Democracy by Design 2011
Art, politics and design
Level 3 art and design students (BTEC National Diploma/A-Level) from across south London participated in Democracy by Design, a collaboration between the University of the Arts London's Widening Participation team and Parliament's Education Service.
The project aimed to take a creative approach to engaging young people with politics, as well as giving the students a chance to experience learning in a higher education environment.
Inspiration and representation
Over a week-long intensive summer school, students worked with artists and industry professionals while meeting politicians, artists and curators.
Students visited the Houses of Parliament and learned about the work and role of the institution and its members. As well as a tour of the building, the young people also explored the art collection portraits with Curator Emma Gormley and portrait artist Henry Mee.
They also met with Baroness Young and Lord Ouseley, members of the House of Lords. Students were particularly inspired by the peers' stories and proud to have the opportunity to sketch their portraits.
The students' visit also happened to coincide with an exciting and widely-covered day of parliamentary business as the Commons Culture, Media and Sport committee took evidence from Rupert Murdoch on phone hacking.
In the studio
At Camberwell College of the Arts, students experimented with a range of artistic techniques. To design and develop their work the students worked with artists Sharon Laurent and Geoff Coupland through the course of the week.
In the design studio, students also met Jamie Ellul, Creative Director of Magpie Design and tutor of last year’s project. They discussed the reality of the design world and how and where politics and design meet.
The final product
Students based their work on the values of chivalry, and events that had shaped their own lives and environment. The chivalric virtues of generosity, hospitality, mercy, religion and courtesy are depicted in a series of murals in the Robing Room at the Houses of Parliament, from which students took inspiration.
The students' final works were a series of graphic-based portraits of people in their own lives who they believe exemplify one or more chivalric virtues. The exceptional completed works were displayed in Portcullis House at the Houses of Parliament in September 2011.
Project acknowledgements:
Special thanks go to Henry Mee, Lord Ouseley, Baroness Young, the Curator's Office at the Houses of Parliament, Jocelyn Bailey at Policy Connect and Magpie Studios.
Find out more: