By Liz West

Liz West is an Internationally Acclaimed Visual Artist who uses light as a tool, controlling the amount, shape, form, size, colour, strength and quality to fill architectural or fabricated structures. Liz’s installations immerse the viewer in saturated environments and are known to stir up emotional responses in those who see it. In this post, Liz talks about her creative journey, inspirations for her installations and how her ideas materialise into reality. This post may be of interest to secondary school students keen to explore the potential of space and environment.

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AccessArt is a UK Charity and we believe everyone has the right to be creative. AccessArt provides inspiration to help us all reach our creative potential.

What We Like About This Resource….

“It’s really interesting to hear how the interest Liz has in the quality of light comes from a personal place and is something she has responded to since childhood. Seeing how her work has developed over the years is therefore a really positive re enforcement that individual creative journeys, where nurtured, are so central to a rich arts education. We also love hearing Liz is always on the ‘quest for knowledge’ – meaning she is open to her ideas constantly evolving and the process of gathering new information and inspiration never stops!” – Rachel, AccessArt

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Pathway: Brave Colour

This is featured in the ‘Brave colour’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Find out how pupils can respond to artists work in sketchbooks

Show me what you see

Enable close looking and drawing with this exercise

Lightbulb Art

Mini World Light Boxes

Visual Arts Planning: LIght and Dark

What We Like About This Resource….

“It’s great to see music being explored in this way, and combining it with making creates a really interesting immersive project. This activity would work well as part of an extended project looking at musical instruments around the world and some of the natural materials they are made from.” – Rachel, AccessArt

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Pathway: Music and art

This is featured in the ‘Music and Art’ pathway

Talking Points: Linda BEll

Talking Points: Nnena Kalu

talking points: wassily Kandinsky

drawing source material: orchestras

A Cheerful Orchestra

What We Like About This Resource….

“You can get a real sense of the environment in this post and how this could provide so much inspiration for creative projects. We are aware there the challenges to exploring the outdoors when many schools are in towns and cities. A way around this could be to have a regular collection of natural objects within the classroom and using them as a stimulus to respond creatively in sketchbooks or in extended projects” – Andrea, AccessArt

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Woodland Exploration

Visual Arts PLanning: Tees, Forest and Landscapes

What We Like About This Resource….

“It’s really interesting to hear how Su’s career path evolved organically, and how experimenting with different disciplines such as ceramics and sculpture whilst studying Textiles at the RCA began her journey towards paper craft and books. We really like how the small book sculptures inspired the larger scale set designs for The Snow Queen. They transfer so effectively to the stage and you can imagine how engaging it would be for a young audience to recognise letters and words on lampposts and other scenic elements”. – Rachel, AccessArt

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Creating a Book World

Sketch Set Design Models

Set Design for Primary Aged Children

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Pathway: Exploring Form Through Drawing

This is featured in the ‘Exploring Form Through Drawing’ pathway

Watercolour Washes Inspired by the Tapestries of Henry Moore

What We Like About This Resource….

“It’s lovely to see a resource that centres on a particular material and the scope it offers. I particularly like how the dogwood is used here to make wooden beads. This idea could be developed further by looking at how wood has been used to make jewelry throughout history and within many different cultures.” – Rachel, AccessArt.

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Woodland Exploration

Visual Arts Planning: Trees, Forests and Landscape

What We Like About This Resource….

“There’s a really fun element to this activity which is you can imagine all children really enjoying! The idea of food on large scale is a great starter for a sculpture project and an early exploration of working in 3D. What’s really positive to see in this project is how the children used their sketchbooks to design their ice creams prior to working in 3D. They then had the opportunity to re visit and refine their ideas as they worked. This provides a sold foundation for the concept of design development and design through making- both of which underpin any visual arts or design project or profession. For more support on how to develop sketchbook practice in your setting please see our Sketchbook Journey” – Rachel, AccessArt

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Art Club Cafe

Communal Drawing: Summer Picnic

Redesigning Food Packaging

What We Like About This Resource…

“Rosie highlights the importance of embracing a wide variety of interests and ways of working into our wider creative practice, resulting in wonderfully rich and very personal explorations and outcomes.

There are so many clues in this resource for teachers. Look out for how Rosie slows down her whole process into a series of interconnected stages, which weave in and out of each other. These include time for research (collecting and observing), analysing and revisiting, drawing, making and finally documenting.” Paula, AccessArt

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Pathway: Telling Stories through drawing and making

This is featured in the ‘Drawing Stories Through Drawing and Making’ pathway

Pathway: Set Design

This is featured in the ‘Set Design’ pathway

talking points: negative space by tiny inventions

Gabby Savage-Dickson: Felting & Embroidering Sets

Year 3 Roald Dahl & Quentin Blake Homework

Draw, Paint, Build, Make: Gallery Project

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Pathway: Stick Transformation project

This is featured in the ‘Stick Transformation Project’ pathway

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Pathway: Making Animated Drawings

This is featured in the ‘Making Animated Drawings’ pathway

Talking points: Making drawings move

Talking Points: paper cut puppets

Talking Points: Lauren child

Talking Points: Lotte reiniger