25 June 2004

Award winning design

Images of the project are available from the University Press Office.

A collaborative design project involving students at the University of Dundee and school pupils at St Mary's Primary in Lochee, is being given a national award by the Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport today (Friday 25 June).

Chris Biddlecomb, Interior Design Tutor at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design and Nicholas Marra, Headteacher of St Mary’s Lochee are at Mount Stuart on the Isle of Bute today to receive the engage Scotland Visual Art Education Awards in association with the Scottish Arts Council from Frank McAveety.

Twenty interior design students from Duncan of Jordanstone worked on a stunning design project with 50 young pupils in St Mary's Primary School, transforming a old stairwell in the 1930s Fiskin building into an ascendance of carefully selected colour and light shafting to create atmosphere and maximise the school's aesthetic experience.

The project, the first of its kind in Scotland, was given £10,475 funding by the Scottish Arts Council to create a permanent new design solution for the school interior. The brief contained five different areas which five teams of students and pupils worked on together. The groups looked at the banisters; the windows and lights; the basement area with a team each for ground floor and first floor display window areas. The pupils and students took their design ideas right through to completion and are now enjoying their new modern environment in the school.

Headteacher Nicholas Marra explained: "This was an excellent project for our pupils to be involved in. They were excited, motivated and enthused when they realised that their creative ideas were to be central in the design process. They learned so much from group work with the design students from Duncan of Jordanstone who treated the children as equals throughout the creative process. The children's illustrations are now a main and permanent feature in one of the designed window spaces and we created beautiful boxes and galleries to display the children's art work. This makes them feel that their work is valued - an essential part of educational achievement.

He continues: "One of the pupils asked me after the class visit to Duncan of Jordanstone how he would get to art college. The seed of higher education had been planted in his mind. Projects such as these are an excellent way to raise children's aspirations and let them realise their potential."

Chris Biddlecombe, tutor in interior design at the University of Dundee said: "The students gained so much from this project. They became the teachers, seeking information from the children. They had to listen to the children's ideas and develop them into sophisticated design concepts. They discovered that the children's ideas could be translated into very interesting and successful designs. Working on a live project was highly beneficial for the students. They had to consider health and safety issues and budgetary constraints. The project took them from designing in the college into the real world where they developed skills in negotiation and compromise and a generosity of spirit. It was a highly enjoyable project for all concerned and extremely valuable for our students learning."

The award to the Dundee project is one of nine awards being made today for art projects all over Scotland. The award winners all won a cheque for one thousand pounds - which they will reinvest in future projects.

Frank McAveety said: "The Visual Arts Education Awards recognise those projects which have demonstrated exceptional collaboration between artists, galleries and communities. Art can reach people from every community, it can educate, it can enrich lives, and it can revitalise both the individual and the community in which they live."

Chris Naylor, Director of engage, which champions gallery education and access programmes, said: "We are delighted to have been invited to take over the management of these awards, now in their third year, from the Scottish Arts Council. These awards highlight the great work being done by artists, educators and galleries in Scotland to bring enjoyment of the arts to the widest audience, and credit the many partner agencies and funders who make this possible."

For interviews with Chris Biddlecomb and Nicholas Marra call Jenny Marra in the Press Office on 01382 344910.

By Jenny Marra, Head of Press 01382 344910, out of hours: 07968298585, j.m.marra@dundee.ac.uk