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Brave the Bricks LEGO® Walk!
Team Animate will be braving the bricks, with a barefoot, sponsored walk over thousands of LEGO® bricks on Saturday 27 September at Rochester Cathedral to raise vital funds to re-build Animate Arts' inspirational 'Crafty Cart'.
Stepping into this foot-defying challenge are...
** Jo Dyer - Artistic Director of Animate Arts, lead artist and lover of all things cardboard-y
** Nova Marshall - Animate Artist and wearer of funky earrings!
** Dave Yard - Chair & trusty trustee on Animate's Board and walker extraordinaire (even on LEGO? We will find out!)
** Mrs Clarkson - Teacher at Senacre Primary School, passionate about art in schools and photography in nature.
** Mrs Dixon - Deputy Headteacher at Senacre Primary School, Champion of Animate's work in schools and champion of silent discos (but will she be silent walking over Lego?)
Every pound donated for this challenge will go to help Animate Arts make a sturdier Crafty Cart re-built to last so that we can bring its magical workshop experience to more schools, communities, children and families.
The current cart is falling apart. Originally only built to be a prototype (to test a project idea), it quickly captured everyone's curiosity and imagination. Crafty Cart#1 engaged 300+ children and adults on its test voyage in 2024, and received 5-star rave reviews from audiences who wanted more!
Thank you so much for the fantastic craft session, my 3 and 6 year old enjoyed it so much, I don't have words for how lovely it was. My 6 year old is on the autistic spectrum and loves junk craft more than anything so it could not have been more perfect. [Mum, Crafty Cart session, Summer 2024]
Brave the Bricks is part of Funding for All's 'Community, Craft & Courage' Makers Market. If you're local and fancy coming along to cheer on Team Animate on the day, we'll be Braving the Bricks at Rochester Cathedral, The Precinct, Rochester ME1 1SX at 2.30pm!
About Crafty Cart
Crafty Cart is a new immersive crafting experience for families and children developed by Jo Dyer & Animate Arts in Spring 2024. The experience is a hybrid of performance and craft workshop, encouraging audiences to imagine, create and enjoy art in a fun, inclusive and celebratory way.
The Crafty Cart itself is a magical box full of tools and materials that are slowly revealed by the artist to the audience. Participants meet the Scissor Birds, an Army of Glue-Sticks and the Acrobat Tapes! Resourced with these key tools and a range of paper & cardboard materials found in the ‘Could Be’ junk drawer, all participants become makers, creating their own artworks to display in a wonderful pop-up ‘Cart Gallery’ exhibition.
Why is it important?
Here at Animate Arts we believe in the power of creativity for individuals, groups and communities. Engaging in art workshops raises self-confidence, engages, empowers and motivates people.
** We want to create happier, more connected communities - and Crafty Cart is a brilliant way for us to achieve this!
** Art-making is an essential experience for young brains and bodies! Children learn to problem-solve, communicate better & think creatively via art, as well as build their motor skills through cutting, mark-making etc.
** Crafting and creativity is essential to our health and wellbeing. Sally Bacon OBE (co-author, 'The Arts in Schools: Foundations for the Future, Creativity for Health & Wellbeing in the Education Sector') says:
** In a complex and changing world, and in the face of increasing mental health challenges, giving children the space and skills to express themselves, through all art forms, as a way to understand themselves, others and the world around them, is a key aspect of a child's right to a rich education."
** Art prepares children for the future, giving them the 'soft skills' so sought-after by today's employers. Every workshop we deliver has this in mind: the ability to problem-solve and think creatively is essential to every young person's success.
** Crafty Cart is a high-quality craft experience for children, families and schools who may not always have the resources to access such an opportunity. We know many schools are really struggling to make art happen in their settings, and communities are struggling to fit creative services into their agendas: Crafty Cart is compact both in structure (everything tucks magically away, to be revealed over the course of the workshop) and affordable to deliver, requiring just one artist to create a big creative experience for participants.
What Your Donation Means
£1500 = Reaching our target will enable the cart to be rebuilt; work with artists and makers to hand-craft the cart, and fund the materials/tools to do so (also includes all the tools provided for the workshop participants to use!).
£2225 = If we exceed our target, we can develop the workshop's soundtrack and its in-built sound technology, which brings a magical atmosphere to the Crafty Cart experience.
£3000+ = Exceeding our wildest dreams, we would train extra artists from the Animate Arts team to co-deliver the workshop, enabling us to reach more audiences.
Animate Arts is a Community Interest Company. Every penny from this fundraiser will be donated through this JustGiving page to Animate Arts, specifically for this project to happen. You can find out more about Animate's work here: www.animateartscompany.com
