Source: http://www.art4space.co.uk/about-us/testimonials-2/
Timestamp: 2019-04-21 10:25:57+00:00

Document:
Below is a selection of quotes from our service users, trainees, commissioners, interns and other professionals that know our business…..it’s better when it comes from them!
The course was very relevant for me because it introduced me to working with children and the community. Prior to that I was only working part time and had only ever worked in an office environment. Through this course I felt my confidence grow and developed an extreme sense of satisfaction working with children and the community. This course gave me the confidence to contact my local primary school, which led to me providing voluntary work which eventually led to paid work doing art workshops. This also led me to approaching other schools to teach martial art workshops. I am now a project development officer for the Clapham and Larkhall Collaborative of schools and I volunteer for a charity called the Klevis Kola Foundation. I am very grateful and privileged to have had the opportunity to learn from two amazing teachers, Julie and Ellie through this course.
I applied to do a three-month placement with Art4Space because I am preparing to apply for an MA in Art Psychotherapy and needed to gain some firsthand experience working on community art projects to support my application. During my three months with Art4Space I have worked primarily at ‘Creative Surgery’, which takes place every Tuesday. Here I have learnt about mosaicing and ceramics techniques, met regular service users and applied my new skills to help create community mosaics.
The most notable experience I have gained during my three months with Art4Space was at Rockmount Primary School where I assisted Jewels in a Logo project. Over the course of two days we worked with each child in the school and asked them to design a new logo for the schools parents and teachers association. This meant delivering the same class to a range of age groups and abilities, which gave me great experience in adapting my pitch for each class. I was able to use this experience, along with my other work for Art4Space on a subsequent job application and to support my MA application.
I found Art4Space to be a friendly and relaxed environment. Jewels and Eli were enthusiastic and supportive both when it came to Art4Space projects and when offering me advice about future studies; emailing me information for local courses, opportunities and events and helping me to get my CRB check completed.
In addition to the practical experience I gained I also saw firsthand how their work really helps to bring communities together and how it gives people a sense of focus and achievement. The services they provide go much further then creative practice and this insight has helped to secure my decision that this is the career path I want to pursue. I look forward to helping out at Art4Space in the future and wish them the best of luck!
I, Zoe Snelgrove, took Art4space’s Walcot 2012 course, Employability and Community Art. I found it extremely useful,beneficial and that my employability has improved as a result of taking part on the course. The course was informative and I feel as though I have gained valuable knowledge of an industry which I have great interest in but which previously seemed unattainable. The delivery of the course was balanced-informative, hands on skills, working alongside the children at their after school art club. It was fun to take part in, I met some lovely people and since taking the course I have secured paid work by setting up my own business. I regard myself to be very fortunate to have taken this course and I was sad to hear that the course was not to continue, now with the news that it might start again I wish to endorse it with this statement of my experience-Art4space are great teachers and I would recommend their courses to anyone!
During my three-month placement at Art4Space I was totally immersed in the weekly goings on of this leading community arts organization. Jewels and Eli not only welcomed me with open arms as a member of the team, but carefully mentored my progress offering invaluable guidance, so as to fully enrich my learning.
‘I was exposed the full range of services Art4Space provide from planning commissions, to focused mosaic and mural work, assisting on outreach and on corporate business days, to kiln hire, community courses, art club, festival work and even sourcing scaffolding (there ain’t nothing these women can’t do!).
The most staggering part of the whole experience for me was what a difference Art4Space make to their local community, and far reaching still. They unite local people in inspiring and quite brilliant art work to promote social cohesion and a sense of ownership within our communities. Housing estates, schools, parks, underground stations, and fronts of buildings are transformed beyond recognition.
The collaborative nature of a lot of their work involves meticulous planning and execution, but the focus is always on contributing something exciting, engaging and lasting to the world we live in. Their notable reputation precedes them, with friends and artists alike dropping in for a cup of tea, or to help out on a new commission, not to mention the stack of awards and write ups that are quietly pinned up around the studio.
‘In the first instance I was attracted by the work that Art4space did. I wanted to be involved. I started coming as a volunteer over a year ago and have always been made to feel welcome and my contribution appreciated. I loved working on the projects, learning and developing my mosaic skills and meeting interesting people from a wide variety of cultural backgrounds.
As a result of a 10 week NOCN course provided by Art4Space I have become more aware of and interested in the surrounding area of Stockwell, how it has developed and what it has to offer now and what could be the future.
Personally the course has given an impetus to a creative burst and a period of positivity and optimism that I have not experienced for some time. The course was very well thought out and prepared and it was really thorough and enjoyable.
Art4Space provides an environment where individuals are nurtured and given the confidence to develop their creative skills.
Art4Space at Stockwell Studios is a place where all age groups can interact. I am in my 50’s and I enjoy having the opportunity to work alongside young adults, teenagers and primary school children. There are not many places apart from perhaps religious institutions where people can really get to know others of a different generation.
The garden of Stockwell Studios is a wonderful resource. Last week a saw a group of about 15 children from Art4Space after school club running about excitedly collecting swigs and leaves to make a face collage, while in the far corner a man was working on a large easel painting of the ponds and another artist was intently studying foliage for inspiration.
Not everyone has access to a garden of their own so it is beneficial for the local community that this one is open to the public at least once a week during the summer months. People can just walk in and enjoy the peace and quiet for reflection in a tranquil spot, or sit on the grass in the sun and read or simply appreciate birdsong and nature surrounding them.

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