Creative Arts Students Take Part in Trigger Project
Last week, 20 learners across a range of Creative Arts subjects came together for a week-long, sustainability-focused, visual skills ‘Nurture’ project. This was a collaborative project delivered by the North Somerset Production Arts company, Trigger, where groups of students from Fashion, Media, Art & Design, and Music worked together to bring a themed visual concept to life.
Trigger is a company that aim to interrupt daily life by reimagining and reviving public spaces, as well as amplifying local voices and issues that are important to them and the community. They are made up of a diverse team of artists and creatives who want to push the boundaries of art by creating large-scale, live events and imaginative spaces. They have worked on a range of projects across North Somerset, and the ‘Nurture’ project with our students is just one of them.
Throughout the week, students were split into three groups containing a mixture of courses in order to bring different skills to the group, each exploring a theme. Two groups explored the theme ‘Nature & Tech’ in different ways, with one group focusing on different seasons of a tree and the emotions they elicit, whilst the other looked into how nature and technology can work together to create a positive outcome. The final group chose something a bit different, deciding on the theme, ‘A Choice to Die’ where they discussed assisted living and created an emotional scene of a hospital room.
The students were introduced to the brief of the project, outlining the creative challenge where they were asked to spend the week creating a live performance, installation, or exhibition based on a chosen theme. They had to run through marketing strategies including budgets, time management, possible future improvements, and their target audience to establish the thoughts and meanings behind their projects.
The week began with students planning and brainstorming their ideas before beginning their designs and visiting a scrap shop to collect their chosen materials. They set off with creating their unique projects, each using their knowledge and expertise to create a collaborative, cross-disciplinary piece which was presented in the final showing on the last day of the project.
This collaborative project had many benefits to the students’ personal and professional growth. It allowed them to work with a range of industry professionals, as well as with other students who specialise in different mediums which enhanced their ideas. They also got to explore and research different issues which gave them more awareness and engagement with the community.
Additionally, students got to manipulate the powerful medium of art outside of a classroom setting, using it to create visual pieces that attempt to combat issues and make a meaningful difference in the community. It refines their techniques without outsider perspectives and boosts their confidence by getting them to present their work to others.
Lynsey McKinstry, the Strategic Business Partnership Manager at Weston College, said: "Collaborating with local visionary production arts companies like Trigger brings our Creative, Media and Music curriculum to life in the most powerful way. Opportunities like the ‘Nurture’ project provide our learners with invaluable enrichment; immersing them in real-world, industry-led experiences that reflect the pace, creativity and cross collaboration required for careers in the creative industries.”
“We are incredibly grateful to Phoebe Stringer and Natalie Skidmore at Trigger, along with our dedicated faculty teams for their work in guiding and inspiring our students throughout this intensive week. Projects like this underpin our Creative Careers Excellence Hubs; where talent is nurtured and where the creative professionals of tomorrow begin their journey into industry."
A huge thank you to Trigger for spending a week with our students, developing their skills and helping them to create the meaningful projects that were shown to the public. Your efforts have positively impacted the students and given them practical experience of working with an external company.
Well done to all the students who got involved, you created some fantastic pieces of work and represented Weston College with maturity and professionalism.
If you’re interested in applying to one of our Creative Arts courses, click here.
