"From the moment I asked Francesca if she wanted to collaborate with us (The London International Gallery of Children's Art) on a project on air pollution, her enthusiasm and support have been invaluable. Her creative ability and organisational skills have impressed me since the beginning. Francesca has been a great source of ideas and an effective team player: from shaping up the art lessons to delivering them with Susie, from curating the exhibition to mounting it, from designing the art workshop to very successfully running it, she has aced it all! I look forward to working with Francesca again, hopefully in the very near future"
Paola Longobardi - Chair of the Board of Trustees of LIGCA - London International Gallery of Children’s Art
Collaborating with LIGCA on a project on air pollution with schools in London and New Delhi.
AIMS: to increase the pupil’s awareness of the causes and effects of air pollution through cross-curricular learning with an emphasis on artistic expression and exploration. To further spread awareness on the issue to the public at large through exhibitions and workshops.
HOW: Schools taking part were invited to research this topic across the curriculum to suit the ages and interests of their pupils. The pupils involved were encouraged to find solutions to reduce air pollution and use the project as a source of discussion and exploration of ideas, with opportunities to Skype pupils in India and for schools in London to collaborate.
In London LIGCA provided a series of art workshops led by Susan Craven and myself, assisting students to help materialise their ideas and curating the artwork.
The workshops ran from September to November 2018, on a monthly basis. The children continued their artwork in-between these sessions with the help of their school art teachers.
Outcomes : To exhibit the pupil’s artwork in an exhibition in New Delhi in November 2018, and in London in March (& May) 2019, along with in situ workshops with primary and secondary schools.
Who took part in the project?
The Village School is a small independent preparatory school in Belsize Park, London. The art teacher, Susie Craven is one of the trustees of LIGCA, and helps to run the art workshops. Past collaborations with LIGCA include projects on Refugees, Nepal and Costa Rica.This project will contribute towards their application for the Green Flag award from Eco schools England. They will invite parents to two cultural assemblies either side of half term showcasing what the students have learnt from the project.
The Nirmal Bhartia School in New Delhi teaches children ages 3-18. It has a unique and progressive approach to learning; ‘Our community culture recognizes and places great value on the potential learning that can be had from interpersonal interactions and a sharing of experiences and perspectives. Indeed, we believe that one of the best ways for students to learn is with and from each other, in cooperative and collaborative ways. Thus rather than being passive receivers, our students debate and discuss, review each other’s work and learn through presentations and projects in the true spirit of community. Since most of life’s really important tasks involve working with others, they are uniquely equipped to achieve what they set out to do in the real world’.
The UCL Academy is sponsored by London’s global university and research institute (University College London) and housed in a unique and bespoke facility in Camden, London. The UCL Academy is a highly regarded secondary school with a vision of educating global citizens with the confidence, collaborative skills, and aspirations to make a difference. The school invited pupils to be included in this project as part of their enrichment program for talented and gifted students.
LIGCA (The London International Gallery of Children’s Art) is a small charity registered in England and Wales and its mission is to promote education, international understanding and awareness through children’s art. It was founded in 1995 by a group of international educators and art enthusiasts who wished to establish a venue in Londonfor the celebration of children’s art. As an entirely volunteer-based organisation, LIGCA has collected art from different corners of the world, giving children the opportunity to express their culture, traditions and stories, and has curated over 50 exhibitions.
WORKSHOPS at The Village School and UCL Academy
September - November 2018
EXHIBITION IN NEW DELHI: VOICE OF ART 2018 -
"A BREATH OF FRESH AIR"
30th November - 1st December 2018
Sanskriti Kendra, Anandgram, M.G. Road, New Delhi - 110047
EXHIBITION IN LONDON: "A BREATH OF FRESH AIR"
25th - 29th March 2019
The Nerhu Centre, 8 South Audley Street, LondonW1K 1HF
Press Release
WORKSHOPS
The Nerhu Centre, London,28-29 March 2019
We are always available for more workshops, and we would love to take it to your school! If you are interested, please contact Paola from LIGCA at trustee@ligca.org.
This is the layout of the workshop:
3 min - Welcome the group and presentation of the exhibition.
