past projects
We work closely with partners, local communities, schools, colleges, universities and the NHS to develop and deliver activities which encourage and create opportunity for artistic endeavour.
Take a look at some of our recent projects and if you would like to find out more, get involved or design a project together we'd love to hear from you.
Old Earth Primary CPD project
A year long project engaging the whole School in continuing professional development. Artist educators worked with teachers and children to develop skills and transfer knowledge across a range of creative subjects, from drawing, environmental art to printmaking and sculpture.
““We’ve used the CPD project to get staff trained up in high quality lessons, working alongside very talented specialists. The sessions have been inspirational...the new skills the school staff are learning as part of the project will serve them well for years to come.” ”
Curriculum linked with The Brooksbank School
In collaboration with The Brooksbank School our Cross Curricular workshops use art as a starting point to explore a new subject area or as a way of tackling challenging areas of the curriculum. We have delivered projects in Maths, English, Science, Business Studies and Languages and seen positive lifts in students attainment and confidence as a result of engaging with the project. Funded with the support of ACE and The Brooksbank School.
Artworks for Health and Wellbeing
An event for health professionals, service users and creative practitioners. Presented by The Artworks in collaboration with NHS SWYFPT Creative Minds and The Nightingale Project.
The day celebrated the power of art and design to transform lives through inspirational stories, compelling case studies and hands on creative workshops. It was also another chance for people to engage with the Quentin Blake exhibition and focus particularly on his arts and health work.
From a Line to..
‘FROM A LINE TO...’ is a year long project promoting the importance of drawing and its capacity to transform lives. Over the course of a year we will be working closely with a range of artists for whom drawing operates as an essential part of their practice. Together we will create and deliver a wide range of workshops, events and exhibitions which celebrate drawing in its broadest sense.
Exhibitions featured under this programme include ‘The Bulging Portfolio of Quentin Blake’, ‘State of Line’; a group survey show of contemporary drawing, ‘Drawing a Day’ a residency come exhibition led by artist educators and focused upon an exploration of drawing practices and processes and ‘The Creative Spiral’ exploring drawing across disciplines (science, maths, music and creative writing) testing the possibilities of this fundamental activity.
The project was funded by Arts Council England and Creative Minds with the support of The WEA, Leeds Beckett University and Sir Quentin Blake CBE.
George's Marvellous Medicine
Why Don't We? is a new Bradford based group, which provides creative opportunities for adults with learning disabilities. They primarily use photography, sound recording and video to address issues, develop communication and increase confidence. The Why Don't We staff wanted to arrange a special treat for their group, something that would feel celebratory but also be a chance for some artistic expression.
Inspired by Roald Dahl's book George's Marvellous Medicine, artists Talya and Lucy devised a workshop which enabled participants to explore their own personalities and concoct a 'recipe' of all the aspects of who they are. Whether it was a pinch of daft and a spoonful of clever, a slice of brave and a sprinkle of curiosity, the group had a good think about what makes them unique and then they designed an illustrated recipe card.
We used their recipes to make fruit smoothies which they drank out of glass bottles they had painted with colourful designs.
The day was filled with laughter and fantastic stories.
Visual Storytelling Sessions
Led by artists Talya Baldwin and Lucy Bergman this project was planned as a series of workshops exploring story telling through illustration and aimed at participants with lived experience of mental ill health including carers and health care professionals. The initial starting points guided participants through a number of illustration techniques with a view to bringing a personal story, memory or special moment to life. The sessions incorporated bookmaking, animation, film and photography and participants were able to explore various artistic processes and develop their own interests to create unique work. The project with the adult group was documented through a short film which was screened at the end of the project during a celebration session.
This project was funded by Creative Minds and delivered in partnership with Healthy Minds and Compass School
Gestural Drawing with Jill Gibbon
Jill Gibbon is an artist and activist, interested in the subversive possibilities of drawing. She generally draws where she is not supposed to – in military bases, arms fairs, and corporate AGMs.
Jill often needs to draw her subjects quickly and with this in mind her session encouraged participants to use only brush and ink, in a loose less laboured style.
Participants took turns to be the model for the rest of the group and the workshop used rapid studies to explore the possibilities of ink drawing.
There was also much discussion around the internal judgmental dialogue we generally experience whilst drawing and how we can learn to learn to ignore the negative voice that might stop us in mid-flow.
The outcomes of the session were a large number of striking, expressive drawings. The playful and fast-paced approach produced images that were able to convey the essence of personality and form using a reductive style.
This workshop was funded by The Arts Council England and supported by Leeds Beckett University. Students from Calderdale College and The Brooksbank School took part in the workshop.
Arte Libre
Refugee Week Calderdale is a community group set up in 2013 to celebrate the contribution made by migrants and refugees to our culture and economy. At its heart, the group is focussed on bringing people from diverse cultural backgrounds together in order to raise cross cultural awareness through participation in fun, inspiring and collaborative ways.
The Arte Libre project, funded by The Peoples Health Lottery, was formed to provide people with opportunities for thought-provoking, creative experiences. Activities that develop skills, strengthen friendships and provide a relaxed, nurturing atmosphere for discussion and expression.
Refugee Week Calderdale decided to deliver the project at The Artworks. Having a unique and friendly venue and tutors with an arts and health focus was key to creating the right inspirational learning environment. Harriet Lawton, tutor at The Artworks developed an artistic programme for the Arte Libre group, rooted in themes of freedom and identity.
The Arte Libre group is made up of people from countries such as Iran, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, India, Nigeria and Uganda as well as people who have lived in Halifax most of their lives. The project culminated in an exhibition of work produced through the a year-long programme of workshop sessions and field trips that have supported the group through a process of creative self-discovery.
We are pleased that the project is still continuing today and can be attended by anyone who would like to meet new people, engage in creative arts activity and celebrate the contribution of migrants in Calderdale.
