ART MATTERS Erasmus Project

Project Title

ART MATTERS

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : School Exchange Partnerships

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Cultural heritage/European Year of Cultural Heritage; Inclusion – equity; Creativity and culture

Project Summary

Participants in the ART MATTERS Erasmus+ project have been working on the acknowledgement and promotion of European Cultural Heritage through art. They have had the opportunity to develop their initiative, critical thinking and creativity by taking part in workshops on different artistic techniques.

Hosts from each school have shown their skills on their specific field of expertise and they have shared it with the rest by means of peer learning. The workshops have ranged from painting, sculpture, ceramics, printmaking, glassmaking, photography, and to the use of new technologies for creative purposes with infographics, digital drawing, screenprinting.

The results of their collaborative work have been shown in exhibitions in schools and a selection of all the artworks created have been displayed in Vaquero Poblador Gallery in Badajoz, the most important gallery of the province.

As a result of this work in the schools, the participants have created striking artworks. With their drawings and paintings, the authors wanted, on the one hand, all citizens to appreciate and feel proud of the richness of their heritage.
But they have also tried to raise awareness of its fragility and the threats it has to face. Real threats such as armed conflict, climate change, decay or mere neglect. They have tried to imagine the effect of these threats and have captured them in their works. They understand that the most important thing is that this message reaches the public so that we can act before it is too late. In many of their works, the artists have depicted a catastrophic and desolate vision. Hopefully, this will help to prevent these images from becoming reality.

In addition, collective works in stained glass, decorated majolica tiles, glass platters and trays of fused Murano glass have been on display, which have resulted from the workshops and which have also served to show the variety of different forms of creative expression. We need to make an effort to keep them alive, as these techniques of expression are also an important part of the European cultural and artistic heritage.

The short-term exchanges of the project have given students the chance to participate, no matter their socio-economic situation and few opportunities as we recognise the role of Art to reach educational goals and a tool we can use for social inclusion. All of them have had the opportunity to express their views, their talent in their own way with their own “language”.
Throughout the project the students have improved their cultural expression, communication competences, and social abilities and awareness of European values, which are essential for their prospects in education, work and a successful personal life.

Also, teachers have had the opportunity to improve their linguistic skills, develop professionally and compare best teaching practices with colleagues.

For schools this project has become the beginning of a relationship, and although our plans are on hold at present due to the pandemic, we aim to keep on the collaboration among artistic secondary schools so the expertise of each school is spread by exchanges of students, teachers and experiences.

This project has brought together people from schools in four European countries. We have learned artistic training, but also values such as respect for the preservation of European cultural heritage.
We have also insisted on inclusion, since all the participants have their place in the project and in the final exhibition, because this reaffirms the power of art as a tool for inclusion.
We have worked together to make the public feel proud of our heritage. This should be a message for all: not only institutions but also all citizens must appreciate artistic and cultural heritage as a symbol of economic development, social well-being and a sense of pride in European identity and values. Therefore we must urge institutions to promote programmes to protect our heritage, but the rest of the citizens must take part in these programmes and do our part in its protection too.This is the best way to guarantee the safeguard of our heritage.

Participants also have benefited from the experience they have obtained with the fact they have used their artistic skills, knowledge and resources to arrange an exhibition to make people appreciate the value of artistic expressions. This knowledge will surely have a positive effect as the foundation for their future careers in art.

With the dissemination of the results, they have invited us to imagine our heritage in danger, but they also encouraged us not to neglect its protection. Most importantly, they wanted people to enjoy art.

Project Website

https://sites.google.com/educarex.es/art-matters-erasmusplus/home

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 107426,53 Eur

Project Coordinator

IES REINO AFTASÍ & Country: ES

Project Partners

• Liceo Chiabrera Martini
• Athénée Royal de Rixensart-Wavre
• Zespol Szkol Plastycznych