During the spring term of 2023, Worcester-based artist Oliver Bliss was commissioned by Meadow Arts to collaborate with children from two local primary schools to create artworks inspired by the theme of flooding. Working with Year 3 from Cherry Orchard Primary School and Year 5 from St Barnabas CE Primary School they have created a series of protest banner artworks, and displayed at Worcester Cathedral 11 – 27 July 2023.
The children began the project on a walking tour of the artworks on display across Worcester as part of the Meadow Arts exhibition, Watermark. Inspired by the outdoor works Deluge by artist Hilary Jack, with the relentless scrolling of news articles about flooding internationally, and the precarious landmarks created by Daniel Pryde-Jarman’s two installations Flood and Potemkin, Oliver wanted to help the children visually imagine the final devastation that could occur if everything we knew was under water.
He asked the children to imagine the future of the world where ice caps have melted, and the impact of flooding has affected both the local and international landscape. The children were given the opportunity to voice their concerns by creating protest statements which expressed the issues they have about climate change and the impact of global warming. Together they looked at various local and international landmarks and imagined what they would look like underwater and what the flora and fauna would look like at that time.
The work highlights their individual concerns and empowers them to understand how to work together towards a greater goal. The process introduced the children to sewing while exploring new places around the world. They developed their drawing skills and learnt about sea creatures and plants from other places. It also allowed them the opportunity to imagine new, unknown sea creatures.
The project is a true collaboration, with the children hand-dying their own pillowcases to make the backgrounds, Oliver creating the landmarks, and then the children working together to use second hand materials such as school uniforms and scraps to applique the details on top of the banners.
The finished artworks are displayed in the Deans Chapel on the ground floor of the Cathedral.
If you have attended this exhibition we kindly ask audiences to fill out a short online survey. This helps Meadow Arts continue to offer free exhibitions and events to the public.
This project was organised by Meadow Arts with funding from Arts Council England and the Elmley Foundation.
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10am – 5pm
Sunday 1 – 3pm
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