Experimental Approaches to Creativity

Learn and explore different techniques and media to find innovative solutions to creative and aesthetic problems.

The emphasis of this course is exploration, experimentation and playfulness whilst enjoying the process of making with a range of materials and approaches. Through this you will discover expressive ways to use colour, mark making and combinations of different media including paint, charcoal, pastels, collage, basic printmaking and oil/water resist.

Using a range of sources for inspiration - including contemporary and historical artists, working from the landscape, objects and moving images etc. - you will build confidence by allowing yourself to make mistakes. Embracing these moments is often pivotal in helping us move forward in our creative development.

This course will give students permission to develop their own creative language and to take their work in a personal direction. The structure of each 10-week term will generally be divided in half with weeks 1-5 as a series of sessions led and initiated by Ali with specific materials and subject, followed by weeks 6-10 where students will be given a theme to work from and an opportunity to use some or all of the skills and approaches learnt from the first 5 sessions. This is a self-initiated project for students to interpret and resource with their own research, photos, ideas etc. with 1:1 guidance during the classes from Ali.

The main aim of this ongoing course is for each student to become more expressive, confident and experimental. Students are encouraged to learn not only from the tutor-led sessions and from self-initiated exploration, but also from each other. The intention is to nurture a generous approach to sharing with and inspiring one another in the class.

Suitable for beginners and those with more experience.