984: Special Advanced Studies in Printmaking, Central School of Art and
Design, London
1979-1982: BA Hons. 2:1 in Fine Art and Complementary Studies, Brighton
Polytechnic
1978-1979: Foundation Course, Camberwell School of Art, London
2009: British Sign Language Level 1
Volunteering and Interests
I volunteer for the charity Kids in Museums. My interests include medieval
history, gardening, and swimming.