BRIDFAS
British Decorative and Fine Arts Society
of Brussels
BRIDFAS Events 2008-2009
Young Arts Project Inauguration Day
He was running so fast his black cloak
was streaming out behind him like the
wings of a bird. Each stride he took was
as long as a tennis court. Out of the
village he ran, and soon they were
racing across the moonlit fields.
Plant-life patchwork
The Head Teacher shows matryoshkas
illustrating 'The Frog Princess' fairy tale
Parents get a first look at their
children's art work
The project leader takes pride
in the children's framed works
A panorama of painting, sewing,
sculpting, printmaking, batik
and felt work
During the spring term of 2009 BRIDFAS sponsored a Young Arts Project at the British Junior Academy of Brussels called "Storytelling through Textiles". (See below for more information.) It came to an exciting conclusion in the month of June with the children's art exhibition. BRIDFAS was represented by its chairman who, after being officially thanked with a gift of flowers, was given the honor to cut the ribbon and inaugurate the event.
Throughout the winter and spring the chairman made periodic visits to the school to photograph the progress the children were making. Nothing, however, could compare to seeing the works properly framed and hung as if they were in a professional art gallery. They had become real true works of art! Even greater than the sense of satisfaction BRIDFAS experienced at having been involved in such a lovely project was the feeling of pride the children demonstrated as they pointed out their individual works to their parents.
On a formal level the children learned how to conceive and execute an art project, but on a personal level they learned the many ways in which art can enrich their lives. Congratulations to the budding young artists of the British Junior Academy!
Seaside Fantasy
Persian paisley patterns and
April Fool's Day
Autumn Study Day 2008:
The Emperor Hadrian
“For almost twenty years, from AD 117 to 138, Publius Aelius Hadrianus ruled one of the mightiest empires the world has ever seen - a territory that comprised much of Europe, northern Africa and the Middle East. During this time he realigned borders, crushed rebellions, traveled extensively and created some of the most magnificent buildings in the ancient world.” - Thorsten Opper, Curator of Greek and Roman sculpture at the British Museum, London.
In the autumn of 2008 BRIDFAS was treated to a fascinating study day based on the life of the Emperor Hadrian at the British Museum in London.
The day started with coffee and cake in our own room of the museum. This was followed by a private lecture and a unique opportunity to speak directly to Thorsten Opper, the curator of the special exhibition "Emperor Hadrian". We then had a catered lunch after which we saw the sumptuous show which was held in the hallowed hall of the museum's reading room.
The exhibition contained objects from 28 museums worldwide and featured finds from recent excavations as well. Its scope was not only to illustrate the many accomplishments of one of the finest, most capable rulers that ever lived, but to analyze his personality, aesthetic taste, lifestyle, family, lover and their influence on him.
After an intense, but exhilarating time we had a tea break and were escorted on a guided tour to the areas of the museum relative to Hadrian and his legacy in Great Britain. The day ended with an opportunity to explore the rest of the museum.
Young Arts Project
We are proud to be sponsoring the British Junior Academy of Brussels 2009 Young Arts Project.
We are now aiming to expand our activities into Young Arts - to provide exciting opportunities for children to extend their horizons through their involvement in creative art activities. The aim is to inspire young children to gain a lasting enthusiasm for the arts and an awareness of our arts heritage.
An example of the children's felting.
The school will be offering a series of exciting workshops. These will focus on various textile techniques and will develop an awareness of historical practices around the world. Concentrating on batik, print-making and felting, they will involve the whole school during art lessons.
The BRIDFAS Young Arts Project is held on Wednesday afternoons at the school. We will be taking photographs of some of their creative work.
You can find out more about the Young Arts Project on the school web site (Scroll down the page to "BRIDFAS" and further down to BRIDFAS working with the BJAB.)
Painting on textile;
the next step will be to add beads.
Left:
The project leader holding up
a pupil's finished batik
