Great week! Knackering and up and down as ever but I'm getting a lot of energy from the fact our end of year exhibition seems to be coming together. We've found a venue and have visited it a number of times over the past week. There are three empty buildings in a pedestrianised area of Taunton town centre. They have been furnished for use as offices, so there are hairy blue carpets, those nasty vertical blinds and strip lights in odd aluminium shells.. but it has great natural light, is not too overlooked by other buildings, is in a central location and for the past two weeks has been home to an arts project which has created a lot of local interest. There are three floors to each building and some interconnecting doors between them, meaning a potentially interesting, labyrinthine experience for the audience and a real opportunity for the curators and artists.
Today, our year group attended the wrap up session of the lively arts project that's been taking place in said buildings. Artists have been inhabiting the space, and interacting with the community with the aim of formulating a vision for some kind of arts establishment in Taunton. They also canvassed opinion on what the community think of recent regeneration plans. During this occupation, young people have had the opportunity to make films and music, and passersby have been able to 'get creative' using the resources set up by the artists.
Hopefully some of the ideas generated by the project will feed into future action through the town council and the various arts organisations already in existence in Taunton. Better partnership working and more focus on shared agendas was definitely being advocated today. For example, an arts diary for Taunton was suggested.
For us students, we now have three and a half months to make some work for the show. Can't wait!
Here are some shots of the location, just to give a feel :)
It has been great to meet Nic Brace, a passionate musician and arts facilitator and to continue to work with Tim Martin, the arts bod at the Brewhouse.
Today, our year group attended the wrap up session of the lively arts project that's been taking place in said buildings. Artists have been inhabiting the space, and interacting with the community with the aim of formulating a vision for some kind of arts establishment in Taunton. They also canvassed opinion on what the community think of recent regeneration plans. During this occupation, young people have had the opportunity to make films and music, and passersby have been able to 'get creative' using the resources set up by the artists.
Hopefully some of the ideas generated by the project will feed into future action through the town council and the various arts organisations already in existence in Taunton. Better partnership working and more focus on shared agendas was definitely being advocated today. For example, an arts diary for Taunton was suggested.
For us students, we now have three and a half months to make some work for the show. Can't wait!
Here are some shots of the location, just to give a feel :)
It has been great to meet Nic Brace, a passionate musician and arts facilitator and to continue to work with Tim Martin, the arts bod at the Brewhouse.
