In the past trainees have audited the Art and Design curriculum in their placement schools for evidence of diversity in terms of race, gender and disability. Whilst there has been some diversifying of the curriculum in KS4 and KS5, the majority of artists studied in the curriculum have been white, male, European and dead. To bring about change, we need access to resources - high quality artists and designers who represent the fully diverse society in which we live in the UK. So, please create here posts to fine artists, designers of all kinds, photographers and sculptors who can enrich the curriculum and be role models for pupils, particularly young people of colour, those living with disabilities and everyone exploring gender and identity.

https://artuk.org/

Visible Diversity

https://www.visiblediversity.com/

Shades of Noir

https://shadesofnoir.org.uk/about/

Largest BAME education and creative database: https://shadesofnoir.org.uk/resources/diigo-database/

October Gallery London

https://octobergallery.co.uk/

Throughout her life, Yayoi showed symptoms consistent with psychosis and other mental health states. Yayoi would be possibly relatable for international students who use art and the creation/process of to help their metal health and for those who use art as an escape and method to understand their mental health.

insta - https://www.instagram.com/athipatra/?hl=en-gb

BBC interview - https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3cswp6k

Pupils in a classroom:

• how can you represent/express your feelings into - a colour, animal, or person with just clothes (like the one on the side - shadow of his outself)

• look into texture - textiles - sculpture

Wangechi Mutu could be good for female students to relate their cultural heritage to their self-image and the beauty and power of this

https://octobergallery.co.uk/artists/shawa

Links into learning of weaving and looms. Introduces photography GCSE and a technique commonly used in my school of weaving two images together - usually of landscapes but would be nice to introduce the idea of culture and self expression. Students could collect images from their own life experiences and identity to complete this project.

In Year 8, we explore the quality of line and prints. The project ends with looking at William Morris' work and creating an artwork inspired by his style. However, here is a list of alternative artists that you could suggest to the students for inspiration. These artists maintain a similar art style but address modern-day issues and contexts.

Kehinde Wiley Profile

American artist known for his vibrant, large-scale portraits of Black individuals posed like figures from classical European paintings. His style features highly detailed, ornate backgrounds inspired by diverse cultural patterns. Wiley's work explores themes of race, identity, and power, challenging the absence of Black figures in traditional Western art and placing them in positions of authority and dignity.

Rafael Trelles combines naturalistic drawings of flora and fauna in which suggests overtones of ethereal significance. His paintings are suffused with hints of hidden insight and awareness.

I thought this would be a good artist who depicts portraiture

Website - https://www.margaretwertheim.com/crochet-coral-reef

TED Talk - https://www.ted.com/talks/margaret_wertheim_the_beautiful_math_of_coral?subtitle=en

How can this help pupils? - lessons?

Understanding the responses to climate change helps us comprehend how climate change has impacted our everyday surroundings. Encourage pupils to predict what they think will happen in the future. This activity promotes critical thinking and encourages them to think outside the box. Additionally, it incorporates elements of science (through prediction) as well as design and art into their work.

Useful to look at mark making and calligraphy maybe?

https://octobergallery.co.uk/artists/fathi

“Art does not know colour”

Nelson Makamo’s artwork speaks to changing the global mindset of what it means to be an African child. His portraits have strong emotions that every young African possess, from conviction to prowess and determination, you cannot help but resonate with every piece. His mixed media style and a unique mark-making technique that breaks the scholarly rules is a very distinct signature.

Allows students to identify with diverse communities and global artists. Experiment with other mediums - marking making, acrylic paint. Introducing colour - personality, background, nationality? Current curriculum looks at works by Mark Powell and Enam Bosokah (Biro portraits). Interesting to blend artist ideas together?

Artworks of:

Warrior - autobiography image of him and the challenge he faces through life

Hollywood Africans - feature images and texts relating to stereotypes of African Americans in the entertainment industry

Important to show yr 9s:

• exploring Basquiat's work, students can gain insights into diversity, creativity, and the importance of representation in the arts.

• Basquiat emerged from street art and graffiti, challenging traditional notions of what constitutes fine art. This encourages students to think critically about artistic definitions and the value of different mediums. Breaking away from traditional styles learned in earlier years.

https://www.artnews.com/feature/who-was-jean-michel-basquiat-why-was-he-important-1234579679/

In the 1970's Gilliam, identified that cutting and rearranging geometric shapes from thick canvass opened his mind to new ideas. He became aware of the expansion of colour and experiments that his practice was now open to and found that his new way of working resembled the patterns identified on African-American quilts.

Gilliam, not only worked on canvass of paper and canvass itself, he also removed his work off of the canvas and created large installations.

IDEAS SURROUNDING STUDENTS:

By exploring Gilliam's work, students could potentially become less 'precious' in the way that they are working. This could be through the idea of cutting up their work to then create additional outcomes.

This may also move students away from the idea of making everything hyper-realistic, which then in turn makes them become more comfortable in their own unique practice resulting in more work being produced through experiment.

