Session Twelve: Talking And Listening

 

5th May 2017

Aim: To listen to the children express their perception of faith and belief that are a key theme within the artist’s practice.

Much of my work centres on the exploration of belief, faith, purpose and community. I wanted to begin a conversation with children around their understanding of God, belief and faith. I am interested in what shapes our sense of ourselves and how that is influenced and supported by a specific belief or external entity that exists outside of ourselves. How and when we come to reflect on this understanding of ourselves will be different for everyone. The children are aged 7 and 8 years and I wanted to know how the children see things today. I am sure they will have a very different perception or understanding in 2 years, 12 years or 22 years but today, the here and now is important in the lives of the children. I wanted to get a sense of what that is. It was extremely important that I listened to the children as they talked. Ms. Harriott and I had spoken about how to approach the theme and I felt that I needed her to guide me on this. The relationship between and children’s teacher and I, is so important to the scope and depth of the collaborative process.

I wanted to hear the children’s use of language, their words and feelings as they expressed themselves. In my experience young children absorb so much which they process internally before they offer it back to discuss or question. I didn’t wish to ask leading questions or give the children too much information that what they offered was what they thought I wanted to hear. We had already talked about the sacrament they made this year and how they had celebrated with their families. Hence the theme was a little familiar within the context of the Virtually There sessions.

It was a little unusual for the children to be presenting to me for the entire session. Normally I am on the whiteboard as such with a list of instructions but not today. I introduced the sessions by showing the children what I had put in another package that I would post after the session for next week. We then asked the children what did they think about when they talked to God or what they thought about when they were in the church. We also asked what words they would use to describe how they felt when the made their First Confession. I did struggle a little with the sound quality but Ms. Harriott wrote down what the children and has transcribed this beautifully in her journal. (Thank you)

As the children became more comfortable with the theme they offered more personal experiences and feelings rather than repeating stories from the bible. There were some key words and sentiments that were mentioned quite a few times.

“God is everywhere”

“God is kindness”

 “God is in they things that people do”

 “God will always love you no matter what bad thing you do” – this I feel is extremely important for a child, they are very complex and think and feel things very deeply.

Jesus’ mother Mary was a prominent figure in the minds of the children.

I was surprised at how naturally the conversation flowed despite being virtually there. I felt very much there with them in the classroom. I felt very privileged with how much the children shared with Ms. Harriott and I. The session was slightly shorter than normal due to an unexpected event in the school. The entire session revolved around talking, thinking and reflecting. We didn’t make with our hands but we formed ideas and concepts. I set the children a little homework. To draw or illustrate an image from the things we talked about today.

I wanted this session to be about the children and I didn’t want to share my perceptions with them. They did ask what did I talk to God about or ask God for? I said I prayed for patience but I did have to think about it for a while as perhaps I ask for patience from somewhere out there in the ether when I can’t find any within myself.

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Session Eleven: Round & Round

April 10th 2017

Aim: To plant an outdoor willow dome that will grow with the children as they journey through primary school.

7.30am I was heading to Belfast travelling on a coach on a beautiful sunny day. I had with me over 50 willow cuttings that I was slightly worried were sweating in the plastic bag. I had planted the other 50 willow cuttings with the senior infants class in St. Raphaela’s N.S. in Stillorgan. Together we had planted a 3 metre circle and would hope the cuttings would take and grow over the next year. Ideally both groups of children will be the caretakers of the two domes. It would be wonderful if the two classes could visit each other in a few years time……

(Ms Harriott)

Ms. Harriott was waiting for my arrival and had the children reading their pieces to complete the cuboids we had been working on over the last couple of sessions. Seeing Ms Harriott’s adapted cuboids I was immediately taken with how beautiful they were. The sides of the cuboids held portraits of each of the children and the bases would display the maps of their journey to school. I had brought extra acetates and overhead marker pens with me. It is surprising how quickly these pens run out especially as they are very expensive and very hard to get. People rarely ever use overhead projectors, it is all digital. I myself still have a reel-to-reel machine and a 35mm slide projector. Most people reading my blogs would have no idea what these are. I shall take a photograph.

 

We initially got started on the maps but the weather threatened to be torrential hence we headed outdoors to find our planting spot. We walked over much of the schools grounds and eventually decided on a flat green area in front of the school. This area also will allow for tunnels to branch off if we want to do so in a couple of years. It was all very physical to mark out the precise dimensions of the circle base of the dome. The ground was quite hard hence the children returned to the classroom whilst I pushed 50 holes in the ground where the children would plant the willow cuttings.

