Recording Bedford
Recording Bedford
2nd July - 28th August 2016
Sir William Harpur Gallery, Free Entry
Recording Bedford is part of the Harpur Trust's anniversary celebrations marking its 450th birthday in 2016. The works were all entries in a major competition which attracted almost 1400 participants from across 44 schools in the Borough and every single piece has been uploaded to an online gallery on the Trust’s website with help from Bedford College students who photographed and catalogued all the work.
To support participating schools, a team of Visiting Artists were engaged to spend time within schools, leading practical workshops for pupils based on the competition’s themes.
Prizes were awarded across 6 age categories with the top prizes in each worth £100 to the pupil with their school receiving £500 for art equipment, and additional prizes offered in the Sixth Form category by NADFAS (The National Association of Decorative & Fine Arts Societies). The winning pupils which included pupils from Castle Newnham, Kempston Rural Lower, St Andrews, Pilgrims Pre-preparatory, Livingstone Primary, Great Denham Primary, Queens Park Academy, St John’s Special School & College, Bedford School, Lincroft, Wootton and Sharnbrook, received their prizes at a special awards ceremony immediately prior to the launch.
The Competition was judged by artist and designer Alex Chinneck, sculptor and former Harpur Trust grant recipient Suresh Dutt, Head of the Higgins Tom Perrett and Dawn Giles who is Chief Executive of &Co (formerly Bedford Creative Arts).
Photo credit: Photos by June Essex