By Scarlett Rebecca.

In this Artist Studio series I will be talking to a range of artists about how they work, visiting their studios; finding out about the peculiarities of their studios, how they use them and what the studios mean to them. I will be visiting an artist with a tiny space in their garage, artists in shared studios with other people and shared facilities, and I will also be sharing an insight into my own home studio space. 

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How can imagination play a part in landscape painting?

Paul Nash’s paintings reveal his way of transforming real places into strange worlds. His use of colour and dreamlike composition reflects his interest in nature, memory, and the impact of war on the environment. By exploring his landscapes, you can gain insight into his impact on modern British art. 

Use the sources provided to explore Nash’s work, then discuss the questions that follow.

Please Note:

This page includes links and videos from external sites, verified at publication but subject to change.

Teachers should review all content for classroom suitability.

Report any issues, and check school firewall settings if videos don’t play.

Paul Nash

‘Paul Nash (11 May 1889 – 11 July 1946) was a British surrealist painter and war artist, as well as a photographer, writer and designer of applied art. Nash was among the most important landscape artists of the first half of the twentieth century. He played a key role in the development of Modernism in English art.

The artworks he produced during World War I are among the most iconic images of the conflict. Later in life, during World War II, he produced two series of anthropomorphic depictions of aircraft, before producing a number of landscapes rich in symbolism with an intense mystical quality.’ – Wikipedia

Show the whole video or select parts to watch in class, to discover Paul Nash’s love for landscape, his work as a war artist and his fascination with WWII planes later in life.

Landscape Paintings

Avebury (1937) by Paul Nash. Original from The Museum of New Zealand. Digitally enhanced by rawpixel.

Landscape by Paul Nash. Original from The Yale University Art Gallery. 

Oxfordshire Landscape (1944) painting in high resolution by Paul Nash. Original from The Birmingham Museum. 

Questions to Ask Children

Describe what you can see.

How would you describe the marks in this painting?

How does light, shadow and colour impact the space and atmosphere?

Compare two paintings. What similarities and differences can you see?

How does this painting make you feel?

Which painting do you prefer? Why?

WWII Planes

Bomber Lair (1940) painting in high resolution by Paul Nash. Original from The Birmingham Museum. 

Bomber Lair–Egg and Fin (1940) painting in high resolution by Paul Nash. Original from The Birmingham Museum. 

Whitley Bombers Sunning (1940) painting in high resolution by Paul Nash. Original from The Birmingham Museum. 

Questions to Ask Children

Describe what you can see.

What materials do you think Nash used?

How has Nash used light and shadow to create a sense of space? Consider foreground and background.

What do you like / dislike about this painting? Why?

How has Nash created a sense of form in this drawings?

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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

Videos and sources to help you explore the work of African-Caribbean textile artist Althea McNish.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

Althea McNish

Althea McNish (1924-2020) was one of the first African-Caribbean textile designers to gain international recognition for her work. Althea came to England with her family as part of the Windrush Generation. Her designs capture the British landscape through a “tropical eye”, bringing bright colours and abstract patterns depicting flora and fauna, injecting much needed colour and excitement in a post-war textiles industry.

Althea McNish used a variety of printing process to create her designs, from monoprint to screenprint.

McNish’s work proved popular with the chairman of Liberty London’s department store and soon she was creating exclusive designs for furnishings, wallpapers and fashion designers across Britain. Find more information at the V&A website and explore some of McNish’s works.

Watch on Youtube from minute 4.10- 7.30 of Whoever Heard of a Black Artist to find out more about Althea McNish and her work.

Questions to Ask Children

“Everything I did, I saw it through a tropical eye.” – Althea McNish 2015

Can you spot the influence of both tropical flora and fauna and British landscapes in McNish’s designs? Describe what you can see.

Why do you think Britain was ready an injection of bright colours and patterns post-war?

What do you like about Althea McNish’s designs?

Which design is your favourite? Why?

How does McNish’s work make you feel?

Can you still draw something even though you can’t see it?

In addition to the sculptural work for which he is best known, Henry Moore produced many drawings throughout his career, including some made in the darkness of a coal mine. These works relied on imagination and memory, alongside the limited vision he had.

Use the below images and questions to explore further Henry Moore’s drawings done in the dark.

Please Note:

This page includes links and videos from external sites, verified at publication but subject to change.

