I have noticed over the last few months the multiple and diverse stages we have found in our home spaces; platforms from which we can express ourselves while not being able to be with our friends, family, teachers and, indeed, strangers in person.
Our Activity Assistants have continued to find creative opportunities in their own spaces, shared from the frames of windows, or social media posts.
This week we hear from Chloe, Helen, Katie and Alison, who hope you too will have a go from your homes.
Museum Mashup Creatures!
Hi everyone, we are Chloe and Helen. We made these illustrations of some of our favourite characters in the V&A.
As Activity Assistants at the V&A Museum of Childhood, we’ve been telling stories and making things at for two years now. We are also trained in animation and illustration, and are often inspired by the objects on display at the museum, so we have enjoyed using them to make this new game of consequences that we’ve called Museum Mashup Creatures.
Print out and colour the drawing of the collection items here.
Cut along the lines using scissors.
Now you can rearrange the heads, bodies and legs to create new objects.
What would you call these new objects you have made? Can you make labels for them?
Perhaps you could write a story about what they would get up to in the museum, with no one else around?
Storytime with Alison – The Floating House
Hello. I love Storytime at the museum, especially the opportunity to imagine new worlds and share them with other people. Rachel Whiteread’s ‘The Village’ at the museum makes me think of flying above people’s homes and having a new view, seeing things from a different perspective.
I have been thinking about how we connect now and writing from home to share with you all. I hope you enjoy this tale, which Helen has illustrated.
See The Floating House films on Facebook or Instagram
Shadow plays with Katie
Hello from Katie. Always looking for ways to tell stories, the collection of shadow puppets at the museum have been making me think about how we can create stages throughout the home using light and shadow.
I made this character Larry above, using a mop, a hairband, a belt, a penny and some paper.
Larry is in a band called The Mopheads, you might have heard of his songs Washing You Away & Soap Suds in my Eyes.
Have a go yourself, and have a look at one of our shadow puppets. Think about who or what you would like to create using light and shadow.
Find your stage. Mine was a garden chair that is transparent, which means it can let light pass through. Pick some objects from around the home that might create interesting shapes. Play around, exploring what shadows these objects can create when light shines on them.
The V&A shadow puppet collection also gave me the idea to make my own silhouettes to put in my windows, so others can see them too.
I chose things from our collection like tin rockets, space invaders and castles! Doesn’t it look like aliens have landed outside my window? What story would you create through these shapes for people who might pass your window?
Pick something from the collection.
Using scissors and card or paper, draw the outline of the object, which we call the silhouette.
Using scissors, cut around it. You might also use colourful transparent materials to create the windows like I did with the castle and space invader above.
Could you write or tell someone a story about them?
Keep making those stages and stories and share them with us at #mocpicks
