Art Nouveau – Art Renouveau Erasmus Project

Project Title

Art Nouveau – Art Renouveau

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 : Strategic Partnerships for school education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2014

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Creativity and culture; Entrepreneurial learning – entrepreneurship education; Key Competences (incl. mathematics and literacy) – basic skills

Project Summary

Art Nouveau-Art Renouveau: at the turn of the 19th and 20th Centuries a common artistic movement spread across Europe from the Atlantic Ocean to the Black Sea. Drawing on the philosophical and historical contexts of the Art Nouveau movement, participants learned about our shared European heritage and its local, national and international accents. Through developing an understanding of the beauty and function of design, students applied their knowledge to the creative process and made their own works of art. An emphasis on using recycled materials and the natural form reinforced the theory of sustainability in this project.
The objectives of this project were to make young people aware of their joint European heritage and to foster a greater awareness of European citizenship. Emphasis was placed on the development of digital skills, linguistic competence, entrepreneurship and the creative process. The development of soft skills was important with young people learning how to live and work together in a multilingual and multinational environment.
Six schools from six countries took part in this project: Bulgaria, France, Germany, Romania, Slovenia and the UK (Scotland). The group includes a wide variety of educational establishments: public and private schools; schools with a religious affiliation and with none; schools for children from 3-18 and those with a narrower age range; day schools and some with boarding facilities; schools with pupils from a wide range of socio-economic backgrounds; schools with pupils with support needs; city schools and semi-rural schools.
Art Nouveau was an important movement in these six countries and during the project, participants worked together and discovered common threads and local interpretations of the style. In particular, they learned of the interconnectivity of design and philosophy across Europe in the years leading up to the outbreak of WW1.
The main activities fell into two groups: activities undertaken during the school year and those completed during TLAs.
Each year, pupils studied elements of the Art Nouveau movement in their own area. They studied Art Nouveau through printed and web-based materials and visited areas of interest. When possible, pupils visited art exhibitions, e.g. Klimt in Paris, Mucha in Glasgow, The Nature of Art Nouveau in Ljubljana. These visits and discussions with experts formed an important part of the preparation for the Town Trails.
In their schools, participants undertook a number of creative workshops and produced works for sale at charity events and Christmas fairs. This gave pupils an insight into entrepreneurship and encouraged them to contribute to charities.
Each TLA had a specific theme related to Art Nouveau-Art Renouveau. These are described fully in the relevant section of this report. In Scotland, the natural world was to the fore. In Germany, participants learned about Jugendstil architecture in the industrial context and in Ljubljana, the use of new materials and design in the reconstruction of the city after the 1905 earthquake were examined. In Bulgaria and Romania pupils learned that Art Nouveau arrived later. For most participants, a highlight of the project was the chance to work with experienced film producers in France. Students learned about film-making and featured in a short documentary about the French Erasmus mobility.
The results of this project are qualitative and quantitative. At the end of each TLA, students presented their work in a final exhibition and during the last TLA, a digital exhibition showed the results of three years’ work. Town Trails are available through local tourist offices and on the web for use by young visitors to the project countries. The homepage provides a comprehensive picture of the work undertaken during TLAs and projects the student voice. The questionnaire confirms the positive impact of the project on pupils’ understanding of Art Nouveau.
During the project, participants improved their competences in literacy, numeracy and digital skills. Improvements in soft skills were noted with pupils gaining confidence in their use of other languages, in interpersonal skills and in self-confidence. As one participant said ‘If I can dance in front of strangers at the Eiffel Tower, I can do anything!’
The improvement in soft skills is to the longer-term benefit of participants. Some students revised their future study plans based on their Erasmus experience by choosing to study a creative subject at university, by applying to study at a university abroad or by applying for courses which include an Erasmus year abroad. Pupils set up their own WhatsApp group and are in regular contact with each other. A ‘post-Erasmus’ group meeting organised for Sept 2017 in Paris is testament to the strength of the friendships forged during this project. We believe that the young people who have benefited from this project have an enhanced understanding of their roles as young Europeans today.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 358090 Eur

Project Coordinator

Wellington School (Ayr) Ltd & Country: UK

Project Partners

• Colegiul National “Constantin Cantacuzino”
• Zavod sv. Stanislava
• Sredno obshtoobrazovatelno uchilishte Emilyan Stanev
• Mallinckrodt-Gymnasium
• INSTITUT SAINT DOMINIQUE