My Country Arts Award

An Arts Award Exhibition for Takeover Day

Over the last six weeks we have had the pleasure of welcoming Rebecca to The MERL on Supported Work Placement. Rebecca is a student in Reading College’s LLD/D (Learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities department) and she has spent her time with us learning about the museum, being inspired by our collections and has worked towards her Bronze Arts Award. She has created her own works of art inspired by her time at the museum and today she has officially ‘taken over’ our displays with an exhibition of her fabulous work. In this blog you can learn a little bit more about the steps she has taken to share her experiences, her inspirations and the art she has created.

My Arts Award Takeover exhibition: My Country Arts Award!

Welcome to my exhibition! I am doing an Arts Award as part of my work placement at The MERL. I have been on placement for six weeks. For my first week I got to know people and the museum and the collections. This museum was the best experience and I have learned so much history about the people and animals in the countryside. I then used this experience to create my own art work which, in my last week, I have put into the case. I hope you enjoy what I have done! I feel very proud and happy as I have always wanted my art in a museum and my dream has come true!

Here are the steps I have taken to Takeover The MERL today!

Step 1: Eat some food!

Student sitting in the staff room behind a table full of cakes and snacks before preparing her Arts Award exhibition for Takeover Day

Step 2: Sort out the easels!

Student holding a small wooden table easel

Step 3: Preparing the materials

Copies of black and white archive pictures on a table with a red and white spotted tablecloth

Step 4: Spraying the images with Spray Mount and fixing them to the board

Step 5: We open the case and move Bob the Blackbird (the current exhibition)

Student carrying large picture of blackbird on a purple background

Step 6: Putting the sticky tape on the back of the boards

Student fixing tape to the back of a mounted image

Step 7: Put the pictures on the wall

Student standing inside a big glass case putting up a picture with a member of staff looking on

Step 8: Put my own work on the wall!

Archive pictures and student's own artwork mounted on a black wall in a glass case

Step 9: We visit Fred who lends us a box and tissue paper for the display.

Student artwork displayed in a glass case

Step 10: Fetch the book support from the Reading Room

Student in standing in front of archive drawers holding a book mount

Step 11: Case closed!

Student standing on a step ladder in front of a glass case with artwork

Step 12: Finish my work with Phillippa!

Student standing in front of a glass case displaying archive images and her own artwork

Discover more about our Learning and Engagement programmes by visiting our website or contacting our staff at merlevents@reading.ac.uk

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