With so much happening within the cultural gem that is Blackpool School of Arts, senior tutor Gabriella Wills takes us on a peek inside in the first of her monthly round ups
Blackpool School of Arts offers creative education for school leavers and adults. We offer evening classes, level two and three (pre university), and degree level courses in a range of creative subjects. There’s so much stuff going on, we thought we’d write a monthly update on what’s been going in Inside the Art School.
Industry Week
In February we had our annual Industry Week. This is where we invite creatives working within the industry to come and speak to our degree level (and sometimes FE) students. As well as our full-day Create and Curate event with Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year winner Brogan Bertie we had a jam-packed schedule of speakers from across arts, illustration, performance and photography related backgrounds. The creative industry is complex and confusing to a lot of people. Many creatives work on a freelance basis, and a creative education can lead to such a huge range of job roles due to the transferrable skills gained on arts programmes. Our Industry Week speakers and workshops helped to give our students insight into what’s possible and how to approach their careers after graduation. The week ended with an Artists Social event at The Old Electric in town where all those involved in the arts in Blackpool were invited.
Presentation competition
This year we launched our Art School Values, and a new class embedded in all FE programmes that addresses the skills, knowledge, and attitudes required of becoming a creative. Soft skills like communication, critical thinking and problem solving are increasingly important to employers so we want to make sure our students are as prepared as they can be for their next steps, whether that’s going onto a degree or employment. As part of this course, we asked students to deliver a presentation on their creative identity with the best presentation from each class given a prize and entry into the final presentation competition for the chance to win £100. We were blown away by how well students rose to this challenge!
Elevated achievement
Before half term our FE students engaged with our ‘Elevate’ week. One of our Art School Values is ‘progress not perfection’ and the Elevate week encouraged this by focusing on time to reflect on work, gain feedback, and make improvements.
Women in IT
Our level 3 Performing Arts Students presented a powerful forum theatre piece focused on celebrating and promoting women in IT and computing. Not only did the performance showcase students’ talent and creativity but it was also the first performance to take place in our immersive theatre performance space.
Young Seasiders
The Young Seasiders exhibition, where local school showcase the artistic talent of their students, is now up in our gallery until the end of March and open to the public. It’s a joyous insight into the creative talent of Blackpool’s young people. I think my favourite piece is a large papier mâché seagull situated at the entrance to the exhibition!
BFI Film Academy
We’re proud of some of our media level three students for getting involved in the BFI Film Academy. The film they worked on was screened at The Backlot cinema accompanied by a Q&A. What an amazing opportunity for these budding filmmakers! They were also helped on their film making journey by a graduate of our filmmaking degree, who was employed as an assistant at the film club.
If you’re interested in becoming part of our Blackpool School of Arts community check out the website: Blackpool School of Arts | Blackpool and The Fylde College or our Instagram @blackpool.school.of.arts for more information about what we do.
Education jargon!
Further Education (FE): This is vocational or nonvocational education that students engage with after high school and can include level 2 (GCSE equivalent) qualifications, as well as Level 3 qualifications, which includes BTECs, A-Levels, Apprenticeships and T-Levels. It is often seen as a bridge to Higher Education (HE): This is degree level study and include HNC, HND, Degree Apprenticeships as well as BA and BSC programmes.
Photo credit & info (l-r): AA2A programme participant Helen Rodger and Kate Garthwaite. Photographer: Paula Smithson.
Show Comments (0)