It was wonderful to be out of doors together with the children getting dirty planting the willow cuttings ensuring we had them the right way up (I am not a very experienced gardener!). We did our work quickly as we were racing against the rain and a group of very satisfied novice and hungry gardeners returned to the classroom.

After lunch we worked on completing the maps of our routes to school. I had initially thought the each cuboid group would create one map but every child made their own. We were not able to use all of the maps but I placed two on top of each their and attached them to the bases of the cuboids. The day over for the children I stayed to install the completed pieces in the school. A very bright area of a main corridor was identified and we suspended the 7 colourful cuboids from the ceiling. They move beautifully in a gentle breeze and display such wonderful characteristics of many of the children is attracted many viewers and lovely reactions from so many people children and adults as they walked by.

I felt very happy and contented as I headed of for the bus journey back to Dublin in the late afternoon.

 

 

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Session Ten: Another Day At The Office

    

April 7th 2017

Aim: To test out how we can plot out an outdoor dome. To complete the cuboids and begin to talk about the religious sacraments made.

I must have one of the most interesting jobs ever. Unlike many others who sit at their desks and open their laptops I have world of inquisitive minds, conversations and happy grins to greet me. My interactive participants responding to everything we talk about together. I learn, they learn, Ms. Harriott learns, we play, we experiment, we invent and we discover together.

This week we had another join us, Tracy one of the Kids’Own team who came to observe the session and I hoped would give a helping hand. Once we caught up on weekly news we got to down to work. Following on from our last session the where the children had completed the sides of their cuboids and with an extra pair of hands we began to attach the portraits on to the sides. I had attached my portraits onto the sides of the cube here in the studio but as my parcel did not arrive Ms. Harriott and Tracy devised their own way of attaching the portraits on. From the photographs Ms. Harriott put up on her journal I could see that her results were far superiors to mine. The photographs Ms. Harriott puts on her journal provide me with a much more accurate view of what happens in the classroom and in todays case the activities that happened out in the hall.

At the beginning of the session I had shown the children some willow cuttings and images of growing willow domes. My aunt and uncle had offered us enough cuttings to build our own dome in the grounds of the school. Our willow dome would take several years to mature but the children would assist in looking after and shaping how the dome will grow during their primary school life. To build the dome we would need to plot out the circular base of the dome and I had done a drawing to demonstrate how best to mark out a very large circle when you didn’t have a giant compass. The children headed to the hall where the space was large enough to roll out a huge roll of paper. On their return from the hall they described to be how they got on. It was a little frustrating not being able to actually see the events in real time but I did get to see the photographs afterwards. The children gave a varied account of drawing the circles from being easy to really challenging, naturally they figured it out and plenty of circles were created. Unfortunately they did not have time to begin to write and draw in the circles. I had intended to ask the children to fill the circles with ideas about the sacrament they had made recently and their understanding and perception of their belief.

My next session is only a few days away but we need to plant the willow cuttings ASAP as planting season for cuttings is almost over.

See you all on Monday.

 

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Session Nine: Cubist Self portraits

31st March 2017

Aim: Create our self-portraits from what we look like both on the inside and outside.

We were not actually doing Cubist style self-portraits but as the self-portraits are going to become the side of the cubes I thought that I could play with this title. Again for this session we stayed seated and were not going to pull and drag the furniture about.

I had been sending a selection of portraits by artists all week to the children to get them thinking about different ways to present ourselves. This session should have happened the previous week but the children’s lives are extra busy at present as they are making their first confession and communion this year. As the children were going to be spending more time in the church I asked them to look around the church. I am particularly interested in the stained glass. My own practice centres on belief and the spaces in where we congregate together whilst at prayer or being a community together. I would like to learn and understand more about the children’s perception of their experience. This potentially could develop into a piece of work together using belief and faith as our starting point.

The previous day the children had had a very special day. They had made their first confession and afterwards they spent the day celebrating with their families. As a gift Ms Harriott did not give any of the children homework but she did ask that they did a little practice and to draw a family member.

The session started with the children telling me about the events of the previous day. A day they thoroughly enjoyed and will remember. They also showed me the portraits of family members. It was clear that they had spent a lot of times observing and drawing their sitters. They are very able to accurately capture the proportions really well even only after such a short period of time working on portraits.

