At the Teachers Art Forum session yesterday we went through how to search for and recognise a 'good' artist to work with. We met Dave Brenannd who told us about of the wonderful spaces and resources they have to offer at the City Learning Centre.

We even tried out one of Grundy' 'projects in class' ideas.

Creating a photographic class poem inspired by the Neon works of Contemporary Artist Peter Liversidge

Peter would making his art by sitting at his kitchen table and writing a proposal. A proposal is an artist statement, describing what he/she plans to do and this is sent to the commissioning body which could be a council, an arts organisation or other.

Peter makes these proposals the first part of his art, often framing them and exhibiting them. The proposals purpose is to sketch out an idea before it is realised, allowing everyone to interpret in their own way.
The ideas become the artwork, like a drawing pre-empting the physical realisation of the idea.

What to do in class:
Using a broad topic like; hope, loss, time, space.

Ask each child to write a poem about one of these subjects.

Ask everyone to read out their poems whilst projecting them onto the whiteboard, so that everyone can read along with them.

Ask the class to say what they think of each poem. What part in particular they liked the most.

For example:

Time, time, time
Make time, give time, take time out
Win time, lose time, the time of your life
Spend time, sell time, the good times and the bad


Ask the class to pick a single part of the poem like; ‘give time’
Use this phrase and create it using glow sticks. Photograph in a really darkened room. Do this for everyone and put the images together into a stop frame animation. Give each phrase time to be digested, maybe 10seconds each. You can even add sound. A poem created as a class.
Here is one we tried earlier...... called 'endless'.

Grundy's next exhibition is all about mass participation. The aim is to get as many people as possible involved in making the work for the show. Grundy is working with the very talented artist, Kai Oi Jay Yung to shape this exhibition and so far we have sent out two invitations to make work for the show.

1. Make your life's motto in thread

2. Record a sound and be part of a larger artist composed sound work (click here to find out more)

This exhibition will open at Grundy on the 19th of January and close on the 9th of March 2013. Don't miss out your opportunity to get involved! For more info contact Kerry Vasiliou, Education Officer on kerry.hunt@blackpool.gov.uk

Below are some images of Jay's past work. This was a performance in the YouYou Gallery in China from 2011. Jay is an inter-discplinary artist working in sculpture, performance, film, sound, installation, drawing, painting and lots more.

Are they real or fantasy?

Grundy's next exhibition includes large scale landscapes created using digital technologies. Canadian artist, Kelly Richardson, is a mutli-media installation artist who uses special effects on top of real film to create landscapes which are both recognisable and foreign to us.

Watch a video of Richardson's work

TWILIGHT AVENGER

Installation view: Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art

2008

photograph and HD video installation, 16:9

Photo credit: Colin Davison

These films are of part-real, part-unreal places like; rainforests, space and swamps. Filmed in exsisting locations, Richardson then inserts digital effects making you question your beliefs and activate your imagination.

This will be a visually stimulating exhibition for school children and a great activity to exercise their imaginations.

More information coming soon.
Exhibition opens on 20th Oct and closes on the 5th of Jan 2013.
Grundy Art Gallery - forthcoming exhibition

Ding a ling....

Turner-prize winning artist Martin Creed, is creating his next piece of art called , 'Work No.1197: All the bells in a country rung as quickly and as loudly as possible for three minutes'. He needs your help to make it happen.

Can you arrange a bell ringing session on Friday the 27th of July at 8.12am in the morning? Join in to celebrate the opening of the Olympics.

For more info, click this link.

Lights on!!

Grundy's next exhibition is going to be a spectacular visual treat. Brian Giffiths, a major UK artist based in London, has selected section and parts of the illuminations from their depo in South Shore to be displayed in the Grundy Art Gallery as sculptural forms in their own right. Each of the four rooms in Grundy will be light in a stunningly different way according to the objects chosen.

Illuminations featured; moon face, the table from Alice and Wonderland (imcomplete with too gigantic tea cups), a pirate, Basil Brushes T.V ariel and a large tableau of palm trees.

There is so much to see and contemplate. Not least the amazing craftsmanship involved in making the lights but the imagination behind their stories. Brian has explored this slice of Blackpool's history and contemporary culture and presented it in a new context.

Happy 100th Birthday to the Illuminations......

For more information on the exhibition visit Grundy's website.

Schools and groups can experience this fantasy land of light from Blackpool’s past and present illuminations through an Education Officer led tour. This tour will ask the class to look, examine, sketch and write about the illuminations and the stories Griffiths is telling in each of the four rooms.


The visit also includes a show and tell session with Local & Family History Librarian, Tony Sharkey. Delving into Blackpool’s archives, this will be an exciting history lesson about Blackpool and it’s most visited attraction.