Teachers should review all content for classroom suitability.

Report any issues, and check school firewall settings if videos don’t play.

Henry Moore

Henry Moore is best known for his sculptures and Shelter drawings, but in 1942 Moore also created a series of sketches from Wheldale Colliery, where his father had worked. Moore spent one week drawing from observation down the dark coal mine, and then created drawings, combining memory with observation.

Moore reflected upon his experience, stating “I now like black for its blackness – for its strength, its drama, its seriousness (and unsweetness).” – C. Owen, Drawing in The Dark: Henry Moore’s Coalmining Commission, 2022, p.136 

Pit Notebook

In his Pit Notebook, Moore would create preparatory sketches. He would also make notes, jotting down what he could see or words that came to mind as he drew. On the pages of his Pit Notebook he would quickly carve out the space, creating a sense of what it was like down the coal mine in Castleford. 

Some of the sketches focus on figures and others on the environment.

These preliminary drawings were pivotal in the development of final drawings. Moore would piece together the different sketches, considering the notes he had jotted down and how he had felt within the space to create a complete drawing.

Explore a selection of Moore’s Pit Notebook sketches below.

Miners at the Coalface, 1941-42 Page 29 from Coalmining Notebook A HMF 1886 pencil 127 x 200 mm The Henry Moore Foundation: gift of the artist 1977 Photo: Nigel Moore.
Reproduced by permission of The Henry Moore Foundation
Miner Working, 1941 Page 33 from Coalmining Notebook A HMF 1890 pencil 127 x 200 mm The Henry Moore Foundation: gift of the artist 1977 Photo: Nigel Moore. Reproduced by permission of The Henry Moore Foundation
View Down Tunnel, 1941 Page 38 from Coalmining Notebook A HMF 1895 pencil, crayon 127 x 200 mm The Henry Moore Foundation: gift of the artist 1977 Photo: Nigel Moore. Reproduced by permission of The Henry Moore Foundation
Study for ‘Miners at Work on the Coalface’ 1942 HMF 1961 Photo: Henry Moore Archive

Quotes From Henry Moore  

Here you will find some quotes by Henry Moore referencing his developmental drawings. You may use these quotes as prompts for some activities from the “An Exploration of Coal Mining Through Henry Moore” pathway, or just use them for discussion.

“There was the problem of getting form out of darkness – of making the light from the miners’ helmet-lamps produce figures out of thick blackness – of drawing in the dark.” C. Owen, Drawing in The Dark: Henry Moore’s Coalmining Commission, 2022, p.136 

“The blackest chalk or ink is grey compared to the pitch blackness of complete darkness.” C. Owen, Drawing in The Dark: Henry Moore’s Coalmining Commission, 2022, p.67 

“To record in drawing what I felt and saw was a very difficult struggle. There was first the difficulty of seeing forms emerging out of deep darkness, then the problem of conveying the claustrophobic effect of countless wooden pitprops, 2 or 3 feet apart, receding into blackness.” – C. Owen, Drawing in The Dark: Henry Moore’s coal mining Commission, 2022, p.67 

“As each drawing develops, it is like going outside from a lighted room on a dark night – at first seeing nothing, then slowly distinguishing objects and distances – sensing space with unknown depths.”- C. Owen, Drawing in The Dark: Henry Moore’s Coalmining Commission, 2022, p.8 

“The white of the paper showing through the black chalk gives off light (almost real light) like the night sky reflected in water.”  – K. Clark, Henry Moore Drawings 1974, p.292

1942 Henry Moore sketching two miners at Wheldale Colliery Henry Moore Foundation archive 7 x 8” black and white print. Photo: Reuben Saidman
Henry Moore At the Coal Face 1942 Image (C) the Whitworth The University of Manchester (003)
Four Studies of Miners at the Coalface, 1942, drawing. (HMF 2000a). Photo Michael Phipps. Reproduced by permission of The Henry Moore Foundation copy
Pit Boys at Pit Head 1942 Wakefield Permanent Art Collection Image Courtesy of The Hepworth Wakefield LR copy. © The Henry Moore Foundation. All Rights Reserved, DACS 2022 / www.henry-moore.org. Photo credit: Wakefield Permanent Art Collection

Questions to Ask Students

What kind of marks can you see?

