1:42pm Friday 23rd July 2010
By Will Gore
The conventions of the art gallery dictate that paintings, prints and installations should be looked at, carefully considered and analysed from a safe distance, but the Artplay group of young parents, based at Twickenham’s Orleans House, create artwork that young visitors are actively encouraged to pull, push and climb inside, writes Will Gore.
The group have been working with artist Sarah Richardson to create installations out of recycled materials for its latest show, House and Home, and the exhibition, primarily aimed at under-fives, is currently running at the Stables Gallery at Orleans House.
“I am an artist who uses recycled materials all the time, and I have been working with this group for a while now so they are familiar with working with these kinds of materials,” explains Richardson.
“What was most challenging for them, as far as this exhibition was concerned, was that they were forced to think conceptually.
“Rather than doing something like making a name plate for their children’s bedroom door, something that is easy to latch onto because it’s personal, makes sense and is useful, this project has been about extending their artistic ability because they had to think beyond the cardboard box.”
The group have been meeting once a week for the past two months for a day of activities that includes joint art sessions for the parents and their children (generally aged three and under) and separate workshops that allow the parents to develop their artistic skills.
“The parents know what children like and were very conscious of making sure that the work they make is interactive,” adds Richardson.
“The group is called Artplay and the play element is what we want young visitors to do, but the way we approach the work is also very playful.”
Using cardboard boxes, newspaper, bubble wrap and plenty of other discarded materials, the young parents have come up with an array of dazzling installations – plentyfor the young, and the young at heart, to get their hands on.
Artplay 3: House and Home, Orleans House, Twickenham, until August 29, for details visit richmond.gov.uk
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