Creativity at Hanford
Creativity is an essential part of Hanford.
We know that every child is creative and our aim is to trigger their inspiration through a rigorous programme and a lively, stimulating environment. In the Art Department we expose them to a broad range of disciplines both in 2D and 3D. Time is essential for creativity and every week each girl spends at least two and a half hours in the Art Barn. The senior girls also have an extra lesson of Art Appreciation. The creative work produced by the girls is consequently of a very high standard with an impressive record of Art scholarships and exhibitions awarded to senior schools year on year.
Hanford girls often go on to study, or take up careers in, the Arts and all say that their Hanford education gave them a lifelong creativity and appreciation of Art as well as the ability to make or alter their own clothes!
Our young artists are encouraged to be resilient and brave – learning through trial and error, stretching their boundaries and horizons.
Feeding the Imagination
The school's grounds and homegrown produce feed the girls’ imagination providing a wealth of stimuli for creative projects from pumpkins to peonies to ponies.
Typically, the girls explore each new topic initially in the IT room before creating their research pages on Artists in their sketchbooks. This process helps to inform their experiments and outcomes.
Conscious of ways we can promote sustainability, we continually explore methods of using upcycled materials in innovative and exciting projects.
Creative Medium
Creativity is not just confined to paper, ink and clay – it also finds an outlet in Handwork lessons, which involve Fashion, Textile Design and soft engineering skills.
In these lessons STEM characteristics, such as experimenting, planning, problem solving, modification, perseverance, independence and resilience, are developed. In a world where hand skills are often reduced to ‘swiping’ and ‘scrolling’ Hanford is unique in teaching traditional and modern craft skills through projects that inspire creative outcomes.
In the Junior years, girls are taught to sew, knit, weave, felt, dye and spin by a specialist teacher. From Year 6 they use the sewing machine regularly and make increasingly accomplished textile designs and clothing using dressmaking patterns.
Art Appreciation
Art History, known as 'Art Appré', is a timetabled lesson for senior pupils. Using famous paintings as the starter point for discussion, the girls are encouraged to explore ideas behind the creative process, discover the links between art and subjects like history and learn the vocabulary to describe artists and their own creative work.
