Bright Sparks 3Terry Orchard and Simon Lee Dicker Sensory Navigation
For the past five years artist Terry Orchard has worked very closely with the young people at Pioneer School, a special needs school in Basildon, Essex. Spending time with the children, staff and carers, Terry has become incredibly passionate about the quality of creative activities provided for them, and is increasingly concerned with how their integration into society can be made more meaningful. Terry, in a new collaboration with artist Simon Lee Dicker, is developing a participatory arts project aimed at improving access to open spaces for the young people with special needs at Pioneer School, which can then be applied to other special needs users. Terry and Simon are developing new activities using video and GPS technology to highlight issues of navigation, accessibility, choice and interpretation. These participatory activities with the students, their parents and carers are focusing on ‘movement through space’ and will take place at Pioneer School and other open space locations around Essex. Ultimately, the aim is to integrate open space design interventions encouraging the creation of more accessible and democratically used spaces. “I know these children at Pioneer School so well they have become my friends. All my projects over the years have required a sensitive and high level of involvement. This project won’t be any different, except that I really want it to make a difference for these children and in the wider world.” Terry’s strong community based practice includes design, painting and sculpture, concentrating for the last five years on developing the creative opportunities at Pioneer School. Simon brings extensive experience of collaborative and interdisciplinary public realm projects working with individuals, schools, community groups and local authorities. Simon’s practice combines aspects of art and design to create innovative responses to our physical environment, and his multi-disciplinary approach encourages art and design that responds to specific locations, situations and people with a particular interest in creating large scale artworks for open spaces, ranging from a 255 acre drawing to the design of innovative play environments. Sensory Navigation is co-funded by Essex County Council |
