Festival in a Box: Let’s Create

Through Arts Council England’s Let’s Create Initiative, the National Festival of Making produced 600 making kits, which were distributed to schools and young people across Blackburn and Darwen during the Covid-19 pandemic.

At a time when we were unable to engage with schools and young people in the way we usually would – through workshops, school tours, projects or at the festival weekend, instead we partnered with the Blackburn Museum and the Local Cultural Education Partnership and commissioned five artists to develop making-led activities for 11-12 year olds who would be leaving Primary school and beginning their Secondary school journey.

Along with our partners, we packed 600 boxes, each with an activity booklet and all the equipment needed to follow the activities.

The boxes were designed, engineered and produced by local manufacturers, the Cardboard Box Company, with an innovative, easy-build pattern showing children how to turn the box into a small making table to support the continuation of school work and creativity in the home environment.

Below you can find a digital copy of the activities in the pack, ready for download, as well as some information about the artists who contributed and a video tutorial for each activity.

Download Let’s Make Activity Book

Artists

Jason Taylor

Jason Taylor is an artist and designer who reuses everyday objects to make unusual products and sculptures. The idea of using a J cloth to draw on came from his Everyday Objects project, where he made something every day for a year.

Watch tutorial

Emma Colbert-Mooring

Emma Colbert-Mooring is a multidisciplinary artist and designer based in the North West. Her studio practice, known as ‘You Good Studio‘, focuses on exploring the use of colour and composition to create vibrant abstract work primarily through printmaking, illustration and mural design.

Emma’s work is centred around creating a playful dialogue between form, colour, and space to produce energetic and bold designs that are present throughout her practice.

Watch tutorial

Sana Maulvi

Sana Maulvi is a Lancashire-based artist in Blackburn. Her practice is predominantly based on paintings. She explores the use of found objects and shapes in her work to create abstract artworks which transcend emotions far deeper than realistic figurative elements. Most of her artwork is based on life experiences, and she expresses herself through the complex language of colour and composition.

Watch tutorial

Supermarché

Supermarché, a design duo, Charlie Kondras & Ben Hall, live in Sheffield via Lancaster. They specialise in public-facing graphic design, murals and workshops. From their 3rd-floor studio, they work in a huge range of mediums, from ceramics to screen printing to web design and film, always with an emphasis on utilitarian design that brightens the neighbourhood.

Watch tutorial

Gemma May Potter

Gemma May Latham is a participatory artist/maker based in Cheshire. Her work combines analogue and digital processes, taking inspiration from craft heritage. Embracing accessible materials and methods, she engages a wide range of people and makes otherwise intimidating processes accessible to all. 

Watch tutorial

Funders and Partners

Arts Council England has been able to fund the Let’s Create packs thanks to the National Lottery.

The Let’s Create activity book was created by art teacher Andria Zafirakou, winner of the 2018 Global Teacher Prize.

Crafts Council and Art Fund have been project partners and have provided additional support.

The pupils have loved exploring their stationery boxes during progress time. It has meant they all have access to amazing equipment. They couldn’t believe it was free and that they could keep it. A lot of them are looking forward to taking them home and creating their own workspaces from them.

Class Teacher

During this difficult and unprecedent time, I am pleased that a number of partners have been able to work together for the betterment of our young people. Creative Connection was formed so that all children and young people could access holistic arts and cultural activities and the ‘Let’s Make’ boxes continues our vision in a really interesting, innovative and interactive way!

Jaffer Hussain, Former Chair of The Creative Connection

Photography by Robin Zahler.