Students inspire studies at London museums and galleries

Visual Arts students at Solihull Sixth Form College have spent two days in London, visiting museums and galleries to inspire their own A level and BTEC studies.

Second year students from all four courses made the trip to London, visiting two museums on each day.

Day one saw a group of the students go to the Haywood Gallery for an exhibition by Louise Bourgeois, the French-American artist best known for her large-scale sculpture and installation art.

Others went to the Fashion and Textile Museum to see an exhibition of 'The Boutique in 1960's Counterculture'.

The groups then came together to visit the Tate Modern.

Day two of the trip saw the students visit the Design Museum and the Victoria & Albert Museum.

At the Design Museum, the students learned about architectural, graphic and fashion design, while at the Victoria & Albert Museum students were able to enjoy a wide variety of art and design with more than two-million objects in their collection.

Zoe Maksymiw, curriculum leader, said: "It was great to get out of the classroom and into some galleries in London. The trip exposed our students to a range of artistic influences, which will not only broaden their horizons, but inspire their own portfolios.

“Getting out on a fieldtrip has been long overdue, following the restrictions brought on by the pandemic, but this opportunity for students to see art and design in context was so important."

The College offers four Visual Arts courses, with three A level pathways in Art & Design: Fine Art, Graphics & 3D Design and Photography; as well as a BTEC Extended Diploma course in Art & Design.