As well as creating projects across primary and secondary schools, Bow Arts supports schools, colleges and universities to bridge the gap between education and work in the creative industries through our Access to Creative Careers programme.
Bow Arts collaborates with studio artists, artist educators and industry partners to share experiences, expertise and insights from a wide range of creative professionals. We support and nurture students’ talents by demonstrating a variety of creative careers pathways, ensuring a future arts career is achievable for young people.
The creative industries hold the power to tell stories, empower communities, drive forward innovation and solve big problems. We know they need people from different backgrounds, with different perspectives, ideas and skills to be positive and purposeful. They need scientists, artists, entrepreneurs and mathematicians, as well as people who break down the barriers between the arts and other disciplines.
This academic year, we have organised opportunities providing students with a range of options when contemplating their futures within the arts.
Creative Careers Fairs
We’ve collaborated with schools to curate creative careers fairs showcasing creative pathways and guiding students from Years 7 to 13 to make informed career choices upon leaving school.
Working with Highams Park School in Waltham Forest, Langdon Academy in Tower Hamlets, Dagenham Park School and Sarah Bonnell School in Newham, Bow Arts artists invited students to consider where their passions lie and what skills they might bring to the creative industries through sharing their own practice and career stories.
The fairs offered a greater understanding of the creative industries through first hand interactions with arts professionals. Students were given opportunities to speak with a range of artists from different creative backgrounds including photographer Jonny Bosworth, who encouraged students to pick up a camera and shoot some portraits; animator Shelly Wain who demonstrated stop frame animation; Sophia Daly Rossin, a maker who helps others build 3D projects and bring ideas to life in sculpture, creative fabrication, costume props, 3D printing and 3D scanning; and textile designer Ola Olayinka whose colourful patterns make up her stationery accessories and homeware brand, OlaOla – to name but a few!
“So many options available. Real industry people to speak to who were honest. My child felt hope that they could see themselves studying further.”
Creative Careers fair participant
FOCUS: Sarah Bonnell Creative Careers Fair 2026
In March one of our consortium schools, Sarah Bonnell, in Newham hosted a busy, action-packed afternoon offering a plethora of engaging opportunities for students to consider further education within the arts and a future creative career.
Bow Arts studio artist, Abigail Ajobi, delivered an incredibly inspirational keynote speech charting the trajectory of her successful fashion design career. Abigail passionately talked about her luxury streetwear brand and her personal journey as creative director of her own company. She then answered the students’ thoughtful questions offering insights into the challenges she faced and the decisions she made when creating her thriving fashion business.
“I enjoyed the speaker – gave me an insight in working in fashion design.”
Creative careers fair participant
The bustling fair continued all afternoon with drop in workshops led by Bow Arts artists including jewellery making with Ayesha Sureya; upcycled bag tag making with multidisciplinary artist and fashion accessories designer Clara Chu; exploring community and environmental issues with make:good architects; storyboarding with filmmaker Niki Kohandel; screen printing tote bags with visual artist Tom Berry; and 3D printing with fabricator and artist Tom Foulsham
Creative Careers Workshops
As part of Swanlea School’s careers fair in Tower Hamlets in March, artist educator Will Redgrove delivered a graffiti workshop giving seventeen Year 8 students a greater understanding of what it’s like to be an artist and entrepreneur.
Following a school visit to the Banksy exhibition, and an introduction to the history of graffiti from Will, each student designed a letter from a phrase to represent the anti-bullying motto of the school.
Taking inspiration from Will’s practice, the students worked to a design brief and tackled problem solving as a collaborative group which presented a realistic introduction to the world of professional arts and design – with some amazing results!
FOCUS: Mulberry Academy London Dock – Sculpture Commission & Rum Factory Studio visit
As part of our Access to Creative Careers programme, artist Miyuki Kasahara worked with a group of Year 7 and Year 8 students from Mulberry Academy London Dock in Tower Hamlets, over the spring term, to create a large sculptural installation artwork alongside visits to our Rum Factory Studios.
The students conducted research linked to industrial and environmental local history, taking inspiration from the 20-year anniversary of a bottlenose whale stranded in the River Thames near where their school now stands.
After exploring the story and human impact on wildlife, students transformed their responses into colourful jesmonite castings. These magnetically attached to the five-foot metal whale structure, creating bright and vibrant ‘portals’ reflecting the local environment and the school values of diligence, open-mindedness, kindness and citizenship.
Thanks to our Access to Creative Careers programme, the students enjoyed the unique experience of working with an unfamiliar casting technique with a specialist artist who was able to transfer her skills and knowledge into the classroom.
The students also developed their understanding of the spectrum of visual arts whilst exploring the range of disciplines and careers within the arts through a visit to our Rum Factory Studios, where they met three artists with very different practices.
Campbell McConnell shared his performance and video work discussing the disparate topics of punk aesthetics and railway enthusiasts, illustrating the varied side of being an artist. Maria Bampali talked about her gestural large-scale artworks and how she uses pens and brushes to capture Greek mythology and her heritage on canvas. Traditional puppet maker Ziyi Wang let the students get up close with her intricate shadow puppets and answered many of the children’s questions as they watched the magical world of animated puppetry unfold.
Higher Education Partnerships
Bow Arts continues to develop relationships with universities and colleges, providing further insights for those about to embark on a creative career.
In March, we partnered with Goldsmiths University to deliver a workshop for their MA Arts and Leaning students. Our Learning Manager, Meg Lovett, delivered a presentation focussing on working with schools, social justice, public pedagogies and community engagement. Artist Esther Neslen then explored two school project case studies weaving in Goldsmith’s theme of ‘Stories of Change’.
The evening rounded off with a hands-on ceramic activity, led by Esther, exploring the notion of change through material connections. The students were invited to consider the social role of clay and focus on awareness of the flow of emotional states, whilst making their own small pinch pot. After joining their individual creations together to make one collective piece, participants were then invited to demolish the creation, evoking a sense of material transience and change.
Central St Martins panel discussion
In April our Head of Learning, Helen Bradbury, was invited to partake in a panel discussion as part of Apparitions – UAL’s week-long series of workshops and debate about the future of art education at Central St Martins.
Through talks, screenings, workshops and discussions, Apparitions addressed how we might configure an art school for the future.
Representing Bow Arts, Helen took part in the lively panel discussion led by the provocation, ‘Beyond The Art School: How might the different approaches to arts education across a range of sectors including primary, secondary and gallery education inform what we do in art school?’.
Work Experience Project
In February and March, we collaborated with London South East College in Bexley to support 45 students who were unable to secure work experience placements. Artist educators Matt Ponting and Paige Denham delivered ‘live project briefs’ to groups of Level 1, 2 and 3 art students.
Matt and Paige’s workshops focused on working to a client brief, developing creative ideas, creating mood boards and professional presentation skills to create a business brand identity. The week-long workshops prepared the students to think independently to creatively interpret the design brief, alongside developing collaborative skills.
ERIC Creative Careers Project
In February we partnered with the creative careers app ERIC and artist educator Paige Denham to create an inspirational short film highlighting different aspects of working in the creative industries. The film was showcased as part of ERIC’s Creative Careers and Apprenticeships Week.
Paige, a local to the Thamesmead area, describes her typical day as a freelance visual artist, her experience working on different Bow Arts projects and love of organisation and admin tasks when running her business. Paige’s insightful and motivating words set against the backdrop of her public and studio work provides accessible, encouraging advice for young creatives.