Keelmans Way Competition Winners
Keelman's Way project
Following on from the highly successful artwork collaboration project we started between Gateshead Housing and LLOB in 2008 which resulted in 6 Y11 students designing framed textile pieces for their main reception and one lucky student having her design made into Gateshead Housing's official Christmas card, we were delighted when Chief Executive, Bill Fullen, approached us in July to invite us to produce yet more stunning art for their Head Office walls on Team Valley. Every student in Y8 has been involved in the Keelman's Way project. The theme is based around the 14-mile long Keelman's Way route following the River Tyne from Wylam to Bill Quay and was the source of inspiration for our sketches, ideas, paintings and drawings. The link between Gateshead Housing and this incredible stretch of riverside is they share the word "Keelman" in the name of their new Head Office building - Keelman House - and they wanted a giant wall mural to celebrate this local connection.
For our initial ideas we looked at the route itself, with its fabulous scenery and iconic landmarks, steeped in generations of local history. If you're not too familiar with it, when you travel along the Keelman's Way you are following in the wake of the Keelmen who sailed along the Tyne in flat-bottomed boats called keels, carrying coal to ships at the mouth of the Tyne. We felt it was important to show some of this history within our work and if you look closely at some of our designs you can see references to the coal mining industry in there. The recent Quayside renaissance also allowed us to include some of the newer elements along the Tyne such as the striking Sage and Millennium Bridge alongside older elements such as the Tyne Bridge, Swing Bridge and Baltic building.
The river is also home to a wide variety of wildlife such as herons and cormorants - even the odd seal has been glimpsed upstream! Trying to incorporate as many of these different ideas into a final composition was really challenging for the students as there was so much to choose from, but they all produced work of such a high standard that it was extremely difficult for Bill to judge when he came into school in December with representatives from Gateshead's EBP. However, 2 hours, 2 cups of tea and a packet of biscuits later, they came to a decision and chose the final 6 winners whose work would be incorporated into a 40ft mural for Keelman House. The winners are:
Lucy Forster 8J
Alice Orr 8L
Rachel Dodds 8J
Laura Moody 8B
Ellen Bloomer 8J
Ethan Thoburn 8MSN
Huge congratulations to you all. We can't wait to see your winning designs on display, but definitely can't wait to see our next challenge from Gateshead Housing Company!
If you'd like to read the article on the Culture and Creativity website and comment on the entries, please click on the following link.
