Hunters and Gatherers

Poppleton Ousbank Primary School, Nursery - Gerard Hobson

Gerard Hobson is a visual artist with a particular focus on printmaking and illustration. He also has a background in both illustration and zoology. Poppleton Ousbank Primary School has lots of outdoor space and the natural environment was the starting point for inspiring the children in this project.

Exploring outside using all their senses was the first stimulus for creative expression, Gerard and the teaching staff also worked in partnership to introduce the children to provocations for stimulating their imaginations and developing speaking and listening skills Exploring materials and experiential learning formed a key role in all three projects. The children at Poppleton Ousbank were also introduced to storytelling initially by Gerard outside in the form of familiar books. But then the children were told stories that were left open-ended so they could begin to form their own ideas about possible endings.

Gerard worked with the children on mark-making with pens and paint throughout the project, working in a very process based way, listening and supporting their ideas. Mark-making through painting and drawing offered opportunities for the children to communicate their ideas.

“Drawing on a big scale meant that as well as exploring mark-making, the children learned to move along the paper and negotiate space with each other. I was really interested in the different ways that boys and girls created art. The girls on the whole appeared to be interested in draughtsmanship and creating images. At first the boys weren’t as interested in this mode of expression, but with support they began to use paint as a way of expressing and communicating their stories, changing the image as they changed their ideas enriching their verbal communication”

Gerard Hobson