Art & Design | Oakfield Academy

Our Specialist Art Teacher: Ms Hannah Mundy

Creative opportunities at Oakfield Academy: Art & Design

At Oakfield Academy, we aim to instil a lifelong love of art and creativity in our pupils. Art is not only a vehicle for self-expression; it can also help to build self-esteem, self-confidence and give pupils a sense of ambition and hope for a fulfilling future.

Over the course of a 4-year curriculum, Oakfield pupils learn a range of skills and knowledge including:

The language skills and essential knowledge to be able to discuss and analyse art – their own work and that of other artists.
How to work with a wide range of mediums, for example: paint, print-making, clay and mod-roc; collage, photography and more.
To have a bank of knowledge of a range of artists and movements across time and place. Within each project or unit, pupils will learn about an artist and are then encouraged to explore their own creativity based on the medium or meaning of the work of that artist. At Oakfield, pupils are free to experiment and take risks with their ideas.
We are always working to improve the curriculum by working with other subjects. Next academic year, Computing and art will work together on a photography unit. Science and art will come together to enhance pupils’ knowledge of colour theory. Art and drama collaborate regularly with set design.
Alongside an exciting and varied curriculum, pupils are given opportunities to enter local and national art competitions, such as the Black Swan Young Open and the Frome Town Hall Christmas card competition.

The art department runs clubs for our ambitious young artists, including a KS3 specialist art club and a lunchtime comic club.

Frome is a thriving creative hub, with many artists and other creatives choosing to live here. This is wonderful for the Academy, as we have been able to invite local artists to the Academy, for a range of purposes: to create lanterns for the Frome Lantern Parade; artwork for the local ‘Window Wanderland’ event; or, creating collaborative murals to brighten up the school.

We are lucky to have Hauser & Wirth commercial gallery nearby; this well-known international organisation celebrates and supports local schools: we aim to hold regular trips to enhance pupils’ knowledge of contemporary art, and to help them better understand that there are many career opportunities in art & design.

Oakfield Academy celebrates effort and ambition in art.

Hauser & Wirth Visit - KS3 Art Club

Exhibition: Phyllida Barlow. unscripted

KS3 Art club had an inspirational experience at Hauser & Wirth gallery and education centre last week. Pupils enjoyed learning about the artist Phyllida Barlow, a celebrated British sculptor who was inspired by everyday objects and materials. The visit took the form of an educator-led interactive tour of the exhibition, followed by a session where pupils worked collaboratively to respond to the exhibition. The Phyllida Barlow exhibition runs into 2025 and I would recommend a visit. Entry is free.

https://www.hauserwirth.com/

Hauser & Wirth KS Art club

Lantern Parade

The annual Lantern Parade in Frome last Friday, with Oakfield year 8 pupils contributing beautiful fallow deer light sculptures. A big thank you to local artists, Mel Day and Alice Vaas from ‘Light the Night’, who lead the lantern workshops and parade each year. Thank you also to our fantastic year 8s, who came along on the night to join the parade. The Oakfield deer are on display in Frome museum over Christmas - please drop by and say hello to them.

Lantern Parade 2024

Kandinsky -Year 5

In year 5, pupils have been studying the artist Kandinsky, to inspire new ways of looking, and thinking about art. Kandinsky is seen as the father of abstract art, as his work moved towards abstraction later in his career. Kandinsky felt a powerful connection to music and used it to inspire his work. Our pupils have followed in his footsteps, producing artwork in response to music. Please enjoy these exploratory pieces from 5N, showing how pupils generated ideas before beginning their final piece using a new medium, oil pastel.

Kandinsky

KS3 Art Club

I have been impressed by pupils’ mature approach in the art club this term. Pupils are creative, enthusiastic and have enjoyed exploring their own ideas, independently. Here are some examples of work in progress: we have sculptors, watercolourists, graphic designers, typographers, cartoonists,costume-makers and more... What a talented group!

In December, the art club is looking forward to a trip to Bruton gallery and art education centre, 'Hauser & Wirth'. The aim of this trip is for pupils to enjoy the Phyllida Barlow exhibition and then experience the H&W learning centre.

KS3 Art Club

Year 7 -Colour Mixing

This term, year 7 pupils have been exploring colour mixing. We began by discussing the colour wheel, which is a useful tool to support understanding of the basic principles of colour theory. Pupils then explored colour mixing using pencil and watercolour. Finally, they applied their knowledge to observational paintings of leaves. I was impressed by their focus and observational skills - I hope you enjoy the range of examples here.

Art colour mixing

Year 8 Exploring mark-making and composition

This term, year 8 pupils have been working with a range of mediums and mark-making techniques, to explore ‘value’. In last week's session, pupils began by working collaboratively, mark-making with charcoal, chalk and graphite sticks. After this challenge, we discussed composition: filling a space in a beautiful or interesting way. Using view-finders, pupils
selected images that demonstrated ‘high value’: an image that is high contrast and contains a full range of tints, tones and shades. I hope you enjoy these examples of their choices.

