As a designer/maker, one of my main aims was to share a range of techniques, skills and influences with the pupils, encouraging them to actively explore their creativity in a manner they may have not yet experienced.
I was keen to be supportive of the pupils’ thoughts and interpretations, encouraging discussions and sharing ideas. They developed thought-provoking and emotive work, through newly acquired skills and abilities, to produce pieces using a range of mixed media. The combination of traditional and contemporary application and production methods proved to be an effective way of relaying the survivor’s story and reflective of the desire to learn from the historical aspects, consider current lifestyles and mindful of the positive aims for the future.
The final products included a design collection of three main elements — namely, a collection of mini canvases created using acrylic paints/mixed media; lamp shades, representative of the importance of key people and events within Zdenka’s life; a chair covering inspired by a traditional patchwork blanket that also serves asm a contemporary ‘memory quilt’ — featuring artwork, designs and textiles techniques representing the life, influences and hopes of the survivor and the pupils in a creative manner.