Key stage 3-5 workshops

Meet the artist

A fast moving way for around 150 students to work with an artist in one day

Cost: £250*Duration: 1 dayKey Stages: 3-5

Each class during one school day will take part in a short workshop lasting around 1 hour which will allow them to view, discuss and make art works with an artist.

Each session begins with a 10 minute introduction to me and my career path from secondary school to practicing artist. The class is then divided into small groups who will look at and handle a selection of my artworks. They will be asked to discuss how the works are made, what the artworks are, why the works are made that way, then will feed back this information to the rest of the class.

During the final 15 minutes students will experiment with one of two techniques that I use in my work. Using graphite powder, stencils and erasing they will create an abstract drawing or using custom made rubber stamps and an ink pad they will create a drawing about movement and flows

OutcomesBy the end of the workshops the students will have handled and talked about a selection of artworks and will have produced a test drawing. The participating teachers will acquire skills to develop the techniques further in future classes with their students. Students will be able to make contextual studies sketchbook work following their experience of talking about and making the work with a working artist.

Supporting the curriculumThis workshop supports the KS3 art & design curriculum:

Key concepts:1.1 Creativity: Explore ideas, media & techniques1.2 Competence: Investigating, analysing, making & reflecting.1.3 Cultural understanding: Understanding the role of the artist in a contemporary culture and context.1.4 Critical understanding: Engaging with ideas, images and artefacts, and identifying how values and meanings are conveyed. Developing their own views and expressing reasoned judgements.

This workshop supports KS4 Assessment Objective 1 by providing a primary source of contextual reference.

Materials, equipment & venueThe school needs to provide cartridge paper, scissors and scrap paper. One artroom suitable for messy activity is required for the full day.

The following specialist materials are included in the artist fee for use during the session: Graphite powder, polishing cloths, hard erasers, putty erasers, masking tape, black ink pads, custom made rubber stamps.

A career in the arts:

An intensive half-day session provides an insight into the jobs that exist in the visual art industry.

Cost: £150*Duration: 1/2 dayKey Stages: 4-5Group size: 20-80 students

This intensive session is ideal for inclusion in careers activities for Year 9 or older and provides an insight into the freelance existence of an artist and the jobs that exist in the visual art industry.

• 15 minutes: Introductory talk on my freelance artist portfolio career covering my work as an artist, curator, arts educator & training.• 75 minutes: Team activity to plan and deliver an exhibition, with students taking on different roles that are involved in realising an art exhibition (Curator, Installation, Information assistant/art historian, Marketing & graphic design, Education & interpretation). Each team should comprise around 10 students, who will be given a brief, provided with 2 key artworks that they must include and have access to a pool of other artworks and materials. • 40 minutes: Sharing activity. The groups will spend 20 minutes sharing their exhibition with another group including giving a short talk about the exhibition they have created and running a short practical workshop for the other students.• 5 minutes: Dismantle the exhibitions & clear away resources• 15 minutes: A question and answer session where I will endeavour to answer more detailed questions regarding career paths, highs & lows of a freelance portfolio career and the ups and downs of working in the arts.

Supporting the curriculumThis workshop supports the KS3 art & design curriculum:

Key concepts:1.3 Cultural understanding: Understanding the role of the artist and designer in a contemporary culture and context.1.4 Critical understanding: Engaging with ideas, images and artefacts, Key processes

This workshop supports the PSHEE curriculum by providing the opportunity to use role play to explore work and enterprise issues, have direct contact, information and advice from an individual working in the creative industries and to engage with ideas, challenges and applications from the business world

Materials, equipment & venueThis session can take place in an artroom, classroom or exhibition space that has some empty walls, display cabinets or floor spaces for the groups to stage their temporary exhibitions. Access to a projector is required. 1 member of staff needed to support every 20 students.

The school needs to provide paper, drawing materials, scissors, glue, painting materials, copier paper, flipchart paper and pens. The following specialist materials are included in the artist fee for use during the session: Team stickers, brief cards, a selection of artworks, to use to create their exhibitions, examples of marketing materials, sundry items to enable the hanging of the exhibition.

Traditional meets technology: Animating graphite.

Explore the possibilities of markmaking using various types of graphite, before combining this drawing method with stop frame animation techniques.

Cost: £350*Duration: 1 day with optional 2 hour sessionKey Stages: 3-5

We will start the day being inspired by the reflections, shadows and patterns of a place; we will look for the hidden traces of movement, presence & absence. We will begin by taking a short walk at the start of the session within the school where we will make written & visual sketched notes to refer to back in the art room.

In the art room we will experiment with different techniques using many types of graphite (pencil, graphite stick, graphite powder, watersoluble graphite...) a number of additional materials (erasers, polishing cloths, stencils...) and a selection of drawing surfaces. Students will produce a number of samples showing the different media and techniques, inspired by their observations on the walk. These samples can later be mounted onto foamex to create an installation for an exhibition.

I will bring examples of my own graphite drawings to share with the students to provide contextual inspiration and so that they can see examples of the techniques being used. We will also look at the work of other contemporary & historic artists using graphite, drawing and markmaking to provide deeper contextual reference.

Following this, students will create abstract, layered drawings inspired by their earlier observations and their experimental samples. This drawing will be photographed during its production process as students apply and erase layers of the graphite, creating a series of frames that can be edited together to create a stop motion animation. They will be creating a moving digital drawing.

Optional 2 hour session:With access to in-school computers & video editing software, the students will be guided to edit their work together to create an animation piece. If it isn’t possible to run this session, then the time will be used for me to edit the videos together from my own studio.

OutcomesBy the end of the workshops the students will have a selection of samples of different graphite techniques, that will be mounted onto foamex to form a group installation. The drawings that each student used to create the animation will be available for them to use in their portfolios along with a digital animation file.

Supporting the curriculumThis workshop supports the KS3 art & design curriculum:

Key concepts:1.1 Creativity: Using a range of media they will explore & experiment, taking risks with new processes, learning from mistakes.1.2 Competence: During the workshop students will reflect on their work, evaluate what they have done and implement effective practices in the second half of the session.1.3 Cultural understanding: The students will view artworks from a selection of contemporary & historical artists.1.4 Critical understanding: The students will engage in discussion

about each other’s works, exploring their qualities & the ideas that the works convey.

This workshop supports KS4 Assessment Objectives 1-4 Developing Ideas, Using media and materials, Recording observations, Making a personal response.

Materials, equipment & venueThe school needs to provide cartridge paper, drawing pencils, graphite sticks, hard erasers, putty erasers, paint brushes/paint palettes, black acrylic paint and PVA glue.

The following specialist materials are included in the artist fee for use during the session: Graphite powder, watersoluble graphite, polishing cloths, scrapers, beeswax, candles, masking tape, black ink, newspaper, hairspray, foamex, use of digital SLR camera & tripod.

An artroom is required for the single day activity. This is a messy activity, so hand wash and table cleaning facilities are needed.

For the editing session a computer suite with video editing software is required. Windows Live movie maker (pc) or imovie (mac) will need to be installed on each computer.

“The sessions went really well and the students have some excellent work in their sketchbooks as a result.”

Arts Co-ordinator, St Helens Secondary School, 2013

Trusting your eye, loosening your arm

A series of exercises that develop observational drawing skills and markmaking.

Cost: £250*Duration: 1 day with optional 2nd day extensionKey Stages: 2-5 or as staff trainingGroup size: 15

A series of drawing exercises of between 10-20 minutes each will encourage students to look harder at what they are drawing and to experiment with the marks that they use to describe their subject.

We will start the day with a series of drawing exercises that loosen up the arm, followed by a series of exercises that focus on ways of observing using all of the senses. These exercises will be interspersed with discussion about the methods used - how they made the students feel, what their impression is of their own and each others’ drawings. We will look at drawing works by a number of historical and contemporary artists, linking them to the activities that we complete.

