Tactile Arts Projects
Give n’ Inch
March 2003
Developed by Jane Wells, Culturegen and April Lewis this was an intergenerational photography project focusing on the industrial and cultural heritage of the north Stafford town area. Funded by West Midlands Arts and Staffordshire Youth and Community Service, the project brought in the services of Mediadivas Dawn Robertson to work with April and the young homeless people at the Bethany Project on Lovatt Street, Stafford to make a photographic record of the buildings in that area.
The young people then consulted with older people at the Northfields Day Centre about their memories of the area and how to turn the photographs into a reminiscence pack for use in day care settings.
The project culminated in an exhibition at the Ancient High House and the launch of the reminiscence pack, which is now available through the library service.
Mirror mirror
October 2004
This was developed by April Lewis and Dawn Robertson as an intergenerational project mirroring young and older people’s lives in the 21st century. Members of the Groove Drop-in Service, which caters for socially excluded young people, attended the Trinity Day Care Centre to interview the older people about their memories and views on life. On a second visit the older people interviewed the young people about their views on life. The recordings and photographic stills were developed into a poignant and thought provoking ten minute video.
The work was funded by Staffordshire Youth and Community Service and the Community Learning Fund targeting the ‘hard to reach’ 19 to 25 age group.
Building Bridges in Silkmore
March 2006
This intergenerational project had a team of 8 young and 9 older people from the Silkmore area of Stafford making links and developing positive relationships. The work was developed by April Lewis of Tactile Arts and Dawn Robertson focusing on the positive and negative images of young and old in the media. The work was funded by Stafford Borough Council’s Anti Social Behaviour funds, the Local Members Initiative and Staffordshire Youth and Community Service. This funding allowed the project to take the team on a two day residential to the Quality Hotel at Penkridge for the team building, art and photography workshops. The young and older people worked in pairs to create positive images of each other; these were developed into a set of 20 framed prints that were exhibited at St Peters church Silkmore and Stafford town Library.
Memories of the Marshes
May 2006
This was an intergenerational oral history project developed by Tactile Arts and Staffordshire Wildlife Trust in partnership with the BBC Radio Stoke Inside Lives Programme. Young people from Doxey interviewed older people in their community about their memories of the Doxey and Tillington Marshes. The young people learned interview, recording and editing techniques and a performance of the finished work was the central focus of the Doxey History Day. Listeners also heard the finished recordings on BBC Radio Stoke Inside Lives Programme July 2006.
The project was funded by The Heritage Lottery Fund, Staffordshire Wildlife Trust with support from BBC Radio Stoke, Staffordshire Youth Service and Doxey Community Association.
Doxey Marshes Family fun Day
July 2006
At the annual Family Fun Day on Doxey Marshes community members were invited to design and make a fabric creature and add it to a prepared wall hanging. Children, some as young as four created fish, snails, worms, ducks, dragon flies, birds and butterflies using fabric, paint, glitter, buttons and sequins. Everyone had fun learning about the wildlife of the Marshes while creating a vibrant wall hanging as a permanent reminder of the day.
Memories of the Marshes
June 2007
As a result of the 2006 project a number of people came forward to have their memories of the marshes included and with the help of additional funding from the Staffordshire Wildlife Trust’s Stafford Local Group, The Heritage Lottery Fund, Argos and Stafford Borough Council a second oral history project was developed. Tactile Arts recorded twelve people whose memories ranged from the 1930s up to the present day. The edited recordings can be accessed via the website www.staffswildlife.org.uk Or phone Staffordshire Wildlife Trust on 01889 880100 for a copy of the Memories of the Marshes booklet.
Mission 12
September 2007
This intergenerational arts project had a team of twelve people on a mission to learn together, enjoy each others company and raise funds for charity by making a calendar for 2008. Six older people from the Pheonix activity club for the over 55’s met with six young people from youth clubs at Holmcroft Youth and Community Centre and learned about digital photography, computer technology and each other. The calendar went on sale in November and raised nearly £500 for Mid Staffs Mencap and the NSPCC.
The project was funded by Staffordshire County Council Arts and Museum Service, Stafford Borough Council Anti-Social Behaviour Fund and the Youth Opportunities Youth Bank.
Been there, bought the T shirt
March 2008
‘Been there, bought the T shirt’ was an intergenerational project where older people in the Cheslyn Hay and Great Wyrley areas passed on their life skills knowledge to young people that were about to leave home for the first time.
A group of sixth form pupils from Cheslyn Hay High School visited three friendship clubs and one day centre in the neighbourhood to interview the older people about their life skills knowledge and make notes of the handy hints they had for independent living. What they learned from this work formed the basis for a booklet that was distributed to all the 6th form pupils.
This work was funded by the Community and Learning Partnership with support from Staffordshire County Council Youth Service and the Great Wyrley Parish Council.
Intergenerational team building day
April 2008
Working in collaboration with Staffordshire Youth Service and Closer to the Edge a team building day was developed for everyone who took part in the ‘Been there, bought the T shirt project’. The purpose of this was for young and older people to come together and by working as a team evaluate the project they had just completed and forward plan future intergenerational projects for themselves or other groups of young and older people in their community.
This work was funded by the Community and Learning Partnership and Staffordshire County Council Youth Service.
Families in the Frame
June 2008
This was a Family Learning project where two people from the same family worked together to create a memory portrait of someone who was special to them using text and imagery. Six families worked on their portraits using internet research, interview techniques, text, photographic scanning and manipulation, print and applied textile construction techniques.
This work was funded by Sir Graham Balfour Family Learning programme.
Gardening Generations
July 2008
This multigenerational project was for the children, young and older people of Cotes Heath and Standon to work together on a garden makeover at All Saints Primary School.
The children, youth club members and older people from the local senior citizens group worked on a design and plan for a large flower bed based on the Olympic rings. The older people also helped the young people to decorate triangles of fabric with good will messages for the future. These triangles were later turned into bunting and displayed around the garden.
The children and youth club members planted up the design and the finished work was unveiled at a celebration garden party. Both young and old had prepared for this event by making cakes and researching traditional playground games for everyone to try out.
This project was funded by the Parish Council and the Youth Opportunities Youth Bank.
Junk Fashion
August 2008
This junk fashion workshop was part of a girls work event by Staffordshire Youth Service for young women in the south Staffordshire area.
The aim was to raise awareness in a fun way about the environmental impact of rubbish being sent to landfill. The young women used waste materials and rubbish to create one off fashion items or dance costumes. They used bubble wrap, plastic dust sheets, scraps of fur fabric, telephone wire and paper held together with staples and glue. This work was funded by Staffordshire Youth Service.