Art At The Skatepark

Text - Dom Read   Photos - Gemma Rogers  

What a whirlwind the past four weeks have been!!! It doesn't quite feel real how fast the time has gone. I can remember each workshop so clearly, like they were yesterday. At the same time the initial nerves prior to the first event feel like lifetime ago! I have learnt, grown and laughed throughout the whole process and I know I am not the only one!

So Four weeks ago began the first of the "Art at the Skatepark" workshop series. The was the culmination of many months of planning with me and the guys at Freshly Greated an Arts project based in Great Yarmouth.

​Now as all great plans go, day one had not even begun and the skies were grey and the forecast said wind, rain and lightening. Our initial plan to paint out at at the skatepark was scuppered before we had even begun!! 

​This was no problem though! We adjusted the plan and moved into Cobholm Community Centre. We set up the gazebos outside for STANE'S spray painting workshop and we got some tables and chairs set up for the skateboard painting workshop. Then we waited for the arrival of people....

To our pleasant surprise we were flooded with excited children and parents alike! My nightmare had been that we would be sat there with no one to work with but we were overwhelmed by the turn out! It was fantastic to see so many people so excited and happy to come and get creative!! 

The first week was the main spray paint workshop in which people could get involved in painting a mural for the project under the guidance and support of STANE. After that we mixed things up each week. We brought in extra activities like illustrating your own zine, painting an MDF board for Out There Festival or spraying your own Deck. STANE taught the kids how to create a colour gradient with the spray paint and the outcomes were truly incredible!!

It has been brilliant to see the variety of different people who have come through the workshops. I have worked with people generally aged 18-25 through my job working as a Technician at Norwich University of the Arts. I have never experienced working with people as young as 4 upwards to full grown adults. It was a definite learning experience, finding out how to communicate with different ages and abilities all at the same time, working on the same project. It worked well though and everyone seemed to have a great time! Young children came in shy and nervous, unsure of where to start and they left with the biggest smiles on their faces proud of what they had created!

Thank you to everyone who came along and got involved you guys made this the event that it was and I hope that you had a great time!! Many thanks to the guys at Cobholm Community Centre for allowing us to use their space! Thank you to STANE, Gemma and Sam and the rest of the Freshly Greated Team you guys smashed it!!! 

​Keep Painting!!!