Creative Blind Dates: Speaking from a personal perspective, that’s the easiest way to describe phase two of the Art Builders.
The More official description might be each school which took part in the Big Build at Dreamland in Margate is now paired with two Animate artists to create a new installation on a subject and in a venue of the school’s choice. The ‘Art Leaders’ are the 25 children from each school who participated in the Big Build at Dreamland are now leading their own schools project. We are in the Easter Holidays so when they return, we will be looking to start hearing what the ideas each school has for their own Big Build, and the suggestions for where to build it?
The blind date bit is the pairing of artists together for delivery.
I will be working with Lucy Stockton-Smith with Ellington Infant School in Ramsgate and Esther Coombes with Hoath Primary School which is very rural in the Canterbury district.
A creative journey to unfold as I have never worked with either of these artists before so new friends and working relationships ahead. I have met both of them one or twice now in recent team building scenarios organised by Animate Arts. The last meeting, we were reminded of the Ted Talk given by Sir Ken Robison in 2006. This entertaining talk highlights that the current education system doesn’t enable creativity but somehow rather sadly manages to teach creativity out of children! I remember when this video came out in 2006 it was championed by many organisations I was working with.
See the link below to a youtube video of his address at a TED conference.
Sir Ken Robinson: Do Schools Kill Creativity
Thirteen years later I can’t see that his advice has been used much, if at all. His observations are just as relevant, if not more so now. So inspired by this video Animate Artists create a series of banners and placard’s advocating for more creativity in schools.
