Artwork by the children of Wildground

Just finished the enormous task of photographing a couple of hundred paintings and drawings by the children of Wildground Infant School for their mural. Some were to cumbersome or crinkled for flatbed scanning, so had to be snapped instead. The image above is a tiny fraction!

Smiles all round as the project kicks off

Yesterday saw the beginning of a HUGE art project with Wildground Infant School on the edge of the New Forest. Their headteacher, Mrs Mullett, asked about me painting a mural on one of the hall’s walls, but after some discussion it became apparent that we could do something a little more …challenging. We identified an area that ran horizontally across the hall about a metre down from the ceiling that made an impressive space to set the artwork. However, it was too high to paint, and possibly too large as well, so I suggested we created something separately and look into getting it fitted onto the wall once completed.

This meant we didn’t have to do a conventional mural. We could get the children involved to contribute elements of the picture and I could build the artwork in Photoshop. The aim of the finished piece is that it will represent the area in which the children live, following the course of Southampton Water, and feature every single one of them amongst the landmarks.

So my visit yesterday was to ask the children to contribute their part to the artwork. They were all asked to produce a self portrait each, and then each class was given a specific task to draw aspects of different sections, such as boats for the water, local shops and New Forest animals.

There’s an enormous amount of work to do, so I plan to post updates now and then so the children can follow its progress. Better get started then…

Went across to Portsmouth today to visit a lovely little school in the heart of Southsea - Southsea Infants. With the two Year 2 classes we looked at some cartooning basics to help prepare them for creating their own superhero character and, ultimately, their own cartoon strip. Love Girl, Goo Man and Super Squirrel were just a tiny handful of creations to explode onto their sketch book pages.

In the afternoon I was with Year 1 having fun with pirates. The children shared their knowledge of pirates with me so I could draw one (that was lots of fun) and then they had a go at drawing what their versions looked like. Some wonderfully inventive drawings followed, from a pirate covered head-to-toe in scars to a dandy of a captain displaying pink boots and long eyelashes. What was remarkable was the number of children who had memorised, step-by-step, what I’d drawn twenty minutes before and who then went on to reproduce it on paper. Shiver-me-timbers!

Spent today at Orchard Junior School taking part in their New Forest Day for Year 3. The day was divided into thirds with Sue Palma from the New Forest National Park undertaking map work, Suzy Moore from the New Forest Museum presenting New Forest artefacts, and then myself talking about local wildlife. The three classes were rotated amongst us, so we had over an hour with each. During my sessions we focused on the more unusual creatures of the forest, from muntjac to red-legged partridges, and then finished with a step-by-step drawing. Children’s knowledge of the immediate world around them can be patchy, and with the New Forest, literally, on their doorstep I was expecting a mixed level of awareness, but what was encouraging was that although they may only be able to name a handful of animals (I’m surprised at how many adults struggle to name 20), a deeper understanding of why we need to look after the forest was clearly present. Hats off to some amazing artwork, too.

Just a quick thanks to Hythe Primary for inviting me in on Monday. A flying visit of just two hours, with 45 children per hour, saw a whole host of Beaulieu the Hedgehog drawings, intelligent questions, and a fair bit of fun and laughter too, all at a rattling good pace. Thanks, all.

Recently I’ve been spending one lunchtime a week working with boys from a local infant school to help encourage their writing skills. On average, boys at this age are not as forward as girls at either reading or writing, so the initiative the school developed was to whet the boys’ appetites and ignite that creative spark. The first session involved me discussing how I go about writing, and the sorts of things they should be looking to add to their stories to make them interesting and exciting. They were encouraged to note down their ideas and thoughts in a rough drafts book, and soon everything from cowardly dragons to heroic ghosts were appearing on the pages. Initially the boys found it hard to break away from the ‘good’ ideas of those around them, so there was a degree of imitation through enthusiasm, but as the weeks have passed the boys have become more focused on their own tales and each have developed imaginative and rounded stories. One more session to go before Easter, so I’m looking forward to the results!

Fairisle Infants are on the edge of Southampton and comprise a lively and creative bunch of children and staff. The school were keen that I spend time with every class and had devised a timetable of half an hour slots for Years 1 and 2 and 15 minutes for Year R. Although this is a relatively tight timeframe, it allows for a punchier visit and (I hope) leaves the children keen to try out some creative writing or drawing of their own. I received some lovely praise from the children for the quick drawings of creatures made up of animals they called out, but the gem was a Year R boy who insisted I shook his hand and then said, “Now go home and practice so you can come back and draw us a rabbit tomorrow.” Brilliant.

Just spent the day with a local school, Wildground Infants, a short distance from where I used to live. Did a mixture of activities with the children including reading stories, talking about my artwork and stories, drawing Beaulieu the Hedgehog and Emery the Woodmouse, and creating new versions of the Litterbug. Some very talented artists and bright sparks, and a simply brilliant session with the Year R children. Thanks for having me, Wildground.

Me at Wildground Infants (I'm the one on the left). Photo © Southern Daily Echo

The Girpen, a combination of, amongst other beasties, a giraffe and a penguin!

Just spent a very busy, and very enjoyable, day at Bitterne CE Infants in Southampton. The day kicked off with an assembly where I got to meet the children and they got to meet me. I then had half an hour with each class where they created their own versions of the Litterbug from my first New Forest Friends book. The children were packed with ideas which resulted in some quite amazing creations. As the day drew to a close we gathered back in the hall to show off the efforts of each class, and share a few colourful and creative drawings by individuals. Despite feeling somewhat hoarse now, it was a brilliant day, and a good example of children letting loose their imaginations.

I spent a brilliant day earlier this week at Bitterne Park Infants in Southampton. The theme was ‘Monsters’ so I was a little out of my comfort zone as I couldn’t really do my usual routine with the classes. However, this didn’t turn out to be a problem at all, as the children’s enthusiasm and ingenuity spurred me on. I read them my New Forest Friends & The Litterbugs book where one of the characters imagines a giant insect monster, and then a poem I’ve written about a monster catcher. Finally the children invented monsters of their own by suggesting parts of animals for me to draw on large sheets of paper that slowly grew into hideous beasts. My thanks to everyone at the school for making me feel so welcome.