Inspired by ... winners 2006

Inspired by … is the V&A's annual art competition for people on part-time courses, and is supported by NIACE, the National Institute of Continuing Education. Participants create a work of art or craft inspired by the collections of either V&A South Kensington, or the V&A Museum of Childhood.

In 2006, 240 adult learners entered the Inspired by… competition, coming from around 50 colleges and institutions nationally and encouraged by 60 tutors in art and crafts. 71 artworks were selected by 19 judging curators and educators to go on display, most of them in the Café Foyer, and nine of them in the galleries, next to their inspiration piece. One artwork went on display at the Theatre Museum.

The awards ceremony took place at the V&A on 23 May 2006. 250 people attended the event, most of them adult learners and tutors from the national colleges and institutions that took part. David Anderson, Director of the Learning & Interpretation Division at the V&A, officially opened the display and Sue Meyer, Director of Programmes at NIACE (National Institute of Continuing Education) awarded the People's Prize 2005: the artwork voted as favourite by visitors of last year's Inspired by… 2005 display to Lynne Pretty for her artwork Jarna Jali . The 2006 winners were then announced and given their prizes. Music was provided by the Morley College Can't Sing Choir who performed gospel songs live.

Word and Image Prize & The People's Prize

Rie Aoki for Open My Heart

Open My Heart was made by Rie Aoki during her book illustration class at Chelsea College of Art and Design.

Inspired by...

Room 114c, Ironwork, V&A Interior

'The Ironwork gallery guided me into a very imaginative world. Its atmosphere is something similar to lino cut printing.'

Judges' comments

'We selected this work as it is both beautifully executed and wonderfully touching. The artist has perfectly captured the chaotic, intricate, fantastical mood of the V&A' s ironwork collection, producing a piece that is imaginative and inventive. The idea behind this piece and the detail with which it is realised make it an extremely enjoyable and satisfying work of design. The effectively handled lino cut makes a meaningful visual and conceptual connection with the medium of ironwork, crossing scale and technique.'

Sculpture Prize

Brigitte Evill for Ascent

Ascent was made by Brigitte Evill during her exploring sculpture class at Morley College.

Inspired by...

Pulpit, 19th century, cast after a marble original by Giovanni Pisano,1260, Museum no. Repro.1865-52

'I was inspired by this piece at first because of the sheer skill in the workmanship, and also the amount of time spent building such a piece.'

Judges' comments

'Ideas surrounding spiritual and physical ascension are beautifully represented in these steps, which were inspired by work of immense technical skill and dedication.'

Metalwork and Jewellery Prize

Catherine Morris for Cubist Necklace

Cubist Necklace was made by Catherine Morris during her jewellery class at Richmond Adult Community College.

Inspired by...

From an Office Window, 1918, By Christopher Richard Wynne Nevinson, Museum no. E.2972-1962

'My necklace was inspired by the hat and three dimensional shapes that stand alone or overlap and interact with each other in this Cubist print.’

Judges' comments

'Through this necklace Nevinson's angular shapes are reworked in three dimensions. The print  is used as a departure point from which the maker has been inspired to produce a beautiful and wearable piece of jewellery.'

Ceramics Galleries Prize

Jonathan Wood for Slab Piece

Slab piece was made by Jonathan Wood during his structured ceramics class at City Lit.

Inspired by...

Two fragments of red patterned silk, 700-900, Museum no. Ch.00176.a&b

'I was touched by the delicacy of the textile fragments and was interested in the juxtaposition of softness and hardness.'

Judges' comments

'We found it intriguing that Jonathan Wood was inspired not by glamorous garments or dramatic textiles but by small fragments of fragile silk, the only remaining vestiges of what were once whole textile objects. He was interested in the delicacy  of these disintegrating excavated strips of material and how to interpret them in the harder medium of clay. He has done so by using slip transfers on a highly-textured and fissured clay slab structure. Slab Piece is subtle and detailed in its texture, patterning and colouring and more than achieves Mr. Wood's stated aim of producing a 'delicately brittle' work of great exuberance.'

Glass Prize

Jane Dorner for Dancing in the cinders

Dancing in the Cinders was made by Jane Dorner during her glass engraving class at Morley College.

Inspired by...

Rack of kitchen implements, About 17th century, Netherlands, Museum no.M.121 to G-1925

'I knew as soon as I saw the set of kitchen implements that they would form the core of my idea. I felt I could do something jaunty with them and they appealed to my sense of humour.'

Judges' comments

'We were impressed that Jane Dorner had not only engraved this dish but had even blown the piece herself. It is both imaginative and amusing, drawing inspiration from three quite diverse museum objects - made from different materials, from different countries and periods and from three different galleries. She has combined these into one amusing and charming whole. She shows a flair for overall design and layout, delicate  craftsmanship and engraved detail which is of a remarkable standard for a beginner.'