Unfortunately I was unable to show access the whiteboard and could not show the class the images of the stained glass Ms Harriott had sent me. I knew the children would be familiar with these images but I wanted to refresh their memories. The colours are based on shapes and each pieces uses a limited pallet. I had also wanted to show the children the portraits created by artists again to refresh their memories and give them some ideas about how to portray someone.

However we quickly started on a couple of quick sketches before we moved onto drawing directly onto the acetate. I had to give specific instructions in how to hold the overhead markers as they can make quite a considerable mess. The children took to the task in hand and produced some beautiful drawings. Once the drawings were completed the children were invited to use the different types of coloured cellophane and contact to create a colouful addition to their work using patterns, symmetry and designs that are NOT what the face looks like normally. Again I had hoped to show the children the examples of the artists portraits but I did not have control of the whiteboard so the children took the lead themselves. The transparent cellophane can be quite difficult to cut so the children did not over detail the work. Thankfully the colours were strong so I was able to see the results when the children took their work to the camera to show me. Ms Harriott said once the colour was added the original drawings were lost in the background hence she will ask the children to rework the drawings with a thicker black marker.

For session ten our aim will be to complete the cubes by attaching the self-portraits to the sides and creating a drawing mapping their route to school on the base. We are also discussing the possibility of another site visit the following week. As we had been building domes I thought about creating an outdoor dome that would grow as the children grow. Just I was thinking about such an idea someone offered me lots of willow cuttings that can be planted this year and shaped into a dome next year or at least the beginning of one.

 

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Session Eight: Observation & Looking for Self Portraits

March 9th 2017

Aim: To really look at the proportions of the face. To sit still and observe rather than get inside of things – not moving the furniture about!

I decided for sessions 8 & 9 we will not be moving the furniture about. We focused on staying seated for most of the time together for this session and again for our next session. Our aim will be to create self-portraits that will become the walls of the cubes. I am amused at how frequently I have been using the postal system for this project especially as it is a Virtually There initiative. I also feel that Ms Harriott’s photographs on her journal far better capture the activity in the classroom than mine.

In the package I sent there were a number of drawings demonstrating how to create a portrait of both a child and of an adult. I also had plenty of props available a balloon the same size as my own head and an egg as it depicts the perfect human head shape and is always interesting for the children. I enjoyed the process of demonstrating how to draw the proportions of the human head. It was a great exercise for me to revisit this. I also knew that the children had done some work with Ms Harriott in the beginning of the academic year so I had a head start.

The children are always very eager to follow my instruction and are always very focused form where I am sitting. As the children worked away I also continued sketching portraits and I admit mine could do with some practice. I wanted us to do quite a lot of practice before we would draw the self-portraits onto the acetate. I had sent 30 sheets of acetate, overhead marker pens, an assortment of coloured cellophane and coloured transparent sticky contact in the package. I had thought that we would get to drawing the self-portraits onto the sheets of acetate in this session but we applied ourselves to observation and drawing each other.

 

Throughout the session the children came and showed me their drawings. Unfortunately as the pencils were done in pencil on paper it was really difficult to see what the children had done. Ms Harriott took lots of photos so I was able to see things more clearly on her blog after the session. I was quite impress at how quickly the children’s drawings progressed as the practiced a little more. Before finishing up we did a quick fun activity where I asked the children to draw the child opposite without looking at the paper. The task was to look only at the other child’s face and draw them whilst continuing to look at them and not at the paper. Some children found this quite challenging but it was great fun and I love what the children produced.

For a little homework I asked the children to practice drawing themselves and to draw different members of their families.

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Session Seven: Domes, cubes and not quite square

23rd February 2017

AIM
To rebuild the dome that would demonstrate a better example of stability and structure. Begin a ‘cube’ project using a team approach and offer an individual expression.

I had been rereading the children’s journals from the Actually There Session. So many of the children referred to the dome. Clearly they enjoyed constructing it as well as creating something that everyone could get inside of together. Though they did mention that our dome wasn’t very stable. I also sensed that Ms. Harriott too was a little underwhelmed at the lack of stability of the dome. Hence I decided to reattempt our dome using a hanging basket plant liner as a support tool. This I had sent in the post in advance of this session along with some other essential items for the second part of the session.

 

I had planned the construction of the dome to demonstrate a simpler construction process. I had also edited the amount of chairs we would need. Our list of tools and equipment included.

– 12 2 metre insulation piping
– six chairs
– Velcro straps
– Green dome
– The rest of the insulation piping.

