Gold Arts Award Pilot Project

1. ALCHEMY
Definition: a seemingly magical process of
transformation, creation, or combination
Gold
Arts Award
Project 2013
Partners:
InspirED, SPAEDA, Arts Education and
Somerset Art Works (SAW)
Huish Episcopi Academy
Huish Episcopi Primary School,
Langport and Huish Youth Group
with financial support from RIO

2. Core Aims for the Arts Award Gold Qualification
To develop young people’s creativity, communication,
planning, teamwork and leadership skills.
ALCHEMY is all about maximising
opportunities: Gold Award student,
Nicky, taking the lead with learning
workshop demonstration skills
modelled directly by SAW artist
Melanie Tomlinson in addition to
developing her own artistic abilities
and understanding – fusing aspects
of Unit 1 and Unit 2 wherever
possible.

3. •
This project is all about partnership and negotiation. Students
and advisors (Sara Dudman, Ian mcGinn, Marina Fraser, Sarah
Jobling, Alice Crane, Carol Carey) are working together to
make the most of opportunities and resources to successfully
complete the Gold Arts Award journey……by early 2014  The
advisors all attended Gold Award training together in May 2013
hosted by SPAEDA at Great Bow Wharf in Somerset.
Gold Award
advisors, Sara
Dudman and
Alice Crane,
working with
students at the
launch of their
exhibition at
Great Bow
Wharf.

4. Sara Dudman is the lead project advisor and is supporting the project through planning, scheduling, facilitating
and 1:1 and group tutorials and seminars to track and advise on progress throughout the programme.
Ian McGinn is the hands-on school-based advisor who is be in charge of online and technical support, uploading
portfolio evidence onto the Tumblr sites and managing day-to-day communications and advice.
Marina Fraser is the school-based teacher-advisor, who is working with students to support the practical and
planning and organisational work for Arts Award.
Sarah Jobling and Alice Crane are the SPAEDA advisors, looking after communications with Arts Award directly
and overseeing the pilot project – students are unlikely to work directly with them as advisors.
Carol Carey is the SAW advisor, working with Beccy Swaine to facilitate opportunities for the students to work
directly with artists and Arts Organisations for Unit 1.
Marina Fraser
working with Arts
Award Gold
student Benjy –
working on ideas
for personal
development in
Unit 1.

5. Having a team of fully trained Arts Award Gold
advisors drawn from all the project partner
organisations means there is coherent understanding
of the requirements and opportunities presented by
the Award.
Artwork for Unit 1 part A
created by a Gold Arts
Award student in
response to artist-led
workshops.

6. Arts Award Gold has two units
Unit 1: personal arts development
Part A: extend own arts practice
Facilitated by SAW (Somerset Art Works), students have engaged
in a number of practical artist-led workshops:
Examples of
work by
Melanie
Tomlinson
and Maeve
Clancy,
both artists
who have
worked
directly with
the Gold
Arts Award
students.

7. Arts practice: Young people gain experience of a new area of the arts
and produce new art work by working with a more advanced
practitioner.
SAW ‘Great Crane
Project Lead Artist’
Melanie Tomlinson
came to Huish
Episcopi Academy
for 2 days to lead
workshops with
Gold Award
Students and other
art students from
the school
(capitalising on
opportunity to work
directly with an
artist-in-residence
was maximised by
school)

8. Students participated in 2 days of metalwork diorama-making
workshops held at Huish Episcopi Academy, led by Melanie
Tomlinson. On the first day of the workshops Damon, from The
Great Crane Project also visited to explain this process of the reintroduction of the Great Crane to the Somerset Levels. This
wildlife project forms the basis of an art project currently being
run through SAW, with Melanie and other artists working with art
and communities to help interpretation and understanding.

9. Students worked with paper installation artist Maeve Clancy. Maeve was
one of a number of artists commissioned by SAW to create a
contemporary craft-based installation at Barrington Court.

10. Students participated in a paper-making workshop at Barrington
Court, led by artist Julie Roberts.

11. Artwork created by Arts Award Gold
students and artists.

12. Arts Award Gold students making
metalwork dioramas in workshops with
Melanie Tomlinson

13. Unit 1: personal arts development
Part B: identify and use development opportunities and sources
of information within the wider arts sector.
The wider arts sector: Young people get involved in the arts world through
placements, volunteering, training and research.
Arts Award Gold student
Dan chose to volunteer
for 2 days to assist with
the transformation of the
local youth club toilets.
He worked alongside
graffitti artist Scott Walker
with youth club members
to design and paint a
graffitti mural on the
boys’ toilet walls. Dan
learnt valuable skills in
leading workshops in
addition to being able to
interview Scott and gain
insight into the
professional life of an
artist.

14. In addition to Dan volunteering at the
youth-club, the other 2 Arts Award Gold
students have undertaken other
volunteering opportunities through SAW
at Barrington Court to assist with
stewarding exhibitions and helping with
family art workshops.

15. Unit 1: personal arts development
Part C: research and review the work of more advanced
practitioners and explore relationship to own practice.
Dan took the
opportunity to
ask Scott about
his professional
life in addition
to his own
research for
part C of unit 1.

16. InspirED launch
Arts Award Gold students gave a short presentation of their work so far
at the launch of the new Somerset Arts Education Network ‘InspirED’ at
Great Bow Wharf in July. It was at a very early stage of the Arts Award
project, but students communicated the key aspects of Arts Award
Gold and shared their own experiences of working with artists so far to
an audience of art teachers and other arts and education professionals.