Asia Prize

Tamsin Browne

This untitled necklace was made by Tamsin Browne during her NCFE jewellery design class at Plymouth College of Art and Design.

Inspired by...

Inspired by: Shoulder guard, 17th century, By Nagasone Kotetsu, Museum no.M.968-1916, Room 45, Japan

'It is the marrying of the weight of armour and war, with the delicacy and poetics of nature, balanced within the design work, that inspires me.'

Judges' comments

'This entry evoked entirely the spirit of Inspired by...  It is a delicately crafted, original piece of design which maintains a transparent reference to its inspiration source. We felt the piece showed the journey that the creator had gone through whilst simultaneously producing an aesthetically pleasing and technically accomplished piece of jewellery.'

Fashion and Textiles Prize

Uju Obi for And all will be well, and all will be well, and all that matters will be well

And all will be well, and all will be well, and all that matters will be well was made by Uju Obi during her embroidered textiles class at City Lit.

Inspired by...

Les Ailes dans le Vent, 1914-22, Plate XII, France, Museum no. 95.JJ.24.

'I was inspired by the vibrant pattern of the flowers and the migrating birds, which to me suggest spring and new beginnings.'

Fashion and Textiles Prize

Chris Edwards for Museum in a Time of Conflict

Museum in a Time of Conflict was made by Chris Edwards during his studio glass class at Richmond Adult Community College.

Inspired by...

Bomb damage to the Exhibition Road façade of the V&A, 1939-45

'The V&A as custodian and protector is exampled to me by the physical damage caused by bombs in WW2. This damage has been deliberately left un-repaired and marked with a factual inscription. Thus it has become an exhibit.'

Judges' comments

'The Janet Cobb award is in memory of an art student who overcame the barriers to adult learning to become an inspiration to her classmates. This year's award goes to Chris Edwards at Richmond Adult Community College for his high standard of artistic creativity and technical skill, together with the evidence that he has reaped life changing benefits from his adult art class; Chris said that he has reconnected with the pleasure of learning for learning's sake and has learned to see as opposed to merely looking.'

Access Prize

Damion Curran for Urban Love

Urban Love was made by Damion Curran during his visual art class at Dudley College.

Inspired by...

Self-Portrait in a Landscape, 1921, By Leon Underwood, Museum no. E.2920-1921

'My artwork was inspired by Leon Underwood's Self-Portrait in a Landscape because it shows peace and tranquillity.'

Access Prize

Michelle Carvalho

Inspired by...

William Frederick, 2nd Duke of Gloucester, about 1820, attributed to Giovanni Battista Comolli, Museum no. A.69-1965, Grand Entrance

'I took photographs in the collection of buddhas and in between captured this photo, which I was very pleased with.'

Adult Learners Prize

Jannette Gay for Exotica

Exotica was made by Jannette Gay during her papier-mâché arts and crafts class at Richmond Adult Community College.

Inspired by...

The Queen of Oudh's costume, Mid 19th century, India, Museum no.0645-IS, Room 41, South Asia

'Flamboyant in colour and intricate in pattern, combined with softness of flow, this costume encouraged me to use the same colouring, using wired ribbons and coloured braids to match it.'

Theatre Prize

Akemi Sugawara for To Joey

To Joey was made by Akemi Sugawara during her jewellery class at Morley College.

Inspired by...

Cruet in the shape of Joseph Grimaldi, 1850, Museum no. S.913-1981, Main Galleries, Theatre Museum

'I was very impressed by Joseph Grimaldi's story, being the first proper clown. I thought I would like to make jewellery around the Grimaldi-clown-circus-ring theme.'

Judges' comments

'This year there was quite a variety of designs submitted for this prize, and although we were pleased with various aspects of all the entries, the design by Akemi Sugawara stood out for several reasons. Not only were the judges impressed by the finished design, they were also pleased that Akemi had looked at several sources in the museum for her inspiration, including a silver cruet set figurine of the great clown Joseph Grimaldi, circus posters, and even a 1960s set model. The clown Joseph Grimaldi was her starting point and although Grimaldi himself was never a circus clown, his comic timing, athleticism and fantastic costumes soon made Clown the most important figure in 19th century pantomime. Inspired by Grimaldi, clowning became an important feature of circus, along with performing animals who also feature in Akemi's necklace, which can also be worn as a brooch.  The way she has combined the various elements of the circus is ingenious, and the circular design echoes the image of a circus ring when worn as a necklace. The use of a mixture of materials and techniques makes for a fascinating object in texture and appearance, as does the use of a combination of circular and cut-out shapes. The judges were also impressed with the variety of techniques used for surface decorating and joining.