Hi, I'm Lawrence, and I facilitate inclusive art workshops predominantly for children, regardless of their ability or needs.
The workshops implement various artistic techniques, from mark making to illustrative skills, producing a co-created art piece that can be exhibited in participants' school or community. These immersive and educational sessions develop artistic growth by encouraging both self-expression and collaboration, producing an outcome that everybody involved has contributed to and feels a sense of connection to.
The overall purpose of these sessions is to inspire a sense of creativity and mastery in the next generation while teaching them transferrable skills that extend beyond the arts.
My own journey started as a self-taught artist based in Nottingham, where I spent numerous years developing my skills and a distinctive style. Now, I'm passionate about bringing people of all ages and abilities together through collaborative creation.
Drawing from my experience with large-format artworks, and taking inspiration from rich, narrative-filled scenes, I guide participants in creating collective pieces, where every participant contributes their unique voice to a larger artistic vision.
To discuss how these sessions could be suited to the young people you work with, and be catered to your particular requirements, get in touch with me via hello@lawrencejamesenglish.com or 07813489208.
Below are some examples of what my sessions can incorporate. Explore photos from past sessions and read about them in the drop down menus.
This workshop is designed to create a collaborative and interactive artwork display using a clothes line to serve as a base for participant's artwork. We engage in multimedia exercises to create unique artwork on pre-prepared design templates that, when hung on the clothes line, connect as a cohesive series of designs that form a long collaborative piece of art. These sessions incorporate exercises with multiple levels of accessibility to ensure all students can participate regardless of their abilities.
Session goals and outcomes:
Self expression through accessible art-making activities
Build positive relationships through collaboration
Grow independence and confidence by making individual contributions and being encouraged to make creative decisions on artwork placement
Exposure to fun painting methods and techniques that utilise interesting and unorthodox tools, such as paint scrapers and combs.
Sensory exploration through interactive exercises, enhancing motor skills in younger participants
Freedom to engage at their own ability level, from simple mark making to more advanced activities or creating original artwork
An interactive animation exercise, using a homemade Zoetrope, where participants can observe a short sequence of spinning images that gives the illusion of motion. The creative element of this session comes in when we take the individual frames of the image sequence to creatively and playfully adapt them using different techniques and mediums. This allows participants to see their contributions come to life as they're incorporated into the original animation.
Session goals and outcomes:
Self expression through accessible creativity
Connect with peers through collaboration
Interact with a traditional form of animation, outside of digital technologies
Grow independence and confidence by being encouraged to use the Zoetrope independently to understand how it works
Grow an understanding of how images can come together to create a visual story
Freedom to engage at their own ability level, from simply observing the animation, to mark making, to more advanced activities
In this workshop, collaborative artwork is made to be displayed and showcase the group's collective efforts. The overall objective is to build upon a mural that has been partially prepared in advance, through various creative activities, and with different levels of accessibility to ensure inclusive participation for all students.
Session goals and outcomes:
Gain an understanding of how an intricate, detailed piece of art, that is more than the sum of its parts, can take shape through collaboration and collective efforts
Creative engagement through accessible art-making activities
Build positive relationships through collaboration
Grow independence and confidence by making individual contributions and being encouraged to make creative decisions on the mural
Sensory exploration through interactive exercises, enhancing motor skills in younger participants
Freedom to engage at their own ability level, from simple mark making to more advanced activities or creating original artwork
After this workshop is complete, every participant can receive a copy of the T-shirt they have collectively designed. Using a pre-prepared T-shirt template projected onto a wall to serve as a base for adding participants work, these sessions incorporate various creative activities with multiple levels of accessibility, creating artwork that is photographed and immediately incorporated into the final design. By making a tangible finished product that can be worn, participants connect to the utility of art and its potential for decorating the objects we use every day.
What participants get out of this session:
Hands-on experience with both traditional art techniques and digital design
Gain an understanding of how individual contributions can build into a larger design and create something more than the sum of its parts
Freedom to engage at their own ability level, from simple exercises to more advanced activities or creating original artwork
Creative engagement through accessible art-making activities
Build positive relationships through collaboration
Grow independence and confidence by making individual contributions and being encouraged to make creative placement decisions on the final design