10 min - Divide students into 3 groups (Air, Creatures, Rocks&Roots). Let them walk around in groups and look carefully at the artworks (intervening and explaining where necessary)
10-15 min -Students sit down and we start a discussion by asking some questions about the exhibition and the air pollution issue.
We start with the activities (FB): explain artivism and activism. Ask them to be "eco-artivists" for the day.
First activity (10 minutes):
Re-gathering students into their groups (Air, Creatures, Rocks&Roots)
Asking them to create a sentence using a word for each member of the team, getting inspiration from the art around the room. Each member of the team has a mask and will write his/her word on the mask. Air: What is AP; Creatures: a statement on AP; R&R: What can we do to help.
Once each group is ready wearing the masks with the words on, they scramble the sentence and the members of the other teams will have to find the sentence by putting the words/students in the right order (in turn: Creatures to Air, Rocks & Roots to Creatures, Air to Rocks & Roots).
Asking children to put their masks aside for the time being, in order.
Second activity (5-10 minutes):
individually the students will write on a tag a sentence they feel express their feelings about air pollution. It can be a wish, a statement, a fact, whatever they prefer. They will write their name at the back. Invite them to freely look around and seek inspiration
Teachers will select the best 6
Writing each of the selected sentences (and corresponding author in brackets) in large capital letters on a blank sheet (for prompters to use in the next activity)
Third activity (25-40 minutes): performing in a little movie.
Introducing the project: the groups represent the eco-system, to which we belong. Using movements, words and sounds to express it.
Forming 3 rows of students, at different heights (Air standing, Creatures on their knees, Rocks&Roots sitting)
SOUND: there are infinite ways to reproduce the eco-system through sounds, but we will do it through
- OM. OM (AUM) is the Sanskrit word which represents the 3 qualities (gunas) of nature: A (Sattva = existence, or “the best self”), U (Rajas = activity) and M (Tamas = inertia). Sanskrit is the most ancient Indo-European language, and the only one which is considered spiritual – because all its letters (and words) produce the same vibrations which are present in all creations (in fact, Sanskrit words have no set accents, as they are chanted). Ask Air to sing “Aaaaaa”, Creatures “Uuuuuuu” and R&R “Mmmmm” for a few seconds.
- “A - U – (M) - Uh-ha”: to create rhythm and action, focusing on Sattva and Rajas and decreasing Tamas (inertia). Ask the children to try it together, 5 times in a row
- Ask the children to do it again, this time with Air singing “Air!” at the 3rd, 4th and 5th initial “Ah”, and Creatures singing “Polluuution” right after “Air!” to complete the rhythm sequence, whilst R&R keep doing it. Then, all together: “STOP!”
MOVEMENT: add movements to the sounds -
- ask Air to add a swaying movement of the arms in the air, to recreate branches and leaves moving with the wind, when they start saying “Air!”;
- Creatures to make a gesture with their hands they attribute to creatures polluting (e.g. driving a car, exploding, chimneys blowing smoke, hands talking / eating, moving machinery, etc…). Then, to gesture “Stop” with their hands
- R&R to stand still and be the base, basis and bass of it all (the hardest job!)
Ask students to recentre and re-balance with a short A/U/M
Have the authors from the selected sentences read them aloud, in turn.
Then, ask in turn groups to say (read):
- “Our Planet” (Air),
- “Let’s keep it” (Creatures),
- “Our future” (R&R)
- (altogether) “We want it!” (if they agree to the wording – accept alternatives)
Show them the final gestures to go with their lines:
- Air (hands joined to form a ball),
- Creatures (arms crossed on their chest),
- R&R (fingers forming a heart) and
- together (arms raised up, perhaps with a fist).
Have them join it all together. Ask them to say “Pleeease” / “Pretty Pleeease”/ “Thank you!” cheekily and eventually to BOW at the end.
FILM! FB directing behind the camera, teachers acting as prompters (one for each group).
Fourth Activity (5-10 minutes): decorate the masks! (If they do it beforehand they would be unlikely to be able to wear them as they could be wet with glue and pollution dust)
Fifth activity (1-5 minutes): give them a pledge label to do or take away (and a recycled pencil)
