The Sixth Form had a collaborative art and design technology all-day workshop with world-renowned visual artist, Mr Michael Brennand-Wood. The children thought about geometry, woven patterns, shapes and rhythms to create their own unique artwork, exploring textiles and taking inspiration from the artist’s own imagery. Mr Brennand-Wood is internationally regarded as one of the most innovative and inspiring artists working in textiles.
The children were shown some of Mr Brennand-Wood’s easily recognisable work, which is rich in colour, texture and meaning. The children were shown a different approach to making 3D artefacts in a direct and intuitive way. Rather than devising and making firm choices about what they were going to make beforehand, the artist showed, through his own work, that something can be made and then afterwards a purpose can be found for it. For example, a hoop bound with multi-coloured yarn can become a bangle, part of a container, or even a model for a new type of building structure.
Head of Design Technology, Miss Laura Kohler commented, “This immediate and direct approach gave the children a chance to experience the enjoyment of making without placing a fixed idea on their work; it could be abstract or representational. This was also a wonderful demonstration of how closely Art and DT are linked through craft and design.” A Sixth Form pupil explained, “Mr Brennand-Wood's work was so inspiring because of all the different materials he used and how abstract his work was.” Another pupil commented, “I loved the message behind every piece and how creatively inspirational they were. It was interesting how the artist found a deeper meaning to everyone’s work. We had real freedom to develop our work in different ways.”
