Sophie Overall learns about an exciting youth art initiative on Dublin’s north side
Sophie Overall
There is a new phenomenon growing in Ballymun, and it is a phenomenon with an artistic focus. Historically, the artistic influence in Ballymun has gone under the radar. However, with the help of the National College of Art & Design (NCAD) and The Rediscovery Centre in Ballymun, an environmental social enterprise, this is about to change.
With the hopes of revealing the promising future that lies within the arts industry, Finola McTernan, the NCAD Access Officer, is working to help promote a pilot program that works with transfer year students in Ballymun.
This programme, lasting two weeks, culminated in an exhibition on Friday, July 15 at 2pm of work in the Axis Arts Centre by 15 students from five North Dublin secondary schools. Not only was this exhibition a chance for these students to showcase their efforts over the past two weeks, but it showcased the immense impact getting involved in the arts has on young people’s lives.
Speaking to Finola ahead of the exhibition, it was clear that the programme aimed to reach far beyond this initial pilot stage. She said: “I run the Access Programme that is involved with 34 secondary schools that are designated at a disadvantage. We want to engage with people in these schools who may not have awareness in the area of art and design. The mission of this programme is also twofold; while it hopes to bring awareness, we are also focusing on sustainability and recycling, and bringing awareness to the economy of recycling and all of the landfills that are accumulating. The Rediscovery Centre has provided us with the studio space, which is crucial.”
Multimedia
Finola described how the programme sought to introduce the students to using multimedia, fashion design, and social media skills. With 15 students signed up from the school outreach, Finola observed: “Not a lot of young people were aware of the college, or the type of opportunities of course in the field of art design. This is a great opportunity to inform the young people, not only of the college, but of the opportunities within the field.”
Noting that the programme is operating as an initiative from the NCAD Access Office, Finola said one of its aims is to raise awareness for the college.
Finola described the project as trying to incorporate as many aspects of art as possible:
“There is a facet of visual communication, a fine art media department, and product design. The true work was looking at the designing, problem solving, media and fashion, in a creative way. This is the first time these young people came together under these circumstances, which is truly great. The students are working together and realising that these opportunities allow them to express themselves in ways they didn’t previously know about.”
The Creative Lab project not only allowed students to explore different facets of creativity, but also worked to foster a sense of community among them, which ultimately helps with the overall success of the programme, and enhancing the students’ experience. Finola said: “As we started the programme last week on July 4 in the Access Art Centre, we commenced with brainstorming, some team-building exercises, which was really important because we knew we were working with people coming from different schools. And through these exercises and brainstorming, it was realised that there were a lot of commonalities, which allowed the group to really gel.”
Over the next few days, the students explored the theme of ‘memory’ that would govern each presentation. This theme extended to include the past, present, and future, and how each construct relates to each other, and most importantly, the student.
Explaining that the students are working with a team of artists as well, Finola said: “We are working with Sinead McDonald, who is a graduate of NCAD, and another artist Sophia Vigne-Welsh, who graduated this year. With this artist team, in terms of working through the theme of memory, past, present and future, we initially brainstormed ideas. Then we split into groups, where there will be six final pieces. These pieces are composed of three individual pieces and three group pieces.”
Direction
The direction of each piece was entirely up to the student, Finola said, describing the vast range of methods that were explored, from glossy fashion magazine layouts to depicting a story of a broken family: “We have one group of young girls who are doing a fashion piece, influenced by old Vogue magazines.
They are using recycled old dresses, futuristic foils, in turn creating a whole new garment. They conceptualized these ideas, used sewing skills, photographed the piece, and one of the girls is infact going to model it. Then she is going to photograph it and learn photoshop skills to mock-up a glossy magazine page and present the piece that way.
“Another group of young boys are doing a project from looking at gaming and different types of skills, such as short film, graphic art pieces, and collaborating using culture references such as Pokemon, The Simpsons, and Lord of the Rings,” she continued. “Another girl is doing a very personal piece. Her mother passed away when she was 29, and she really did not have the family life she thought she would. She is putting together old family photos with music and text to create a video piece governed by the theme, ‘what if?’
“Last week we had a mid-project review, where we talk about ideas. This is a very brave thing to do, to create such a piece with such a strong personal connection,” she added.
Another two girls, Finola noted, worked together on an installation piece using LED lighting. They incorporated traditional and futuristic art, as well as images of grandmothers, essentially sending their grandmothers into space.
This was a combination of contemporary art materials and old family photos, a piece that truly embodied the multidisciplinary focus that this project wanted to promote to these students.
“The students are learning 21st-Century technology skills in addition to learning creative production skills. By being exposed to all these different approaches, we hope to really raise awareness within the fine art and design world,” Finola remarked.
Additionally, Finola pointed to the important role that working with the Ballymun community has in securing the success of the Creative Lab project now, and in the future: “Since this is a pilot project and this is our first summer, I really believe that to gain trust in a community, you have to work within the community.
Link
“We are working in a triangular form of engagement, by creating a link between the college, the community, and the schools,” she said. “We are creating links between the schools and our Access Program, portfolio scholarships for the college, and structured days of engagement with the art teachers, who are now more aware of what we are doing. There is also an admission scheme, with support for students with disabilities and financial support. We want to build awareness locally with the goal to get students interested in pursuing school on the university level. Ultimately, we want to show students how many opportunities there are and how many options there are.”
Through talking about why the Ballymun community was chosen specifically, Finola pointed to the upcoming installations within Ballymun next year: “I had visited the Rediscovery Centre with work, and saw the big projects that are happening. The project is a template for a project we will build on with the Rediscovery Centre when they have the education facility in 2017.”
On Friday, July 15, the students received Certificates of Achievement from the NCAD and launched their exhibition. Not only has the Ballymun Creative Lab allowed students to explore a facet of art in ways never before imagined, either through a personal or more abstract lens, this project will hopefully set a precedent in Ballymun that will inspire students for years to come.