Pupils’ reflections showed that they enjoyed this collaborative experience, as it gave them the freedom to experiment and make their own choices.

Art exploring mark-making and composition

My Voice Matters

Oakfield Academy 'My Voice Matters' pupil photography project and exhibition

Oakfield Academy held a special photography exhibition at the Silk Mill Studios & Gallery in Frome on Tuesday and Wednesday 23-24 July to celebrate pupils’ work in an exciting new project to help build pupil confidence and learn new skills.

‘My Voice Matters’ was a small group project aimed at providing 10 participating pupils (in Key Stage 3) with a positive, confidence-building experience, encouraging them to use photography as a means of communicating their thoughts and ideas throughout the summer term 2024.

The project came about from an award of Curriculum Enrichment funding to the Oakfield Academy art department, given to support a one-off project for local pupils.

Well-known film photographer, Joss Barratt, lives in Frome and generously gave his time and expertise to teach pupils visual literacy, as well as supporting the curation of the exhibition. Frome-based Dr Katy Brickley, a researcher who has experience of running photovoice projects with adults with learning disabilities, also provided key support throughout the project.

Emma Wilkes, Headteacher at Oakfield Academy, says

“The exhibition was stunning and it was a genuine pleasure to witness many of the moments when families of the pupils taking part saw the exhibition, and to see our pupils’ genuine pride in what they have achieved. Well done to all involved.”

Hannah Mundy, Head of Art at Oakfield Academy and ‘My Voice Matters’ project leader, says

“The exhibition was a success, with pupils and their families and the local community all enjoying the exhibition. It has been hugely rewarding to see our pupils growing in confidence and self-esteem throughout the summer term.”

“Following the event, we were delighted to learn that Peradam Print, a local giclée printing company in Frome, has offered a generous award to Oscar Hughes, a participating pupil, in recognition of his hard work on the project.”

We are grateful to local businesses, professionals, and the wider community for their support and encouragement. Following our success, we hope to run another ‘My Voice Matters’ project next year.”

The ‘My Voice Matters’ project used elements of the ‘photovoice’ method to support pupils to develop a ‘voice’: to build self-confidence, help them to recognise their creative potential, and develop a stronger sense of place and belonging within school. ‘Photovoice’ is a type of participatory action research where people use photographs to picture their environment and experiences and to help them express their thoughts and feelings.

Oakfield Academy hopes to run another ‘My Voice Matters’ project in 2025 and will be seeking local sponsors and support. For further information, please contact Hannah Mundy or for further details at hmundy@oakfieldacademy.org.uk

My Voice Matters

Year 8 Final Unit : Figurative Sculpture

This is our last opportunity to see the wonderful work of the year 8 pupils. For their final unit, we worked on figurative sculpture. The pupils liked being creative using wire and mod roc - very messy. I hope you enjoy the work of the following pupils, who worked so hard on their sculptures.

Loki Woodbury - man in mask, Martha Riggs - Thomas Jefferson, Mae Bairstow - Po, Devon Cooper - crouching figure, Rio Carrero - warrior figure, Luna Psa-Treadway - footballer, Archie Sandy - Spooderman, Florence Parker - rat & Hannah Puleston - pig .

Figurative sculpture

Morphs

Morphs created by: Lily Mercer, Tara Brooks and Faye Chapman

Morphs

One Love Drama Production

Well done to members of the art club, who created a vibrant, imaginative set to support the recent 'One Love' drama production. Next year, there will be an art/ set design club - more information to follow. Thank you to:

Patrick Puletson 6A - font

Imogen Speddings 7O - heart

Rose Scott 7O - mushroom

Bea Baylis 7A - giant mushroom

One Love production

Year 7 Gaudi Project

Year 7 - Gaudi project

This term, year 7 pupils have been learning about the Spanish architect, Antoni Gaudi. They began the project by creating a beautiful research page, containing facts about Gaudi's life, as well as reflecting his love of organic forms by including collage and observed natural objects. I was impressed by pupils' thoughtful application of colour and shape, and their creative use of wax resist technique. The next step of the project is to create a clay piece
inspired by Gaudi's architectural features, focusing on shape, form and colour.

Imogen Speddings 7O, Amber Hunter-Evans 7O, Ivy Sledge 7O, Ethel Downes 7N, Minty Mitchard 7N, Jess Curtis 7S, Tasha Ping 7C, Jacob Cowler 7N &
Rosie Milkins 7A

Gaudi

Year 8 Printmaking - Linocuts

This term, year 8 worked on printmaking techniques. Pupils began by experimenting with mark-making into poly-tiles, producing simple, single-colour monoprints. After this, they created a range of linocut designs inspired by the work of Pop artist Roy Lichtenstein. Linoprint is a challenging printmaking method; I was impressed by pupils' perseverance and determination to complete the various stages involved in the process, as well as their interesting experiments with colour. Please enjoy the work of the following pupils:

Linocuts

Year 5 Observational drawings

This term, year 5 pupils have been focusing on observational drawing: they have been taught to study an object carefully and draw what they see. Pupils applied their prior knowledge of mark-making techniques to create interesting and beautiful drawings. Ms Thomas and Ms Higgins selected the following pupils' observations of peppers as examples that demonstrate effort and ambition in art. Well done to:

Logan Ladd 5C, Alice Humphreys 5N,Joseph Prochazka 5C,Lexi-May Joyce 5N, & Chase Parker 5N

observational drawings

Ambitious Artists Year 5

Oakfield Artists of the Week - Year 5

This week, we are celebrating ambitious artists in year 5. Pupils have been mark-making on clay to create these beautifully designed 'Hamsa' hands (Hamsa, or 'khamsa', means 'five' in Arabic). Thank you to the following pupils for sharing their excellent examples:

Max Baily 5S/FLG, Miles Harper 5S, Lacey Jean Stelcel 5A, Archie Campbell-Brooks 5A, Ramesa Khan 5A, Marcella Saye 5R, Ottilie Timms 5R, Ocean Bowker-Ghey 5R, Hannah Murphy-Gay 5S

A special mention to Aiden Kennedy 6R, who produced a wonderful piece of independent work, based on the Japanese artist, Yayoi Kusama:

Ambitious Artists Year 5

Window Wonderland Feb 24

Frome 'Window Wanderland' is a fun community festival, where anyone in Frome can make a display in their windows for the public to view throughout the coming weekend (Friday 1 – 3 March 2024). Please visit the Window Wanderland website to access the map so you can plan your route and take part in the walk.

https://www.windowwanderland.com/event/frome-2024/

At Oakfield, our Wanderland windows celebrate our upcoming play, ‘Macbeth’, which is taking place on 20 March. Congratulations to year 6, who all took part to create a collaborative piece at the front of the school - please check out the drama studio windows, as well as the windows further along the block.

Here are some examples of pupils’ work (but they will look even better if you view them in the evening, on your Wanderland walk!). Special thanks to Thomas and Sam, who helped me put up the work, as well as working on the giant murals.

Thomas Higgins 6R

Sam Incledon 6R

Florence Andrews 6R

Isla Castle 6O

Window Wonderland

Oakfield Celebrates Ambitions Artists

'Ambition' is a core concept of Oakfield's Infinity Curriculum. Practice makes perfect in any skill; pupils who keep a sketchbook, or produce art at home, will have an advantage when they move onwards in their art education. It is a pleasure to get to see the artwork that Oakfield pupils have produced at home or in our art club. This week, I would like to celebrate the following pupils, who demonstrate ambition in art:

Bea Baylis 7A
Imogen Speddings 7O
Elsabeth Harper 7O
Scarlett Kotyrba 7N
Ethel Downes 7N
Louie Nicholls 8O

Ambitious Artists

Year 6 Focussing on art form : Artist Yayio Kusama

This term, year 6 pupils have been focusing on the wonderful work of the female Japanese artist, Yayoi Kusama: she is famous for her vibrant sculptures and 'infinity room' installations (where the whole room or space is an immersive artwork). Within the unit, pupils have been working with the elements colour, texture and form. I look forward to showing you their clay sculptures in a few weeks' time - in the meantime, I hope you enjoy pupils' drawings, which are based on Kusama's giant flower sculptures.

Special mention to year 7 pupils: Tye Coates, Indigo Dixon and Zoja Biela-Claire.

Year 7 were given an extended homework: an 'animal/self-portrait' task to support understanding of portrait structure and proportions. Congratulations to Tye, Indigo and Zoja, who worked hard to produce high quality artwork in their own time.

Yayoi Kusama

Colour and Composition ; Georgia O'Keeffe

This term, year 8 pupils have been focusing on colour and composition: learning how to mix colours effectively and how to fill a space in a beautiful way in a work of art. To support their learning, they have been studying the work and life of the American artist, Georgia O'Keeffe. She loved natural forms and spent much of her life in the wilderness of New Mexico, painting what she saw; some of her favourite subjects were flowers, bones and landscape.

In their sketchbooks, year 8s have worked on observational paintings of animal skulls and flowers - the skills focus was on colour mixing and creating an interesting composition.

Colour and Composition

Value Depth & Luminosity

This term, year 8 pupils have been focusing on the element of ‘value’: how to create an effect of depth and luminosity in a work of art. They also worked on balanced composition: the careful placement of the subject or objects within a work of art. The pupils’ final assessed piece was an observational study of seashells. Pupils selected an effective composition, produced a line drawing in their sketchbooks, and finally, enlarged their drawings using a grid technique. Using charcoal as their medium, their final focus was on creating a ‘high value’ piece of work, through the use of a full range of tints (highlights) and shades (dark tones). I hope you enjoy these examples.

Early Graffiti & pop artist Keith Haring

Oakfield Academy celebrates effort and ambition in art. This week's year 6 pupils have been working in the style of the early graffiti and pop artist, Keith Haring. The study of known artists helps our pupils to gain inspiration, develop technical skills and understand more about the history of art.

Also included today, two pieces of art from our specialist art club: