Creative students from Newcastle-under-Lyme College (NULC) have raised over £800 after organising a charity fashion and textiles show. The show was a collaborative project between students studying the Fashion and Textiles Foundation Diploma in Art and Design and BTEC Extended Diploma in Art and Design and was titled ‘The House of God’ which took place at St Giles Church in Newcastle-under-Lyme on Friday 13th June.
The students worked on a number of different aspects of putting together the fashion and textiles event. The students designed and made the outfits for the catwalk show, photographed and video recorded the event and promotional material including posters and tickets were designed and printed. On the evening students raised over £800 for the Douglas Macmillan Hospice and Mind.
Lauren Spragg, Lecturer in Fashion at NULC said: “All of the students involved worked extremely hard to organise the charity fashion and textiles show. Their hard work paid off and on the evening we had over 400 in attendance and over £800 was raised for the selected charities.”Representatives from both charities were presented with a cheque at NULC’s £60 million campus on Knutton Lane on Monday 30th June. She continued: “The students really enjoyed every minute of the event and the whole experience. It gives them a real insight of what a future career in this industry will be like. I’m proud of all of them.”
In May, 2014, the Prince’s Regeneration Trust commissioned me to re-design and paint the Middleport Pottery café walls. The design is painted onto lime wash walls with a mineral paint, this will form a chemical bond to the lime wash and soak into the wall without loss of colour. This use of traditional materials is in keeping with the PRT restoration plan for the whole site. Historically, Willow Pattern was printed in blue, a paler blue is used for the Asiatic Pheasant pattern. On the Willow Wall I also incorporated Arden and Calico/Calico Accent patterns.
As I began to draw, the Willow Pattern sections of the painting became a symbol to me of the new life of Middleport Pottery representing historic and contemporary connections. The Mandarin’s House related to the newly renovated Burleigh buildings. The bridge and the boat related to the canal directly outside the café door and the ‘island’ began to represent the other side of the canal. On many of the days I was painting, the sun was shining and I was able to have my lunch just outside by the canal. I thought of the history and the future of the pottery and how others would soon enjoy this experience.
This has been a particularly exciting commission and it has been a privilege to be part of this restoration project and paint the Middleport Pottery Wall Painting.
Joyce Iwaszko
Curriculum Leader for Level 2 Art and Design at NULC June 2014
Please see video below for further information about the regeneration of Middleport Pottery by the Prince's Regeneration Trust.