Once again Ms. Harriott had to rearrange the furniture in the classroom. The children placed the six chairs in a circle with the backs of the chairs facing each other. 2 lengths of piping were attached to each chair. The green dome was placed in the centre of the circle of chairs. There were twelve holes cut in the green cardboard dome that the other end of each length of piping was pushed into each hole. We needed a little readjustment of the circle of chairs to raise the cardboard dome. Once in place the children used the rest of the piping to weave through the vertical piping as I had shown in the drawing. It worked and I was so relieved.

For the second part of this session we started a two-part project. I was also very conscious that Ms. Harriott was often quiet exhausted after our session primarily because of all of the dragging about of the furniture. Hence I decided that I would plan a couple of sessions where the class would stay stationary.

  

The package I had sent earlier in the week also included over 70 green garden sticks, green tape, overhead markers and 30 sheets of acetate. In small groups of 4 the children constructed cubes using the garden sticks. I had done a series of drawings showing the different stages of the construction. Each session has offered me with a wonderful opportunity to illustrate the construction process. I had forgotten how much I enjoy drawing and painting with watercolour. The drawing process enables me to figure out the different stages as if I was actually building something in 3D.

During this session I could see that the children needed quite a lot of assistance from Ms. Harriott. The children seemed to enjoy what they were constructing. Throughout the session the children came up to the camera to show me what they were doing. They were very focused and were eager to finish their cubes. Ms. Harriott would have to complete the cubes during the following week with the children. I am looking forward to seeing the photographs that Ms. Harriott will put up on the journal.

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Session Six: Actually There

20th January 2017

AIM

To get to know the children and the Ms Harriot a lot better. Introduce more complex construction in the classroom whilst the artist was there.

I was quite excited about meeting the children in person in their own classroom. I had had a meeting with Ms Harriot the day before so we had an opportunity to plan together. I have found that Virtually There offers an incredible way of working but the ‘getting to know’ each other needs a completely different approach than being in the classroom with the teacher and children. Ms Harriot and I communicate through email several times a week but for gauging the interest level of the teacher and children relies on so many other factors than just printed words. Facial expressions, body language, eves dropping, dynamic, frequently of sighs and squeals and so much more are crucial to shaping a process that is reflective of everyone involved in the collaboration.

I am not very familiar with Belfast and the Finaghy Road North was completely new territory. I had arrived on the train and immediately turned out of the station in the wrong direction. After a bit of a walkabout I noticed lots of pylons that the children had mentioned and gravitated towards them. I knew that I was getting closer to finding the school as I recognized various landmarks that the children had described and drew on their maps. I had googled the area of the school and from a birds eye view there is a lot more greenery than can be seen from walking along at ground level so it was a little disorientating.

Finally I arrived at St. John the Baptist School and for once I did not bring ‘all but the kitchen sink’ to the session with the children. I had though put quite a lot of things in the post over the weeks that we would use together. The children were immediately very friendly and their first question was to ask me about my son who the same age as they are. We talked about lots of different things and it always amazes me at home much information the children retain from every sessions. Often they will continue a conversation we have had or have done a little further research on something that we spoke about. No details or topic is too small or unimportant to be remembered.

As I was Actually There I was able to do all of the dragging about of the furniture for once. We got stuck in straight away with building the dome using the green hanging basket liner that had precut holes in it. I felt somewhat under pressure as we constructed it as it was not as stable as I thought it was going to be and I did not want to disappoint anyone in not ‘getting it right’ which is something artists are really not supposed to be worried about. Yikes!

We did manage to stabilize our dome by securing the top of the dome onto a piece of rope strung across the classroom. The children were all very excited about having built something together as a whole class and getting inside the dome together. I was a little disappointed that it took a lot of tweaking to stabilize it. I had the sense that Ms Harriot was a little disappointed too!

As not to be idle long we quickly dismantled the dome and looked at other things that the piping was good for. I am really interested in hoe we can explore the sounds our bodies make and the insulation piping is proving to be very valuable as a sound conductor. Following this we divided the class into small working groups. The children now knew how to use the utensils and experienced some of the potential of the classroom furniture. We upturned some of the desks, shared out the piping and Velcro strips and got to work on building a ‘space’. Each group had to look at their materials and design something they were to build together as a group. Some groups found the ‘group’ part quiet challenging yet others the dynamic of specific groups worked really well together. It was fantastic to be part of the sharing of ideas, the designing and construction of the ideas. More than one group redesigned their pieces just as they reached completion. In our final few minutes each group nominated a spokesperson who feedback to the whole class the ideas behind what they had made. The children seemed really proud of what they achieved.

