In the week commencing 7th October, the Art Department hosted Arts Week, which involved over 50 pupils participating in workshops with visiting arts practitioners.
The studios were filled with a buzz of creative energy, an array of skills were shared and learned, so much fun was had by all! Our avid photographers participated in a studio photography skills masterclass with local professional photographer Clare Shapcott. Clare was accompanied by a model and taught the students how to direct poses. They also learned how to use light meters, flash guns, triggers and diffusers to control lighting.
Painter Beth Marsden worked with Art Scholars and Sixth Form Art students, offering an in-depth workshop focussing on colour and texture. We were so thrilled that she brought with her a collection of her incredible paintings, which surrounded and inspired the students for whilst they created their own pieces.
Year 10 pupils worked with Blue Roll Press, aka Sonja Burnie and Luke Wade. The printmakers brought with them an abundance of fabrics, sublimation dyes and their heat presses, to teach image transfer techniques. Each time the presses were opened, magical and vibrant outcomes were revealed, surprising everyone. There were so many wondrous exclamations!
I feel really lucky to have taken part in Arts Week. We met Sonja Burnie and Luke Wade from Blue Roll Press who guided us in making colourful and bold prints on various different fabrics. My favourite material we printed on was a faux fur, which created interesting images with the layers of fluffy texture. We all enjoyed the freedom we had to create abstract compositions by cutting out shapes or painting patterns with different dyes and then using the heat presses to transfer the designs onto our chosen fabric. I had never tried this or used a heat press before. The presses were described to us as big kind of steam irons that can transfer the dyes to the fabric efficiently! We all learnt something new and had fun, and we produced a lot of work in one day, which can become part of our GCSE sketchbook work, which is very beneficial. - Manuella, Year 10
A mobile printing making duo, Sonja Burnie and Luke Wade are collaboratively known as Blue Roll Press. Their mission is to make printmaking accessible to everyone. They are members of the Bristol Print Collective and run pop up workshops in a wide variety of venues across the southwest.
I really enjoyed this workshop, Beth Marsden taught us a lot about the artistic process and how to push ourselves. She was really great to work with. I especially enjoyed being able to see her own actual paintings, which she brought to the workshop. I found her style really inspiring. It was a really great opportunity, and I will carry what I was taught in this workshop with me for the rest of my A Level Art course! The workshop helped improve my technical painting skills, and I saw myself get visibly better as the day went on. It was an amazing way to improve my artistic judgement - Florence, Lower Sixth
Painter Beth Marsden is based in southwest Wales, where she exhibits and runs workshops from her studio. Ms Loring-Melia, our History of Art teacher met Beth at an unveiling of a commission at Lady Margaret Hall, University of Oxford, and the connection was made. Last year, Beth visited Badminton School to deliver a lunch time seminar, and she returned this year to run two fantastic days of painting workshops.
The Photography workshop was incredibly fun, while also being really helpful from a technical standpoint. We got to experiment with different lighting patterns, which created some really fascinating photos, and I honestly wish I could have applied these skills sooner! Above this, both the model and photographer were very approachable and created a great atmosphere for the entire day” Alice, Upper Sixth
Clare Shapcott is a Fine Art Portrait photographer who runs a studio in Clifton, Bristol. She brought her wealth of knowledge to her workshop delivery and guided our photographers through a series of shoots in our own studios in the Creative Arts Centre.
