On 2 March our Year 12 art pupils and 'sew smart' pioneers embarked on an expedition to London's iconic Hayward Gallery to immerse themselves in the world of contemporary art. The much-anticipated exhibition, "When Forms Come Alive", promised an exploration spanning over 60 years of contemporary sculpture. This exhibition highlighted ways in which artists draw on familiar experiences of movement, flux and organic growth.
Read the review of the trip by Mr Kopiel, teacher of Art
Situated in the Southbank Centre on the River Thames, the Hayward Gallery stood as a bastion of brutalist architecture. A fitting backdrop for the eclectic array of artworks housed within.
Inspired by sources ranging from a dancer’s gesture to the breaking of a wave, from a flow of molten metal to the interlacing of a spider’s web, the artworks in "When Forms Come Alive" conjure fluid and shifting realms of experience.
Undulating, drooping, erupting, cascading and promiscuously proliferating, these sculptures invite a tactile gaze, and trigger physical responses. In an era when our encounters are increasingly digitised and disembodied, these artworks call to mind the pleasures of gesture and movement, the poetics of gravity and the experience of sensation itself.”
The exhibition showcased a diverse selection of works by acclaimed artists from around the globe, each offering a unique perspective. Students completed drawings and made observations in concertina sketchbooks, responding to work that would help them develop their personal investigations and would inform the workshop the following day.
There were many highlights in the exhibition, from moving foam sculptures to sci fi installations made from everyday materials. However, the main highlight was off course our students who impressed their teachers with their curiosity and engagement with the works exhibited. It was clear from the outcome they produced that they embraced the opportunity to challenge themselves and consider they variety of ways artists make and present their work.
