Education

The Henry Moore Foundation has formed links with local museums with the help of Sue Butler, East Herts Learning and Outreach Officer, to encourage educational projects aimed at children of all ages. One of the first results of this collaboration was the Big Draw, a country-wide project organised by the Campaign for Drawing to encourage children to develop their creative skills.

Ware Museum and The Henry Moore Foundation teamed up to work on a WW2 inspired project, which was attended by around eighty children. The Museum displayed a number of large-format images of Moore’s shelter drawings, which, used along with the experience of viewing the WW2 bunker, encouraged children to think about and draw their own interpretation of the theme 'A Place of Safety'.

Families were invited to consider what it would be like to shelter in a bunker during a bombing raid and to try their hand at producing a bold abstract picture, a vibrant colour collage or a quick pencil sketch.

Local artists Geoff Bennett and Chris Holder were there to lend a creative hand to the children on the day. Additional publications and biographical information on Moore were on display at the Museum to make it a much richer experience for both the parent and child. Materials similar to those used by Moore like chalks, charcoal, wax crayon, pencil and watercolours were provided by the Museum, producing fantastic results.

The staff at Ware Museum commented that the Big Draw was a wonderful opportunity for local children to discover the  work of Henry Moore as a local and internationally renowned artist.