How would you describe the atmosphere?

What do you think Moore was trying to capture in the image?

How do you think Moore might have felt drawing in the coal mine?

How do the preparatory sketches feed into his final sketches? Can you see any similarities or differences?

Questions by Laura McKendry

What impact do you think sketching in a contained, hot, dark space such as an underground mine would have had on Moore’s drawings?

Henry Moore is known for his sculptures of the reclining female form. How would drawing miners at work have differed from his usual subject?

What atmosphere is Moore trying to evoke in these drawings? How do his marks contribute to the overall feel of the images?

Explore Laura McKendry’s resource “Expressive Charcoal Collage: Coal Mines“.

Many thanks to AccessArt trustee, Chris Owen, for the inspiration behind this Talking Points.

‘Chris Owen’s comprehensive account of the coalmining drawings explores every aspect of the commission – from Moore’s return to his childhood home and the challenges associated with ‘drawing in the dark’ to the significant influence of the project on Moore’s later work, including the Warrior and Helmet Head sculptures, and his little-known illustrations to W.H. Auden’s poetry’ – Find Chris’s book here.

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: An Exploration of coal mining Inspired by henry moore

Featured in the ‘An Exploration of Coal Mining’ pathway

Pathway: How Can I Use Light & Dark To Create A Sense Of Space, Inspired By The Coal Mining Drawings Of Henry Moore?

For ages 11-14, explore this pathway inspired by Henry Moore’s coal mining drawings

Show me what you see

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

A collection of imagery and sources designed to encourage students to engage with paper animations made by Andersen M Studio.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

Andersen M Studio

‘London based Andersen M Studio is a creative partnership between siblings, Martin Andersen and Line Andersen. The studio started in 2001. Andersen M Studio work in the areas of art direction, graphic design, photography, animation, film and music. Their work has been exhibited and published worldwide’ – Vimeo

Watch a behind the scenes video about how Andersen M Studio worked with a team to bring these paper sculptures to life in their ‘Clipper: Naturally Colourful’ campaign.

Questions To Ask Students

Do you think that you’d enjoy working as part of an animating team? Why?

Andersen M Studio were commissioned to create an animation for Star Alliance (an airline alliance) to highlight five specific destinations offered. Find out how they used plane tickets to create this advert.

Questions To Ask Students

Do you think that an animation advert or a live action advert it more effective? Why?

Questions To Ask Students

What is happening in this animation?

Describe the atmosphere created, how have they achieved this?

What do you like/dislike about this animation? Why?

Questions To Ask Students

What is happening in this animation?

How does this differ from the other animations?

Do you prefer the conceptual feeling of this animation, or the more literal stop motions? Why?

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Exploring Books As a sculptural material

Featured in the ‘Exploring Books as a Sculptural Material’ 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

A collection of imagery and sources designed to encourage students to engage with work by artist Su Blackwell.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

Su Blackwell

Su Blackwell is an artist who creates beautiful cut out paper illustrations. As well as exhibiting her book sculptures worldwide, she has also designed sets for theatre such as Hans Christian Anderson’s ‘The Snow Queen’ and been involved in many high profile campaigns.

Set Design

Questions To Ask Students

What can you see within the set?

How does the set make you feel?

What do you like about it?

How has Sue ensured that actors can interact with the set?

How do you think the set design might have been transformed into something life size?

Storytelling

Questions To Ask Students

Do you recognise this story?

What do you like/dislike about this animation? Why?

Do you think it is effective in conveying a narrative?

Which is your favourite part? Why?

How does Su create different transitions between scenes? Can you think of any other ways to divide the scenes using a book format?

Advertising

Questions To Ask Students

What is your favourite part of the animation? Why?

What methods do you think might have been used in to create this?

Do you prefer this to live action adverts? Why?

Do you think this method is effective in communicating a narrative?

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Exploring Books As a sculptural material

Featured in the ‘Exploring Books as a Sculptural Material’ 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

A collection of imagery and sources designed to introduce students to book artist, Julie Chen.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

Julie Chen is an artist specialising in books. Her work doubles up as both a traditional book and also a sculpture. Her books can be found in libraries all over the world. Julie Chen’s “approach to artists’ books combines personal narratives with book forms that present the reader with both intimate reading experience as well as beautiful objects that can be displayed as sculpture.” – National Museum of Women in the Arts

Watch the videos below to see Chen’s books come to life. Explore more of Julie’s work on her website.

