Cross-curricular learning has taken off at James Campbell Primary School, where Year 5 worked with artist educator Reza Ben Gajra to turn their knowledge of science into sculpture. 

During a series of six workshops with Reza, students from Year 5 at the Barking and Dagenham school worked to create a permanent, bespoke artwork for the school grounds.

The project centred around their study of the lifecycle of the butterfly and took inspiration from the work of Anthony Gormley. Through the process of making, the students were encouraged to think creatively about their science topic.  

Starting the process with sketching, the students studied the faces and silhouettes of their peers and began to interpret their sketches in wire. Encouraged by Reza they worked across scales, studying proportion as well as learning techniques for sculpting with wire.  

The final artwork, titled “Metamorphosis” sees the students interpret the life cycle of the butterfly in human form. To create the six wire forms, each class group experiment with poses that would communicate the theme, before experimenting with life size drawing.  

They worked collaboratively with wire to create life size forms based on the figures of their peers. The sixth figure serves as a triumphant end to the series, representing the student butterfly with arms outstretched like wings and wrapped in gold. The technical process resulted in an artwork that not only consolidates the student’s skill and curriculum knowledge but creates a sense of pride among the classes. 

The bespoke artwork that has been installed in an internal courtyard at the heart of the school and showcases both the student and teachers’ commitment to creative learning across disciplines.  

“Everyone LOVES the sculptures. There are a lot of ‘wows’ being said around the school!”

– James Campbell Primary Art Coordinator 

At Bow Arts we tailor all our projects to the priorities and aims of the school community – and always aim do embed creativity across the curriculum. 

Our projects can result in high quality original artwork for your school, creating a more dynamic and personalised space for learning and develop students’ pride and ownership over their school environment. 

You can find out more about the exciting ways Bow arts could work with your school here: Schools & colleges – Bow Arts  

Inspired by this project? Get in touch with our learning team at learning@bowarts.com to find out what’s possible together!