Gyetvai's work captures "an emotive and evocative interpretation of nature which is constantly refined throughout the process of making."

Her work shows examples of the ways painting and drawing can be combined with textiles and mixed media work

• issues and blurred lines around issues in present day society making her work relatable and accessible to students

• delves into themes of identity, culture, and personal narrative. This can encourage students to reflect on their own identities and express themselves through their art.

• Park’s background and experiences contribute to a broader understanding of diversity in the art world. Studying her work can promote discussions about representation and the importance of diverse voices in art.

Kenojuak Ashevak was a celebrated Canadian Inuit artist. Her drawings and prints, comprised of simple, stylised motifs and coded symbols of Inuit culture and folklore, brought her international acclaim. In addition to her best-known works, she also maintained a diverse practice which included soapstone carving, textiles, and design.

Relates to previous learning on totem poles. Experimenting with a range of mediums, colour theory and global artist history. Textiles design, stained glass and drawing inks.

Cultural Awareness: Introducing students to Bailey's art promotes understanding of African American culture and history, fostering empathy and appreciation for diverse backgrounds.

Her innovative use of textiles and vibrant colours can inspire students to explore different artistic mediums, encouraging creativity and self-expression.

By highlighting her social commentary, students can learn how art can be a powerful tool for activism and change, motivating them to consider their own roles in addressing societal issues.

Featuring diverse artists like Bailey helps students see themselves reflected in the art world, which can boost their confidence and inspire them to pursue their own artistic ambitions.

https://madmuseum.org/learn/xenobia-bailey-0

In Year 9, there is a project that focuses on architectural drawings, collage, and layering of media. This results in a double sketchbook page focused on John Piper, followed by a final design that incorporates mixed media collage techniques, including observational drawing and mark-making. However, you could explore other artists who use similar techniques but address more modern themes.

Lesson Ideas :

Instead of just focusing on John Piper, who is an artist whose main medium is architectural drawing, you could use Kambel Smith, who explores similar themes but creates sculptures made from cardboard and paper. The students could create something similar in these books or as a sculpture.

Artist information

Kambel Smith creates large-scale sculptures representing iconic works of architecture using cardboard salvaged from the trash and other discarded materials such as foamcore and paint.”

“Smith was diagnosed with Autism when he was eight years old. During the past ten years, his father has engaged the artist in daily improvised storytelling, encouraging Smith to participate in the created narrative by making drawings and sculpture.”

An example of sculptural work on a large scale - exhibited at the Yorkshire sculpture park (a gallery which shows work outside. Some students are unfamiliar with this)

Animal Instincts | Yorkshire Sculpture Park

Katayama argues that working with a needle and thread is more meaningful to the everyday life, rather than working with plaster to make her props and plaster and medias alike are accessible to the majority.

By working intuitively, Katayama has been able to capture the past pain and trauma from the amputation of her legs at the age of 9, therefore by making and wearing these hand-made body props, we get a sense of her determination and eagerness to document her challenges.

LINKS TO LEARNING :

Students could work together to tackle an issue that is meaningful to them, they could produce a photo journal, documenting their approaches to the issues through a creative and interpretive way.

By students having to make their own props, much like Katayama, they would hopefully feel more intuitive to documenting their interests in ideas surrounding the context of their choice. Again hopefully making the work become meaningful to them and something that they can confidently comment on.

https://bordercrossingsmag.com/images/made/images/articles/_resized/neshat3_800_501_90.jpg

The barrel of a rifle divides her face in two, making it look like a mask. Neshat is herself the model for this last photograph, one image among many that are difficult to situate. Who are these women? Why are the visible parts of their skin covered with love poetry while their hands and feet cradle weapons? Neshat likes their inherent ambiguity. “What can be threatening,” she remarks, “can also be very beautiful.” Writing in The Guardian, she said her photographs were “a peculiar intersection between sexuality, politics and violence.” In the unsettling romance engendered by these images, happiness is, inescapably, a warmed gun.

For this project Dunne & Raby look at evolutionary processes and molecular technologies and how we can take control. The assumption is that governments and industry together will not solve the problem and that groups of people will need to use available knowledge to build their own solutions, bottom-up.

Pupils in a classroom:

• To combat climate change

• how can we evolve in the changing environment - the way that we eat?

• get them to imagine what may happen to us - evolve or technology?

"Barbara Walker MBE, RA is a British artist based in Birmingham in the UK. Her work is informed by the social, political and cultural realities that affect her life and the lives of those around her. Growing up in Birmingham, her experiences have directly shaped a practice concerned with issues of class and power, gender, race, representation and belonging. Her figurative drawings and paintings tell contemporary stories hinged on historical circumstances, making them universally understood and reflecting a human perspective on the state of affairs in her native Britain and elsewhere."

Website - https://www.saatchigallery.com/artist/han_feng

How could you put this to pupils:

• pupils could look at the houses where they live - incorporate the pupils houses together?

• Installation work that could exhibit for open evenings?