Arts award case study

Bronze Art Award and Hadrian’s Wall

Wall Face worked with Haydon Bridge High School to support 160 KS3 students (aged 11-14) in achieving their Bronze Arts Award (a Level 1 qualification) based on Hadrian’s Wall World Heritage Site.

What we did

We visited Hadrian’s Wall Museums to learn more about the World Heritage Site and investigate ancient objects that the Romans had left behind. Download worksheets here.

We researched the antiquarians, men who had helped save Hadrian’s Wall over the centuries, and studied their portraits in the National Portrait Gallery online collection. Download Activity here.

We chose three artists whose work reflected some of the things we had discovered:

• Isla Jones helped us create our own digital portraits in a classical style, similar to the one William Stukeley commissioned in 1721.
• Ruby Dale taught us a dot and dash technique similar to the stippled etching of John Leland (1824).
• Sculptor Ashley Hipkin taught us how to sculpt our own clay, wax and plaster moulds to make multiple copies of the same image, similar to processes the Romans used in their pottery.
• You can read what the artists said here.

We developed our work through the school year and presented it during our Creativity Week, and submitted our Arts Award Portfolios for assessment. Watch our video to see what we achieved!