I’s a lot more open minded…. the work at the Spring School was a lot more expressive and we learnt so much more from just doing that” – Tom, UAL Level 3 Extended Diploma
Welcoming students from our local partner schools and further education Colleges, our Insights Spring Schools returned to our Archway campus last month. Led by the CSM Outreach team, the school gave students in their first year of further education AS or A Levels a feel for what studying at university is really like. Through a series of immersive workshops, the students were encouraged to think outside the box and push their current understanding of creative processes and collaborative working. Each workshop was led by a team of tutors from different disciplines to help students explore different approaches you can take to idea generation.
Here we take a look at the week’s workshops and some of the brilliant works created.
Build It
Introducing interdisciplinary artistic, architectural and structural methods, this workshop encouraged the students to sketch, build and reinterpret structures using basic materials. Working in teams the students pushed the studio spaces, experimenting with building techniques and processes. The results included intricate cane structures with built in lever systems and beautifully decorative brown paper models.
Wear It
Here the students explored how the form, materiality and texture of an object can trigger different types of emotions and senses. Using paper as their main tool, the students worked in pairs to select three parts of the body to extend, focusing on key words protection, restriction and improvement. The different groups worked to create 3D forms that could then be applied to the body and worn. Wearing their paper extensions, the students then modelled their final pieces and prepared to have their work captured, ready to fill their portfolios.
Use It
Inspired by Chindōgu, the Japanese art of creating ingenious yet absurd gadgets to solve everyday problems, this workshop challenged students to design and develop their own useful/useless problem solving objects. After an introduction to the concept from the workshop’s leaders, Shepherd Manyika (BA Fine Art alum), James Winston (BA Product Design alum) and Stephanie Buttle (BA Ceramic Design alum), students worked in teams, developing ideas in the morning and then creating the product using materials sourced from the local Pound Shop in the afternoon. Really putting the notion of Chindōgu into practice, students’ designs included a balloon personal space protector, a biscuit-dunking contraption, built to prevent that bottom of the mug biscuit build-up, and a multiple person hand-shaker/greeter.
Visit the CSM News archive to find out more about previous UAL Insights schools and Outreach projects.
More:
- Follow Insights on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook
- UAL Insights online magazine
- Outreach at CSM