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Schools Jewellery Workshops 2006.2006 was the first year of an educational programme aimed at providing an opportunity for young people to experience the joy of craftwork, to develop their creative skills in the visual arts and to provide "hands-on" workshop experience with professional makers. A further aim was to encourage parents and other members of rural communities to develop their and their children's interest in craft and design. It is hoped that the 2006 programme will help to establish Suffolk Craft Society as an effective agency for providing creative craft programmes in schools and communities in Suffolk. In 2006 the theme of jewellery was chosen to complement Suffolk Craft Society's summer jewellery festival in which international jewellers exhibited alongside the Society's jewellers. There were two central ideas governing the focus of the young people's programme - first, that in creating beautiful, wearable objects out of otherwise discarded materials, children would learn more about the importance of recycling, and second, that the rich heritage of the locality could show children something of the continuity of the jeweller's craft and be an inspiration for artistic endeavour. Six of the Society's craftspeople were involved in residencies in schools and in adult workshops to create jewellery and relief panels. The armoury and jewels from the Sutton Hoo Anglo- Saxon burial ship and the industrial artefacts of the Long Shop engineering museum in Leiston were used as stimuli. The work culminated in a highly successful summer exhibition at the Long Shop Museum and at the prestigious venue of the Red House, Aldeburgh. Year 8 pupils from Leiston Middle School worked over a period of five weeks in the Long Shop Museum with resistant materials to create silver and semi-precious stone jewellery. The artefacts of the museum and the processes used in their creation were an integral part of the children's learning process. The young people responded well to being given expensive materials to work on and the results were exceedingly professional-looking. Parents joined in during after-school sessions. Years 5 and 6 children from Coldfair Green, Middleton and Peasenhall primary schools worked with recycled materials to make beautiful and imaginative jewellery and body adornment. The importance of minimising waste was emphasised throughout the five week residencies. Parents and grandparents joined in the activity during extended afternoon sessions. Years 5 and 6 children from Earl Soham and Charsfield Primary Schools visited the National Trust property at Sutton Hoo. Over a period of five weeks they learned to use various materials and techniques to create six large relief panels of Anglo-Saxon warriors and their wives adorned with jewelled armour and weapons. The results are so impressive that Sutton Hoo has asked to exhibit them. A Family Craft Day for children aged 5 to 10 and their parents was held in Framlingham, during which the theme of recycling was further developed. A two-day workshop for adults took place at Leiston Long Shop Museum in which paper jewellery was made and another two-day workshop in enamel jewellery was held at Framlingham Castle. The craftspeople involved were Jenny Nutbeem, Sarah Tait, Michel Cereso, Valerie Armstrong, Sheila McDonald and Alison Dane. The exhibition was designed by Jenny Nutbeem. Funding for the programme amounted to £12,500.00. This consisted of £5,000.00 from an Awards for All lottery grant, £2,000.00 from Suffolk Extended Schools Development fund, £2,000.00 from Suffolk Leading Edge fund, £1,000.00 from Suffolk Craft Society, £1,000.00 from the Friends of Suffolk Craft Society, £1,000.00 from the John Jacob bequest (given to the Society) and £500.00 from Suffolk Coastal District Council, which also paid for the publicity costs. Several local jewellers donated materials. |
