Latest News

29th May 2009

Chelmer Valley High School students learn the art of glass with leading UK glasswork artist

On Thursday 21st and Friday 22nd May GCSE art students at Chelmer Valley High School were given a taste of something completely different when leading UK artist Sasha Ward provided them with a two hour skill sharing workshop on the design and development of glasswork sculptures and their impact on public spaces.

Sasha is one of seven artists who have been commissioned by Bouygues UK, the construction firm building the new Broomfield Hospital, to create seven public art commissions for the new hospital in partnership with the Broomfield Arts Project. Each of the artists has been tasked with creating a commission for specific areas within the new hospital, with Sasha responsible for the Maternity ward on the fourth floor of the new building where the theme is ‘Village and Hamlets’.

As part of Sasha’s development of her theme, the glasswork specialist spent time with two separate groups of GCSE art students at Chelmer Valley High School to provide them with an insight into the glasswork process and to investigate their perceptions of ‘Villages and Hamlets’ which should incorporate features of the surrounding Essex countryside.

The students were then given an opportunity to sketch out some designs to represent the ‘Villages and Hamlets’ theme, with a selection of some of the best designs potentially being incorporated into Sasha’s final glasswork commission.

Speaking of the event, Sasha said: “I wanted to show the students the process of approaching a commission like this and it was really interesting to get their feedback on the environment in which they live. I also thought it was important to give them an insight into a particular specialism within the art world to highlight the scope of different careers available to them”.

Jacqui Watson, Head of Art at Chelmer Valley High School, said: “Sasha’s workshop was a great way to show the students how an artist works as a professional and how similar the way she develops her work is to the way the students pursue their own artistic projects. We are really hoping that some of the students’ ideas will feature in aspects of Sasha’s designs for Broomfield Hospital and look forward to seeing her again in the Autumn term”.

Lionel Christolomme, Managing Director for Bouygues UK which is building Broomfield Hospital and funding seven art commissions there, says: “Working with Chelmer Valley High School students is a great way to extend the work we are already doing with the seven artists commissioned for Broomfield Hospital and we are really excited about incorporating some of the students’ designs into the final piece. Their interpretation of the local landscape into a piece of work like this will undoubtedly bring a fresh approach to the project.”

Notes to Editors

The new PFI hospital being constructed by Bouygues UK will mean that all of the Trust’s acute services will be centralised within the Broomfield Hospital site. Completion of this project will create a single acute hospital site in Mid Essex, providing first class facilities for the local population. This new facility will be complete by August 2010 with the existing hospital remaining in use throughout the construction period.

Bouygues UK  www.bouygues-uk.com

Bouygues UK is a subsidiary of Bouygues Construction – a world-leading construction and services group. The company provides a fully integrated design, build, finance and operate service across a broad range of sectors with a particular focus on education, healthcare, housing and commercial as well as urban regeneration and property development.
Bouygues UK is committed to the integral role art plays in the design process of public spaces and the company’s track record of community installations includes the Home Office HQ, West Middlesex Hospital and Central Middlesex Hospital.

Contact Details

• For more information on Bouygues UK please contact External Communications Manager Sara Schmid on 020 7401 0035 or sara.schmid@bouygues-uk.ltd.uk

• For more information on Mid Essex Hospital Services NHS Trust please contact Head of Communications Jo Triggs on 01245 514235 or joanne.triggs@meht.nhs.uk

• For more information on the Broomfield Arts Project, please contact Tim Ward on 020 8505 5120

ENDS

Media contact : Jo Triggs tel: (01245) 514235 | Mobile : 0790 005 4948