 

   

I was in a much better position to understand the dynamic of the group whilst being Actually There. Though as to whether I am really there or not possibly doesn’t have such a big impact on the children. Children are so familiar with screen technology they are to create a much more free flowing dialogue with me than I with them. I look forward to reading on the journal the feedback from the children and this too will give me an idea of where we shall go next.

 

 

 

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Session Five: I could not, not do it….

9th December 2016

AIM

To explore our construction ability by building small scale constructions in 3D as individuals and classroom size constructions as a group.

I would have to think about the word I choose to use ‘small’ scale. For me it maybe small scale but for most this would be considered large scale. Orla was right, that is Orla Kenny the Director of Kids’Own the producers and initiators of ‘Virtually There’. At times she knew that I would find this way of working challenging. Normally I am completely physically immersed in the work as the process happens. I find it extremely difficult not to be able to jump into the classroom through the screen. Hence earlier this week I packaged 20 2 meter insulation pipes and popped them in the post.

I have convinced myself that I can give direction and make it logistically practical for Ms Harriot to work with the children in a manner that normally would require my presence. And it worked I am so pleased. I also suggest that if you are reading this that you take a look at the images and text Ms Harriot has put on her journal and the children’s journal as they depict so much better than I what was achieved in this session.

Prior to this session I thought through clearly how best to give clear instructions without it seeming to formulaic. In our first session with the pipes I needed to provide the practical instructions of the potential of the piping whilst allowing the children a certain amount of freedom to change the structure. As we become more familiar with what the piping can offer in terms of construction then the children will be able to have full creative control of what they build. I thoroughly enjoy drawing and spent a wonderful few hours drawing and painting the pictures I had constructed inside my head.

Large scale construction usually requires a team approach but before we embarked on the big build we warmed up with some individual work. Each child was provided with a lump of blue-tac and several lengths of spaghetti. The children built a varied range of shapes, forms, teepees, cubes, stick men and lots of things that challenged their ability to make something balance.

Using our team approach the children moved their chairs out of the way. Equipped with a strip of Velcro and a 2meter piping each child attached one end of their piping to the leg of a table and the other end of the pipe to the leg of another table. Once complete the children created a series of archways that they could walk through (slowly). Afterwards the children removed the Velcro and they rearranged the furniture in different patterns that allowed them to create different forms and give them an understanding of building bigger than they were and what they could achieve together.

I had done more drawings of structures than we had time to build but I shall be Actually There for our next session so we shall continue with our builds. I was of course slightly concerned that Ms Harriot was left to put order back into the classroom once the session was over, Apologies.

I also had sent a link to the opening piece of the film ‘The Company’ where the dancer create huge geometric patterns and structures using ribbon. I hope the children are as enthused as I am about this dance but often it is not the case.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2u5h8SUmsg

 

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Session Four: Thinking in 3D

2nd December 2016

AIM

To explore our construction ability by building bridges linking our community maps together.

I set the children a task last week to draw a building they could see from their house or school, in as much detail as possible. I asked the children to show me their drawings and identifying various buildings. I was quite astounded at the level of detail that the children produced. It was clear that much time had been spent outside of school hours creating their beautiful drawings.

The children worked so well in small groups creating their maps that I suggested that they continue to work in this way. Each map was so different so different that all together it looked like a very large city. I asked them to link all of the maps together by building bridges using some very basic art materials used in the everyday classroom like cellotape, string, wool, masking tape, straws, scissors, lollipop sticks, pipe cleaners and textured papers and corrugated cardboard. We were moving from 2D drawing to 3D construction for the first time.

(I had some fun putting these maps through different filters)

Prior to embarking on the building of the bridges we looked at different bridges from across the globe. I thoroughly enjoyed sourcing these images and I was inspired by the construction, engineering, array and history of bridges that I came across.

     

The bridges required thinking, designing, experimenting and building. In their small groups they placed their maps flat on the tables. The desks needed to be moved a little to accommodate a bridge that the children built connecting the maps together. The bridges were about 2ft long which allowed enough room for the children to stand between the desks. The spaces between the desks were seen as rivers separating the maps/land.