In the afternoon we will work on a number of collaborative exercises which will develop skills in working into drawings on a longer term basis, aspiring to convey feeling through a drawing along with the figurative, observational approach.

OutcomesBy the end of session 1 students will have a series of approximately 10 drawings and notes from the exercises that can be used within a GCSE or A’Level portfolio.

Supporting the curriculumThis workshop supports the KS3 art & design curriculum:

Key concepts:1.1 Creativity: Using a range of media they will explore & experiment, taking risks with new processes, learning from mistakes.1.2 Competence: During the workshop students will reflect on their work, evaluate what they have done and implement effective practices.1.3 Cultural understanding: The students will view artworks from a selection of contemporary & historical artists.

This workshop supports KS4 Assessment Objectives 2 & 3: Using media and materials, Recording observations.

Materials, equipment & venueThe school needs to provide cartridge paper, drawing pencils, graphite sticks, erasers, biros, charcoal, coloured pencils, still life objects.

The workshop should take place in an artroom with plenty of space

The following specialist materials are included in the artist fee for use during the session: Graphite powder, masking tape, hairspray, sticks, additional miscellaneous drawing materials. An information sheet detailing the activities and the artists we look at will be made available and a selection of books on drawing will be available during the workshops.

Laser cutting in fine art

Learn how to make use of this piece of equipment to create artworks

Cost: £300*Duration: 4 sessions over 2 daysKey Stages: 3-5 or as staff trainingGroup size: 15

Many schools now have a laser cutter in their design & technology department, make use of its capabilities in the art room in this activity.

Part One: 2 hours This will allow us to make observational drawings along an agreed theme using pencil and graphite. These will be turned into detailed black and white drawings using pen.

Part two: 1.5 hour sessionDependent on the technology available, I can either work directly with students or with members of staff to demonstrate the process to transform drawings into designs that can be cut on the laser cutter. There is the option to cut from rubber, stencil mylar, paper or into wood, which can be used to create further works of art.

Part three: 1.5 hour sessionI will supervise the cutting process on the laser cutter, which can be observed by the students and if staffing levels allow, will provide training for staff in it’s use.

Part four: 1 hour sessionDepending on the materials chosen for use we will develop the cut items into finished artworks. This could be as engraved boxes, stencils to use to create graphite powder drawings, stencils to create jet-washed graffiti on school pavements or using rubber stamps and ink to make printed drawings.

OutcomesStaff and students have knowledge of ways to use laser cutting in fine art. Laser cut artworks will be produced.

Materials, equipment & venueThe school needs to provide cartridge paper, drawing pencils, drawing pens and markers. We will need to use computers with Adobe Illustrator for part 2 and will need access to the laser cutter for part 3

The cost does not include materials for laser cutting, which will be agreed in advance and can be purchased by either the artist or the school.

Notes*Quoted cost includes artist fee and materials listed.

Travel costs not included in artist fee and are as follows: Nil for schools in Merseyside, Halton & Warrington. 40p per mile to locations beyond these boroughs. If the school cannot provide the materials listed, please advise and a quote will be provided.

About the Artist

Claire Weetman is interested in how her art can be created in public spaces, in the places where the movement that she follows takes place. Weetman uses drawing processes combined with interventions in public spaces, responding to, recording, measuring and altering movement. Flowing pencil drawings, charting transient and fleeting traces, noting how movement alters according to environment; Interventions into public spaces interact with an audience by both measuring and interrupting natural movement.

Claire has worked extensively in schools for over 10 years helping teachers to develop their skills and inspiring students with new techniques.

Claire works internationally on exchanges, residencies and exhibitions including Linz (AT), Schiedam (NL), Istanbul (TR) and Shanghai (CN). She exhibits widely and has worked with The Bluecoat, Liverpool Biennial, The Brindley, Harris Museum and Art Gallery, Warrington Culture Trust and many schools and local authorities.

To book a workshop

To book either a workshop from this brochure or one tailored to your needs, please contact Claire on the details below:

Email: info@claireweetman.co.ukTel: 07714 766 132

www.claireweetman.co.uk