Ode To A Grand Staircase By Julie Chen

Questions to Ask Students

What kind of structures and shapes can you see within Julie Chen’s books?

What do you like / dislike about the work?

How does Julie use structures to communicate her narrative?

Do you think this is an effective way to communicate a narrative, why?

If you were building a book about the impact of climate change what kind of structures or shapes might you include?

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Exploring Paper Egineering

This is featured in the ‘Exploring Paper Engineering’ 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

A collection of imagery and sources which you can use to prompt drawing in schools and community groups. 

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

Inspirational Stadium Designs

Use the film below to enable students to explore inspirational stadiums around the world. Try to create a sense of momentum – for example you might pause the video 4 times and ask the pupils to make a 1 minute, 2 minute, 3 minute and 4 minute drawing at each pause. 

Encourage close and slow looking by talking as they draw – use your voice to attract their attention to different qualities.

Try the same exercise using different materials, ie handwriting pen, ink and nib, using a ruler to make all the lines etc.

When pupils are more experienced, you can also try getting them to make their drawings as the videos play – making quick gestural sketches.

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Explore Stadium Design

Explore architecture and stadium design with this pathway

Show me what you see

Enable close looking and drawing with this exercise

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Find out how pupils can respond to artists work in sketchbooks

A collection of imagery and sources designed to introduce students to event based architecture firm, Populous.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

Populous is a global company which designs stadiums. In their words “working with communities of all sizes and using a range of disciplines, we create experiences that amplify the joy felt in shared human moments.”

Browse the images on their site to get a real sense of what it means to design stadium which bring people together and create an exciting environment for an event. See the Populous site. 

Watch the videos below with the pupils. Find questions to prompt discussion at the end of this resource. 

Questions to Ask Students

What kind of structures and shapes can you see within the stadiums?

How do the stadiums work with or against the landscape around them?

How does ‘community’ factor into their designs?

When designing a stadium what different spaces need to be considered?

If you were going to design a space what kind of events would it hold? Would you make it multifunctional?

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PATHWAY: HOW CAN I CREATE COMMUNITY THROUGH STADIUM DESIGN?

Explore architecture and stadium design with this pathway

Show me what you see

Enable close looking and drawing with this exercise

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Find out how pupils can respond to artists work in sketchbooks

Can we make art without thinking?

Lewis Rossignol makes art “like jazz.” He draws fast and loose, making scrappy marks on the page using a variety of mediums all at once. At times his work appears to be a chaotic stream of consciousness, but through the splatters of ink and scribbles, figures, situations, and words begin to emerge, and a narrative takes shape. 

Watch the videos below and use the following questions to discuss Lewis Rossignol’s methods and work.

Please Note:

This page includes links and videos from external sites, verified at publication but subject to change.

Teachers should review all content for classroom suitability.

Report any issues, and check school firewall settings if videos don’t play.

Lewis Rossignol is a fine artist who specialises in surrealist and experimental contemporary drawing and painting. 

“I draw inspiration from all areas of life, including but not limited to, interesting people, architecture, music, and nature. Like many others from my generation (X), I also draw inspiration from pop culture, movies, and television, especially from the 80s and 90s, which should be apparent from my work.” – Lewis Rossignol

Rossignol has Tourette syndrome and finds that his tics disappear as he’s drawing, providing him with short bursts of relief everyday. Find out how sketching helps Rossignol to manoeuvre around Tourette syndrome here.

Explore more of Rossignol’s work on his TikTok, Instagram, and Youtube.

Grocer 14″ X 11″ by Lewis Rossignol

Pirates 14″ X 11″ by Lewis Rossignol

Pizzaria 14″ X 11″ by Lewis Rossignol

@lewisrossignol

♬ Don’t Sweat The Technique – Eric B. & Rakim

@lewisrossignol Replying to @michaels.boy thank you. Probably because I have done some album covers. #artprocess #albumart #tylerthecreator ♬ Rusty Cage – Johnny Cash

Questions to Ask Children

How would you describe the way the artist makes his marks?

Which materials and techniques does the artist use?

What do you like or dislike about the artwork and why?

How might you describe the pace of the artwork?

How does the artwork make you feel?