I had also created a number of bridges myself from the same materials on offer to the children to give them some ideas of how and what to construct from. They could make the bridges from all, some or even just one of the materials on offer. It was possible for a bridge to be made completely of just one of the materials. Some could be really simple and other could be quite complex but with lots of cello tape available anything was possible. They needed to stick the bridges onto the tables not onto the maps themselves.

My favourite bridge (Snail like) a pedestrian bridge in London

Here a roaming camera would have been ideal as I struggled to actually see what the children were building. As the bridges needed to be stuck down onto the tables the children could not bring their constructions up to the camera to show me. It was fantastic to observe how quickly the children worked and they didn’t seem to be phased by the challenge to build and design in 3D.

It was only when Ms Harriot emailed the images of the bridges that I could see the detail of the engineering and skill that the children. I was amazed at what the children created. They were so inventive and with such speed also. I am going to allow the children to upload the images of their bridges at this stage as my images of their bridges do not do them justice.

In planning ahead for next week I am seriously considering moving into 3D construction at a very large scale in response to the skill level of the children in this session.

 

 

 

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Session Three: Too busy ‘doing’ to stop & talk about what we were doing.

25th November 2016

AIM

To explore our immediate environment within a community context.

My overwhelming experience of this session is that in the final 30 minutes the children were too busy to stop and chat about what we were doing. Initially I did think ‘what about me!’ but then I thought Wow this is brilliant. Even from my observational point I could see that the children were totally engaged in what they were doing. The buzz of the chitter chatter. I listened to their constant hum and watched as they pointed, drew, moved about, repositioned themselves and worked together in small groups.

It has taken a few sessions to get comfortable. I literally mean physically comfortable. Number One I think best on my feet, sitting still staring at a computer screen is not my best stance. As we had set out on Virtually There I had thought that whilst the children worked in their classroom that I too would work in my studio whilst the session took place. This is impossible (so far). My complete focus needs to be on the observation of the class, even when I am not directly talking with the children. Also craning ones neck to hear better and automatically hoping up and down to get a better view I still have yet to learn not to do. Hence this image is generally my starting point, an upturned plastic container, my session plan in full view from my standing position and a few props at hand.

This week was World Book Week and the children were dressed in characters from children’s books thus it made it slightly easier and more amusing to identify specific children, especially if they were distracted!

I had set the children a task last week to draw their route to school from the perspective of a bird. The children had drawn their routes into their own journals. I think that Ms Harriott is able to incorporate what we do in Virtually There within the context of their daily activities which seems to support the curriculum. I had asked the children to draw the buildings along their routes so they could be more aware of what actual buildings and amenities are close to them. Once we had looked at the different drawings I asked them to list what were the important facilities and services that are need for town/city. Once we had begun to make the list I asked them to work in the small groups to develop further through drawing.

Each small group was given a sheet of A2 paper. I asked the children to draw their area, town or city using the school as a central point. I had thought that the children would expand their maps to include amenities that would be required in a town or community but they chose to focus on what was actually there. They can draw and write as they build their city/town. The children described the area around the school buildings. I should be able to find the exact place by their descriptions! The children mentioned the pylons next to the school. This I found wonderful and tried very unsuccessfully to discuss pylons further with the children. This possibly was my first real test in not being actually There. if I was There I perhaps not would have engineered a full length discussion and perhaps cajoled the children into responding creatively to them either through drawing or a simple maquette. Since early childhood I have found pylons to be one of the most delicate and elongated creatures as opposed to a blot on the landscape as the general public seem to think consider them. Still I shall create a series of drawings for myself as the children found something much more of interest to explore instead. I watched the children create their maps and I could hear snippets of their conversation. I was not able to see clearly what the children were drawing but I should get some images from Ms Harriot during the week.

The children’s drawings might be the beginning of the draft plans for ideas of a city. Later on (in a few weeks) we shall perhaps build a city together in 3D. I had planned on paper to ask the children to bring chalk out the playground and draw much larger maps outside but we didn’t quite get around to doing that and it also could be something I would like to do with the children myself on one of my visits to the school.

After the children returned from the playground I asked the children to describe what they saw in the three dance films I had sent links to in the previous session. Once again the children described beautifully through movement and oral language the motion of the different the dancers in each very different film. I am still considering in what way we shall bring our observations and experience of the fluid movement of flight into the work.

Birds in flight captured during the week……

On reflection of this session I realize that I need to look further at my own responsibility within the collaborative process. Do I exercise too much control in the content and the direction of what ‘we’ do’. I constantly query ‘collaboration’ the definition of and what actually happens within my practice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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