Let’s Create Art - Guest blog post

The event took place on February 17th and 18th and was open to families, focusing on the core theme of the joyful experiences and memories at GoMA. It invited participants of different ages to create together through hands-on activities. 

This project is not only a part of the nationwide "Let's Create Art" initiative, promoted by Engage, but also an important component of GoMA's public education program for the second half of February. It not only emphasizes participation, but also cross-age dialogue, making art truly a shared experience for families.

The first day's workshop focused on clay slab production. The activity space was set up as an open work area, with pottery clay, wooden sticks, rollers and various stamping tools placed on a long table. The artist Ciara Neufeldt first demonstrated how to flatten the clay into a slab, and used the wooden sticks to control the thickness, ensuring the structure of the work was stable and uniform. The participants then began their own creative practice.

The children gently smoothed the surface with wooden sticks, while the adults focused more on the texture and details. Some used moulds to imprint the patterns, some used wooden sticks to draw geometric shapes, and some families left each other's fingerprints in the centre of the clay plate, creating unique "family imprints". Under the guidance of the artist, participants were encouraged to think: what shapes represents your happy memories and experiences of GoMA? 

The plasticity of the soil makes the expression intuitive and intimate. Parents and children sit side by side at the table, discussing composition and sharing ideas with each other. In the touch of the material, the interaction among family members naturally occurs. 

On this day, the significance of creation lies not only in completing a piece of work, but also in sharing the experience of a process where matter and emotion intertwine together.

The theme for the second day shifted to textiles and embroidery. Continuing the theme of happy memories from the previous day, participants were invited to recreate their personal experiences on the fabric.

Taking into account the varying safety needs of different age groups, the event specifically distinguished the tool configurations: providing standard embroidery needles for adults and preparing plastic safety needles specifically for children. This detail demonstrates the event's emphasis on safety and inclusiveness. 

Ciara Neufeldt demonstrated basic stitches such as plain stitch and return stitch, and encouraged the participants to express themselves freely. Some families translated the patterns from the previous day's clay plates into embroidery lines, while others embroidered symbols that symbolised family stories on the fabric. 

The embroidery is carried out at a slow and focused pace, and the space gradually becomes quiet. The thread weaves through the fabric, creating an almost meditative experience. Adults slow down their pace in concentration, while children experience a sense of achievement in controlling the materials through trial and error. This cross-generational collaborative creation makes art a shared language.

In a public institution like GoMA, art is no longer limited to the display of works in the exhibition hall; it transforms into an open social practice through activities. Participants can become the creative subjects. Artists also become facilitators and listeners.

The two-day event, through two completely different materials - clay and fabric - allowed participants to experience the diverse dimensions of art: one emphasises shaping and power, the other patience and details; one leans towards direct expression, the other tends towards internal narrative. However, regardless of how the medium changes, the core always revolves around "participation" and "connection".

In such an environment, art becomes a communication tool. It enables people from different backgrounds and of different ages to share experiences in the same space; allows personal memories to acquire form through specific materials; and makes public spaces become more open and warm due to creation.

"Let's Create Art" does not emphasise creating a perfect work, but invites everyone to enter the creative process. When hands touch the clay and needles pass through the fabric, art transforms from an abstract concept into a real experience.

Perhaps, this is precisely the most important value of public art. It makes people realize that creativity is not the privilege of a few, but an ability that everyone can reach.

In the centre of this city of Glasgow, these two days of activities provide a platform for the community to create and communicate together, and also truly brings art back into people's lives.

I am Lidan Ma, interns from the Museum Education programme at the University of Glasgow. During our internship at the Glasgow Modern Art Museum, the "Let's Create Art" project was one of the core activities I was involved in. This experience was not only an extension of our professional knowledge but also a valuable practical opportunity to delve into the frontlines of art education and understand the needs of the audience.

Every weekend at GoMA, the museum was filled with the enthusiasm of family visitors. I followed the education staff Chloe and Josey throughout our internship, participating in the entire process of the art workshop from planning the workshop, to welcoming the first visitor and tidying the Studio after the event. We were responsible for assisting in setting up the space, distributing tools, and guiding visitors to complete clay modelling or embroidery creations. This process made me realise that museum education is not just the output of knowledge, but also the creation of space and the emotional connection.

As a student majoring in museum education, this internship gave me a deeper understanding of what it means to "Design and Deliver". Beyond the classroom, I learned how to handle visitors' questions and the flexibility to coordinate an event when the number of participants increased. This dynamic teaching ability is something that textbooks cannot provide.

What touched me the most was the deep collision between theory and practice. At GoMA, I witnessed first-hand how "knowledge construction" occurs in real interactions. This was not just an internship, but also an awakening of my professional identity. By observing the self-expression of visitors in art creation, I gained a more intuitive understanding of the role of the museum as a "social education container". This experience will guide me in my future academic research and career paths to continue exploring the warmth and depth of art education.

During my internship at the Gallery of Modern Art, it felt more like a process of translating museum education from theory to practice for me. As a student majoring in museum education, I have learned many related theories and concepts in class. But when I was actually on the education site of GoMA and witnessed an activity come into being from scratch, I truly understood how these theories operate in reality. 

In the various workshops at GoMA, I witnessed that museum educators can create conditions for participants to generate their own understanding through practice. Education is no longer a one-way output but a companion process, creating space and providing materials to enable participants to become the protagonists of their own learning. This made me realise that the core of museum education lies in providing support. 

At the same time, I have also more clearly felt the responsibility of museums as public spaces. In the vibrant setting of the city centre, museums are not only places to display art, but also platforms for community communication. People of different backgrounds and ages sit at the same table and naturally start a conversation through creation. This made me realise how art can become a gentle yet powerful mean of connection.

This internship has gradually enabled me to understand that museum education is not a grand theoretical practice, but is composed of many subtle moments: it is the hesitation of children when they first try materials; the smiles after completing their works; or perhaps the conversations between strangers sparked by a piece of art. These instances constitute the true moments when education takes place. 

For me personally, after this experience, I began to pay more attention to the greater possibilities of different art event designs. At the same time, there is also the emotional side of it, such as the role of family in education, not just the content itself. I hope that in the future, more people will feel that visiting a museum is not something that requires prior knowledge, but rather a natural way of life that can be easily participated in.

During my time at GoMA, I gained a more vivid and concrete understanding of museum education.

Through art, dialogue can be initiated, museum spaces can accommodate differences, and everyone has the ability to express and create.