Wadhurst staff and students have united to create a unique piece of artwork on the wall of a classroom.
“It’s important that students have some ownership over their learning spaces,” says Mr Paul Stewart, Head of English at Wadhurst and project instigator. “We want them to be proud of their classrooms and enjoy being in them. When they come into a space like this, it should feel special.”
In seeking to transform a classroom into a more dynamic place, Mr Stewart and students from Year 7 and 8 devised a plan to create a large and colourful mural focusing on comic book style superheroes.
“In Year 7 English we’d been looking at Greek heroes and the hero’s journey,” explains Mr Stewart. “At the same time, superheroes were high in students’ consciousness. They present the idea that we can all be better than we are, that we can overcome adversity, and that we are at our strongest when we work as a team. Collectively, we decided to head in that direction.”
Every character in the mural was selected by student vote. Students and staff who had elected to be involved in the project – almost fifty in total – then spent lunchtimes together creating the piece of art. Mr Stewart crafted the main elements, and individual students and staff members each painted a smaller item.
For Year 8 student Elio Ongarato, there were multiple benefits to participating in the endeavour. “I painted Nebula who is an anti-hero. Even though she initially was portrayed as a villain in Marvel movies, she eventually become a hero. This made her interesting to me,” he says. “It was really fun being part of the project. There were some of my friends in there, so I got to talk with them, and I also got to meet some other boys and make new friends out of it.”
Aside from decorating the wall, the project offered students an opportunity to participate in a longer term project. “In the course of a School Term, students were able to see the project through from start to finish,” says Mr Stewart. “They were involved in the planning and the execution, they saw the mistakes made along the way, they helped solve problems as they arose, and they gave direct feedback about design and colour. In fact, two superheroes were completely painted over because the boys didn’t like how I painted them!”
The students came up with some novel ideas during the process and these have been incorporated into the design. Thor is seen ‘powering’ the air conditioning of the room. Groot ‘holds’ the air-conditioning console, replicating the bomb he held in an amusing Marvel movie scene. A power switch has been transformed into a ‘cosmic cube’.
“The thing that struck me throughout the project was the total absence of cynicism,” explains Mr Stewart. “During their lunchtimes and after school, students came together with a common aim and supported each other. There was no sense of self consciousness in the group, and no ridicule. There was only an atmosphere of collegiality and co-construction. It was wonderful to see.”
And the impact of the mural on students? “The mural is so eye catching; it’s brilliant,” says Gus Wahlqvist, Year 8, who was responsible for painting Harley Quinn. “It raises morale and lifts your spirits when you’re feeling a bit low. You see people walking past the classroom, going “Whaaah!” and looking at every detail. It’s great.”