17. Great Bow Wharf exhibition
September – October 2013
The Arts Award Gold students shared publicly the outcomes of their work for
both their Silver Arts Award (just completed) together with the artwork they
had created so far for their Gold Award. The exhibition, held at Great Bow
Wharf was part of SAW Arts Weeks 2013 and was publicised together with
other venues in Langport. The students learnt about staging an exhibition,
publicity, events etc. in preparation for taking the lead in curating a second
exhibition planned for December, which will showcase the work they create
with primary school children in Unit 2 and also further resolved artwork they
create for unit 1.

18. Arts Award Gold students’ exhibition
at Great Bow Wharf.

19. As part of the process of staging an exhibition, the students invited an
audience from their school community to come to an exhibition launch
event during which they presented their work and explained the project
so far.
In addition to
installing the
exhibition and
giving a
presentation
about it, the
students wrote a
full range of
interpretation
boards to
accompany their
work in the
exhibition and
also designed and
published
exhibition launch
event publicity –
see the following 2
slides.

20. ALCHEMY
A Gold ARTS AWARD PROJECT RUN AT
HUISH EPISCOPI SIXTH FORM
This exhibition comprises of work done by year 9 students from Huish
Episcopi academy and year 12 students from Huish sixth form. This work
was carried out for unit one of our Gold Arts award in which we had to
develop ourselves as artists through research and arts practice. These
students from Huish Episcopi Academy are exhibiting works from their Silver
Arts Award and the beginnings of their Gold Arts Award Journey where they
have been working in partnership with Somerset Art Works artist Melanie
Thomson to produce dioramas inspired by the great crane project. They
have taken part in a range of volunteering activities for Somerset Art Works
and SPAEDA. With the support of artist, Sara Dudman and Marina Fraser
and Ian McGinn from Huish Academy, they have curated this show and
promoted it as part of Somerset Art Weeks Festival 2013. Alchemy is
presented alongside work from local Primary Schools taking part in
Somerset Art Works’ Hunky Punks project with artist Sarah Dicks. The
project was put together by SPAEDA, Somerset’s Arts Education Charity
based here at the Great Bow Wharf.
If you’d like to find out more about the show, SPAEDA or the Arts Award
contact Alice on 01458 254 262 or see www.spaeda.org.uk
An example of one
of the exhibition
interpretation
panels written by
the students to
accompany the
exhibition.

21. Exhibition launch event invitation created by the students to invite their
school and wider community to the exhibition.

22. Gold Arts Award: Unit 2
Arts Project Leadership: Young people take individual
responsibility (within legal health and safety guidelines) for
planning, running and reviewing an arts project.
Plan the project: Prepare an arts leadership project, identifying aims and
organising people and resources.
The Gold Arts Award students plan to lead a series of 4 art workshops with
children from one of the local feeder primary school during November. Each
student will take responsibility for leading aspects of the project directly
informed and influenced by their own skills and artistic journey taken so far.
Watch this space……..

23. When
What
Who
27th June
Julie Roberts paper-making workshop day @ Barrington Court (talk by Maeve Clancy)
Marina/ Ian / students
4th July
First workshop day with Melanie Tomlinson plus Arts award Gold briefing/ context:
Sara / Marina / Ian / Melanie Tomlinson / Damon (Great Crane) / students
10th July
Second workshop day with Melanie Tomlinson
Marina / Ian / Melanie Tomlinson / students
10th July
InspirED launch at Great Bow Wharf 4-6pm – students to attend and give brief presentation of their project so far.
Marina / Ian / Sarah Jobling / Beccy Swaine / Carol Carey/ Alice Crane/
students
15th July
Sara meet with all students @ Huish Episcopi at 1.20pm to review workshops and set expectations and provide
support materials for the summer break (to include support for interviewing artists etc.)
Sara / students / Ian / Marina / Fran / Sarah Jobling / Alice / Beccy / Carol
Fran. Sarah, Alice, Carol to meet at 3pm at the school with the students, Sara and teachers to have a brief initial review
meeting.
31st July
family papermaking workshop - students may be interested in volunteering
19 + 20th August
Nikki will do toilet graffiti project working with artist Scott walker
Nikki / Annie / Scott Walker/ youth club
4th September from 1.20-3.20pm
planning session with Sara and Ian @ Huish Episcopi Academy with Sara to select Silver Award work and outcomes
from Melanie’s workshops and agree framing/ presentation/ installation needs/ concept for SAW exhibition.
Deadline: framing / prep for exhibition to be complete by 9am on 10th September
Sara / students / Ian
10th September
Installing/ Hanging SAW exhibition of students’ and artists’ work at Great Bow Wharf
NB: Sara Dudman will be there for the morning only – students to be there as and when available throughout the day.
Students / Sara Dudman / Sarah Jobling/ Beccy Swaine/ Sarah Dicks (Hunky
Punks)/ Ian
11th September
Installing/ Hanging SAW exhibition of students’ and artists’ work at Great Bow Wharf
NB: Sara Dudman will be there for the afternoon only – all students expected to be on site from 1.30pm onwards until
6pm expected if possible – anyone who can make it in the morning is very welcome.
Students / Sara Dudman / Ian

24. With thanks to:
Annie Shillabeer and the Langport Youth Club
Fiona Winning (Audio interview with Gold Award Students)
Nisha Haq and Seb King (SAW)
InspirED is a unique partnership between Spaeda, Somerset Film and Video,
Somerset Art Works and Take Art, bringing the skills and expertise of arts and
media professionals direct to Somerset schools, colleges and education settings