A creative workshop will explore the scientific properties of light through experiments, followed by a group task to build an artwork using shadows and light.

Dates available:
12th June - 9am – 12.30pm
13th June - 9am – 12.30pm
15th June – 10am – 2.30pm (includes a lunch break)
20th June - 9am – 12.30pm
21st June - 10am – 2.30pm (includes a lunch break)
3rd July - 10am – 2.30pm (includes a lunch break)
4th July - 9am – 12.30pm
6th July - 10am – 2.30pm (includes a lunch break)
11th July - 9am – 12.30pm
12th July - 10am – 2.30pm (includes a lunch break)
17th July - 10am – 2.30pm (includes a lunch break)
18th July - 9am – 12.30pm

To book or for more information please contact Kerry Hunt, Education Officer, Grundy Art Gallery on kerry.hunt@blackpool.gov.uk

Alda Cromer's review of the Grundy Art Gallery's exhibition

Image left: installation shot from exhibition. For more information on the exhibition visit Grundy's website.


Whilst I am on my work experience at Grundy, I wrote this review of their current exhibition by Leo Fitzmaurice and Paul Rooney.


What can I see?

When I walk in to the exhibition I see one half of the room in white and the other half of the room in brown floor tiles but the floor tiles are on the Wall and the white is on the floor where the wall is supposed to be so what's going on? it looks like the walls and the ceiling have been swapped they have slipped it's all turned over there's just a big white and Brown room....

What I can hear?

I hear a boy, a little boy talking something about his pet stoat and where his pet is he say's the pet has a bottle of water on the out side of  his hutch. He tells me his daddy is operning his hutch door to give him his dinner.
Now he's whispering asking me if i am hearing thigs that I am in a bright big room. And that his voice is from a film, a film that I have seen before in the gallirey but he is telling me that I am not sure of it. The boy is now telling me I enjoyed that film. The film is called dog savages stoat he's saying it was gruesome but funny. perhaps the childs voice as left her stranded inbetween the floor and the walls after the film had been shown or maybe the voice has come back to speak to you the boy is asking his dad why he his stoat has I black around his ear hole and why he has a black tip on his tail. The boy is now telling me there is a dog from next door the boy thinks the dog is ugly and brown now the boy is screaming
"Black ear.......White and red...... Black ear ......Daddy... Daddy!.."
the boy souneds like he has a cold  i can hear wind the in the background the boy sounds scared it has ended.

What I feel after wards?

I felt scared for the little boy he wanted his daddy, I also felt confused why was the boy shouting? I felt that's why he got trapped to get help that's why he was shouting he want's help but his daddy isn't  there some thing is wrong I felt I needed to do something but what?

What I now know:

Now I know what's going on a film maker (the boy's dad) got the next door neighbours dog to kill his son's pet stoat while his son was watching he wanted to see his son's reaction he knew it would be cruel but funny to that's why the boy was shouting because his pet was being killed it's a film and it was shown in the gallirey and now the boy's voice is trapped from the film he is trapped in bettween the walls and the ceiling I feel it was scarey at first but now I know the story, I like it. It is very interesting, it play's on your mind and makes you think, so any gallery that does that is a good gallery. I enjoyed it very much!

Poetry project for the classroom

Lots of artwork uses text, here are some examples:

Above: A collaborative work by artist Micah Lexier and poet Christian Bok.

Above: Fiona Shaw's text work for the Blackpool Culture Shops programme

Above: Martin Creed, Everything is going to be alright

Project:

• Have a Haiku writing competition in class or across the school.
• Ask an artist/poet/writer to help judge the winner.
• Turn the successful Haiku into either vinyls (which can be stuck to walls and windows) a poster (to fill a window space or to go around school) a lightbox (to hang in the window or on the wall).
• Have a grand opening (maybe complete with a mini curtain)

Next art forum meeting

 

Grundy's next art forum meeting will be on Wed the 14th of March from 4-5pm.

1. We have invited Dave Brenand, CLC Manager, along to talk to the group about an exhibiting opportunity.

2. Presentation on project ideas to use in class.

3. Introduction to forthcoming exhibition at Grundy.

4. Teacher-led discussion around current art curriculum.

If you would like to come please email Kerry on kerry.hunt@blackpool.gov.uk or telephone on 01253 478170.

Schools exhibition and workshops with artist

Take Part Art is Grundy’s annual exhibition of artwork created by children and young people from across Blackpool and the Fylde Coast. Over 30 Schools and colleges artwork filled two rooms of the gallery with colourful displays of drawings, paintings and photography.


As part of this annual exhibition Grundy worked with Manchester-based artist, Brigitte Jurack, on an exhibition exploring the themes of childhood identity, imagination and play. Jurack delivered workshops for over 500 children, young people and families throughout the exhibition.