Inspired by Nature
Discover how young artists responded to nature during lockdown, to both express themselves and to take care of their wellbeing.
Jesse Jumping (2020-08-04) by Claire WoodArts Council England
Jesse explored the natural world by jumping and leaping through it as part of Dancefest's Reimagine Lockdown challenge. The challenge invited children and young people to reimagine the rooms and spaces around them through dance and photography.
Garden (2020-08-01) by SamuelArts Council England
Samuel, an artist from Heart n Soul’s Do Your Own Thing group, expressed his love of nature by drawing his garden in lockdown.
Do Your Own Thing is a creative group for young people with learning disabilities. The group offers young people the chance to take part in music, dance, radio DJing and digital arts, and helped them stay connected to each other during the pandemic.
Leap (2020-05-24) by DannyArts Council England
Danny captured himself mid-leap as he danced through the forest as part of Dancefest’s project, Reimagine Lockdown.
Alicia, a member of Heart n Soul's Do Your Own Thing, collected leaves and flowers and pressed these as a way of capturing her experiences of nature during lockdown.
Both Amy and Danielle were also inspired by flowers in their gardens. Amy noted that, “during these difficult times, I wanted to try and find something positive that had come from this moment in history. I managed to find this by simply going into the garden and seeing the life that flourished.” Amy’s work was created as part of English National Opera’s Lockdown Aria project, where young people were encouraged to express their inner emotional world through a variety of art forms. Danielle's painting of flowers is part of Heart n Soul’s Do Your Own Thing.
Flowers in Patterns that I have seen in Lockdown (2020-08-01) by EllaArts Council England
Ella, from Heart n Soul, was also inspired by flowers in her garden and local community and painted these two images as part of Do Your Own Thing.
Flowers I have Seen in Lockdown (2020-08-01) by EllaArts Council England
The Light (2020-09-11) by RubyArts Council England
Ruby’s video was filmed during her first holiday away from home after lockdown. The film expresses her love for dance and captures her shadow dancing freely at the beach, after being inside for so long.
It was made as part of Dancefest’s Half a Minute Movie challenge, which invited young people to capture and celebrate their new lockdown skills or life lessons through a 30-second dance film.
Escape to the sea (2020-08-09) by CasperArts Council England
Casper also took on the Half a Minute Movie challenge. His film captures his first holiday after lockdown, celebrating time spent outdoors in nature with family.
Oliver, You're Red (2020-09-17) by Freya, Shay and OliverArts Council England
Freya, Shay and Oliver explore the theme of inside and outside space in their film; questioning how we identify inside and how the world around us shapes us. This footage captures a workshop that was part of BALTIC’s ArtLab programme, a series of free workshops and critical discussions.
