Hanson: Design project’s success

A national design project run in conjunction with the V&A Museum in London involved Year 8s from Hanson Academy.

DesignLab Nation vam.ac.uk involved visits to the V&A, Cartwright Hall Art Gallery, Industrial Museum, (both Bradford), and city industrial partner Melrose Interiors.

Workshops in school took place throughout the academic year, with the project organised by Head of Design Technology and Art Gemma Postings and DT teacher Jonathan Barton. It was fully funded by DesignLab Nation partners.

Gemma said: “It was a privilege to be chosen.

This has been an exciting project that has really opened the eyes of our students and provided them with a range of experiences that they wouldn’t normally receive. This has inspired many of them to look at careers within the creative industries.”

DesignLab Nation brings together secondary schools in partnership with the V&A, regional museums and creative industries to inspire students and support teachers.

Students at Hanson Academy worked with local designer Zahid Rauf and staff at the V&A and Bradford District Museums. Students were challenged to design a textile which would support or enhance a routine, ritual or tradition related to them.

Kate Kennedy, Learning Producer at the V&A, said it had been “fantastic” working with students from Hanson Academy.

“Over the course of the project, we have seen students develop their passion, enthusiasm and confidence for design through engaging with national and regional museum collections and DLN designer, Zahid Rauf,” she said.

“We hope this experience will encourage students to select a creative subject at GCSE and become the next generation of designers, makers, and innovators. Thank you to all Hanson teachers for their support throughout the project.”

Emma Reimer, Learning Officer at Bradford District Museums and Galleries said: “The students (and teachers) have been a pleasure to work with on this project and have produced some fantastic final pieces of work.

It was great to see them taking so much inspiration from Cartwright Hall Art Gallery, Bradford Industrial Museum and the V&A Museum (London) and you could see this reflected in their final designs. We’re looking forward to displaying the designs to a wider audience at Cartwright Hall Art Gallery.”

DesignLab Nation is generously supported by Art Jameel as part

More than 220 students visited Yorkshire Sculpture Park near Wakefield in Hanson Academy’s biggest ever trip.

The Year 7 day out was organised by Head of Design Technology and Art Gemma Postings. She said: “For many of our students this was the first time they had ever visited an art museum and seen artwork and sculptures in real life. Students got to see a range of different artworks including the current exhibition by American artist Robert Indiana. This was a first for many.” of their V&A Jameel Programme. This year’s other regional partner schools are from Blackpool, Ipswich and Plymouth.

The Year 8 students involved in the project were Millie, Jacob, Joe, Jasbir, Mirza, Diya, Katie, Jenson, Kaiden, Keitija, Nasiha, Josie, Lillie-Faye, Ihtisham, Sophia, Paige, Dawoud, Brody, Amber, and Zuzanna.