By Paula Briggs
Enjoy these examples of Propaganda Art screen prints made by teenagers. Find out how to make the screen prints without the need for expensive screens, so that even a whole class could make screen prints at the same time.
See all resources in this series here.
This was a very special day for Sheila Ceccarelli from AccessArt, as she got to meet and work with sixty, year five pupils from Berry Hill Primary School in Mansfield Central Library, with colleagues from Inspire Arts Service, who had previously facilitated the development of the AccessArt Village across Nottinghamshire.
At the beginning of the project it was important to take time getting used to each other, the learning space and the surrounding environment. Below is a list of considerations you may find helpful to use in your own learning spaces. Be aware of the daily sounds, smells and other textures of life in your learning space; a constant humming noise or flickering light may be stressful for a child with autism. Allow time for everyone to feel their way in the space; connections may be made through the use of different senses and body parts.
During the six week project, the group explored different themes and actions, some of these were displayed through learning schemas. In week 2 we experimented with different ways to conceal ourselves and objects; schemas such as enveloping and enclosure were exhibited by the group.
Two of the sessions explored the theme of colour. The first was rather abstract, I asked questions such as; What does colour smell like? What does colour feel like?
For a child on the autistic spectrum, a question like this may be confusing, some autistic people think and understand literally. So instead of directing these questions at the children, I answered and speculated on them myself. These abstract questions became vehicles for the workshops documented below.
In my final post on the project, I want to reflect on the theme of To Construct… looking at the different ways we constructed during the project. Please remember this is a personal and artistic reflection, based on the ideas I presented and the (emotional and physical) reactions and responses of the children and their families, who inspired changes and the development of the project as we experienced it.
Teachers embarked on an exercise whereby they made marks on paper to have a conversation with a partner. This was a playful and fun exercise and teachers very much enjoyed both the process and outcomes.
This was the second session in the series and an introduction to pattern, shape and texture with charcoal and graphite, and an opportunity for teachers to break down any preconceived ideas about what drawing is and who drawing processes is for.
This was the third and final session in the series, and an opportunity to play with creative mark-making and explore context and placement as an introduction to larger scale drawing and concepts around installation art.
We kicked off the programme with a quick making challenge which would act as an ice-breaker and introduce students to an array of materials.
Students were given the opportunity to further explore expressive mark making as a tool for self-expression and a vehicle for communication.
Students enjoyed monoprinting on a large scale by rolling printing ink and acrylic paint directly onto the table and experimenting with ways to take prints.
Students were invited to use their previously created monoprints to construct large scale collages inspired by the landscape surrounding the college.
In this session teenagers had an abundance of clay and the freedom to play and manipulate form.
In this session students were given the challenge of making building blocks out of mixed media and using them to build a sculpture. They were encouraged to experiment with balancing different elements together and setting themselves the challenge of seeing how far they could build before their constructions collapsed.
Students were guided on drawing exercises designed to explore drawing as a tool for seeing and being in the here and now.
Students were led on a guided drawing experience of drawing through touch.
Teenagers were introduced to graphite, charcoal, masking tape and acrylic paint as mediums for communal expressive mark making. A collective drawing was produced, whereby students were encouraged to work in collaboration and in response to each other.