Teaching after-school Photography workshops with HvHArts
The Sir Hubert von Herkomer Arts Foundation is a registered charity that runs after and out of school arts classes in primary and secondary state schools in London. The Foundation aims to provide children with the inspiration and tools to develop lifelong artistic passions. I started teaching photography courses for the HvHArts about a year ago when Debbi Clark (CEO) contacted me through a long-forgotten Tutor Hunt profile I had set up when I first started teaching.
During last summer HvHArts ran a pop-up gallery at Queen's Cresent in Camden. The gallery opened on the site of a former youth centre, and aimed to give local children a safe, fun place to go and hang out on long hot summer afternoons. Youth crime and violence is on the rise in London as councils struggle to cope with crippling cuts to their budgets. A lot of youth centres have closed recently so children from disadvantaged backgrounds in boroughs like Camden are at particularly high risk of exploitation, and being co-opted into gangs. Providing a safe place for young people to play and learn new skills couldn't be more important given the current circumstances. I remember when I was doing my A-levels, the art classrooms would always be open after school and I loved going there to draw or paint when the hustle of the school day was over. I was painfully shy at the time, with very low self-confidence and the art room was my sanctuary.
HvHArts CEO Debbi Clark with the children (and one of their parents) during our photography trip to Kentish Town City Farm.
I ran a weekly photography workshop at the pop-up gallery with children aged 8-14. Most of the kids had already had a full day at school, so their attention-span was pretty limited. I quickly discovered that technical stuff like exposure wouldn't stick. Instead I focused on shorter practical tasks aimed at developing creative ways of seeing. Wherever possible, I incorporated physicality and play into the tasks. The lessons on parkour, jumping shots, and forced perspective proved popular as did our visit to the wonderful Kentish Town City Farm. Teaching at Queen's Crescent was certainly challenging and I did not always feel 100% in control, but Debbi reminded me that HvHArts aims to nurture a love of the arts in a non-pressurised environment. Learning is important of course, but with an emphasis on freedom and fun.
HvHArts are sponsored by Olympus, who provided us with ten Olympus PEN E-PL8's and various lenses to teach with. These small mirrorless cameras are fantastic for kids, and come packed with lots of great features including an articulating LCD screen, in-camera multiple exposure and ART modes. Here are a couple of shots using the cameras awesome black and white ART filter (these are straight out of camera, unedited).
I'm so grateful to Debbi Clark for letting me teach for for HvHArts. When she hired me I had very little experience of teaching school age children so it was a leap of faith on her part. I can honestly say that it's been one of the best experiences of my teaching career so far and has certainly stretched my teaching abilities. It was refreshing to be able to teach children without all the peripheral stuff (assessment, exams, paperwork) that can get in the way of learning. The enthusiasm the children showed for photography is infectious and their creativity and imagination took my breath away at times. I think there is something quite special about teaching photography to children at this age. They don't necessarily have the capacity to absorb the technical aspects, but they more than make up for that with the power of their imagination and ability to think creatively and see the world through fresh eyes.
After one of my last sessions with HvHArts, Debbi said the following (paraphrasing) "You have a real gift for teaching, the boys love you, the girls love you. The children don't respond well to older people telling them what to do so it helps that you are young at heart and very calm. It's going to be hard to find someone as good as you if you leave"
Every year HvHArts hold a charity exhibition to raise funds for the foundation. This year the show took place at prestigious Mayfair gallery Alon Zakaim Fine Art and half of the gallery was given over to work by the students. It was so inspiring for the children to see their photos sharing gallery space with some icons of photography like Terry O'Neill, Tony Vaccaro, Rankin and Chris Smith.
You can find out more about Sir Hubert von Herkomer Arts Foundation, including upcoming courses on their website here: http://vonherkomerfoundation.org Or view their Instagram page here: @SirHvHArts_Official
