Projects
Sculpture Project
ART IN THE COMMUNITY‘ON TRACK’
Young people from Sandown High School’s ‘Inclusion Unit’ have been working with CRP’s Rail Development Officer Bobby Lock on station improvements at Sandown Railway Station for the benefit of those who live in the area and use the railway on a daily bases, as well as for an improved ‘Gateway’ to the town for tourism on the Isle of Wight.
The Inclusion Unit is run to engage socially challenged young people who may have a problem with mainstream teaching and or have been excluded from school. These young people are predominantly the main perpetrators of vandalism at the station and it was clearly important to seek projects which would engage them through vocational skills whilst encouraging ownership over an area which has long suffered neglect and repeated vandalism.
Disabled Access vandalised wall
So the students with 12k funding sourced by the IoW CRP came up with the idea for Art in the Community ‘On Track’ to tackle the unsightly grey concrete blocks right along the in the disabled access in Sandown Station which has had a long history of vandalism. (Please see supporting photographs)
The art project, started in October 07 was completed in May 08 and has seen the student’s use of innovative sculpture as the genre in the form of low relief panels depicting the past, present and future of rail.
The young people worked in partnership with other local schools and organisations to research and gather pictorial material to then be translated onto the panels with Ecclestone George, a group of local artists who work with recycled composite materials which when dried are as hard as concrete but as attractive as sandstone.
Initially the art project saw the young people co-ordinated through one of our primary funding partners ‘Creative Partnerships’ working with Forest Forge, a theatre company that along with many options provides workshops on body language and confidence building for young people to integrate well with both younger children and older people in the community in order to gather information whilst managing their time efficiently.
Having worked with forest forge and the young people it was clear to see initial reluctance from some, be replaced with enthusiasm and increased ideas for the project and improved attitude to the partners they were to work with for the research
The first session spent at Sandown C of E Primary School saw the young people leading interactive play with the youngsters before getting don to the serious business of drawing pictures for the ‘future of rail’. These ideas from the primary children were incorporated into the panels and there was an opportunity for them to come out to have a go at the sculpture at the station.
Sean Aita from Forest Forge working with the youngsters
Interactive play
Lizzie leading youngsters
Dan helping
The young people followed this with a visit to Haven Street Railway to interview the volunteers who remember the steam railway as it was before decommissioning in 1966 was also a success. They were given a wealth of information which has now been translated into the sculpture and starts the time line at the beginning of the disabled access from the ‘Up’ platform.
The young people spent the whole of May off timetable with the Artists Ecclestone George at Sandown Station creating the panels which line nearly 50ft along the disabled access providing innovative and stunning art for all to enjoy for many years to come.
Work starts
Ventnor Jaz
Waiting for a train
Future Train
Trees and track
Nigel George
Finished!
The measure of these projects success is in the young peoples improved levels of confidence from the many stages of this project and has been noticeable certainly with the intergenerational work with Sandown C of E Primary. There is now a ‘buddy’ reading system in place where the young people from the high school listen to the younger children once a week which is beneficial for all of the children to improve their literacy skills. Further positive outcomes is the now lack of vandalism around the disabled access and the station and the feeling of ownership right across the community for an area that has had a feeling of general neglect for a long time.
The project was short listed for the 2008 ACoRP awards for ‘Art in the Community’ and secured 1st place.