Jazmine Rocks

Jazmine Rocks, CreateVoice youth forum member

I'm Jazmine Rocks, a nineteen year old style blogger and a newbie freelance stylist from London. I adore the Victoria and Albert Museum, it's most definitely one of my favourite places in London to explore, and I can often be found wandering around the British Galleries, exhibitions and of course the lovely gift shop! I've been a member of CreateVoice since July 2010 - it's great to be part of a group which allows me to work with museum professionals and other members to organize events and put forward ideas on ways to improve the museum for young people. Recently CreateVoice put together a fashion festival at the Museum, where I gave a talk about fashion blogging with a handful of other bloggers, which was really insightful and so exciting to be part of. I'm really looking forward to spending more time working with the V&A and CreateVoice on new projects over the coming months.

Annabelle Mayor

Annabelle Mayor, CreateVoice youth forum member

My name is Annabelle Mayor and I'm 17. I became a member of CreateVoice because of the Friday Forum. I have also taken part in the Create a Garment workshop, which was fun and I hope to do more workshops. CreateVoice is great because of what they do for young people who are interested in a creative career or who just want to get creative! The V&A is my favourite museum as it has a huge range of collections and exhibitions, and the place is full of treasures. My favourite is the collection of silver but I also really like the photography collection too. The Friday Forums are really enjoyable and since the V&A's open late on Fridays, after the meeting and activity you can stay and explore the museum which is really great fun.

Iris Boudier

Iris Boudier, CreateVoice youth forum member

My name is Iris Boudier. I am 22 years old and have been a member of CreateVoice for the past two years. I joined CreateVoice because I was interested in art and really liked the Victoria and Albert Museum. I have been involved in many activities and workshops since joining, all of which I have thoroughly enjoyed. My favourite has to be the short film project which was filmed in the Renaissance and Medieval Galleries, this was a great experience, and I learnt a lot about this era in the process as well. Reporting about the Fashion Festival for the CreateVoice webpage was fantastic, too. What I love about the V&A is that the collections are so varied, there is always something new to discover, and there are many activities and seminars organized which are a great way to learn more about art and design. Being a member of CreateVoice and spending time in this great institution has made my interest for art turn into a real passion, and I am now studying History of Art at a postgraduate level.

Aneeka Makwana

Aneeka Makwana, CreateVoice youth forum member

Aneeka Makwana, 21, 3rd year Graphic Design student at Camberwell College of Arts.

I joined CreateVoice in July 2010 as an intern and subsequently signed up as a member to get a greater understanding of the forum and what they do. There were some lovely workshops that I've been involved in, specifically working with artist in residence Christian Kerrigan on a virtual exhibition in a disused part of the museum and a sculpture workshop in casting and model making which allowed us to create self-motivated work within a structure, which were displayed in glass cases in the Sackler Centre for a short while. We also collaborated with the Blue Train Project in curating a series of performances and exhibitions in response to the 'Diaghilev and the Golden Age of the Ballet Russes' exhibition at the museum last year which culminated in a Friday Late event with various performances taking place around the Museum.

As part of my work experience, I was set a live project to create an identity for CreateVoice which lead on to a more consultative role; I showed the progress of my work to members at the meetings and took on their feedback to improve it, ensuring that it was reflective of the group.

The V&A is one of my favourite places to visit, so to be involved in some way is a real treat. I've spent many hours in the Ceramics Gallery as it's full of some incredible examples of diverse craftsmanship and I really love being able to see the skilled hand of the artists in their work. The textile study room is another of my favourite parts of the museum, as you really interact with the objects on display by pulling them out and spend time examining each piece on display; it's quite tucked away so you can potter around undisturbed for quite a while.

Novuyo Moyo

Novuyo Moyo, CreateVoice youth forum member

My name is Novuyo Moyo (19 years old) and I am currently studying BA (Hons) Criticism, Communication and Curation at Central St Martins. I got involved with CreateVoice the summer of 2011 when I did a joint Teen Talk with one it's existing members. It was a great opportunity to meet with one of the curators at the V&A Museum and gain valuable information which we could then research further and use as part of a talk we gave to an audience. This is one of the reasons that I view CreateVoice as an invaluable youth thinktank; we are given opportunities to develop projects and contribute our own ideas to events such as the Fashion Festival 2011. What I like most about the V&A is that it always hosts a variety of events suitable for all sorts of people and interests within art and design of course. My favourite object at the V&A is a German cabinet by Boas Ulrich in Room 62 of the Medieval and Renaissance Galleries. Its extravagantly decorated and very decadent which is probably why it caught my eye initially and has remained in memory for so long.

Joanna Atherton

My name is Joanna and I'm 19 years old. I have a strong passion for the creative as well as the performing arts and am a regular singer/songwriter. I'm on a gap year and rather new to the V&A museum as I started to look around at the start of this year for some visual ideas to apply to my music. CreateVoice is a fantastic opportunity for me to speak with like-minded individuals and develop events for those interested in the art world. I am continuously learning new disciplines on offer in the field and it is important to - at any chance - raise awareness to young artists. I'd like to promote the sources available at the V&A for research, and encourage people my age to collaborate! CreateVoice also has plenty of opportunities to volunteer and keep an eye on all the events taking place at the museum, so it's overall a very productive thing to do in my free time.

Rupinder Garcha

My name is Rupinder, I’m eighteen years old and on a gap year before going to university to study Art History. I became a member of CreateVoice after seeing a tweet about it on twitter! CreateVoice offers young people a unique opportunity to get involved with the V&A by allowing us to work with museum professionals and other industry experts. Recently, CreateVoice ran a performance festival, which I assisted with. I also took part in a forum with the Museum’s Director. With a summer programme packed full of events, I’m really excited to be working as a part of CreateVoice on upcoming projects at the V&A!

Rachel May

My name is Rachel May. I'm 18 years old and I'm a student at Hills Road Sixth Form in Cambridge. I've been attending CreateVoice Friday Forums since February 2011, and have found the experience invaluable - the youth forum is a great way to get involved. Since being a part of CreateVoice, I have helped out at the Youth Fashion Festival, and led a Teen Talk with Novuyo at the David Goldblatt exhibition. I appreciated how this exhibition was comprised of photos sent by the artist himself, as he saw the V&A as a stable and worthy institution. But despite its firm nature, (that's not to say that the museum is stagnant), the V&A is among the liveliest and most exciting museums in London and CreateVoice is a testament to this! My favourite area in the Museum is the restoration gallery, which is really interesting (read: hypnotising!) to watch, and I love meeting the artists in residence and workshops after the forums - direct interaction with art and design is what makes the Museum so special and inspiring! I love the V&A, and CreateVoice has provided many great opportunities. I look forward to the coming months and future projects!

Katrina Too

A nomadic chameleon, overwhelmed sponge and curious ball of oxymoron are keywords that summarise myself in the past year. A graduate from University of Melbourne and currently employed by a marketing trade association in London, I am ever intrigued by life forms and behaviour, art and nature. Having freelanced with a timepiece and high jewellery magazine and women's fashion magazine/portals, I desire to shift my experiences beyond fashion, focussing on creative collaborations and curating conceptual projects that serve no boundaries.

I believe that CreateVoice turns the impossible to do-ables through opening many new doors for young individuals like myself, hence helping us grow within art circles and talent networks. The youth forum is working increasingly well at bringing together a like-minded mix of blood who have the ability to collectively drive major changes.