Lauren H.

I graduated from Nottingham Trent in 2013 with a first class honours in Fine Art and have worked in the Art sector for a number of years. I have held positions at Nottingham Contemporary as a Gallery Assistant, tour guide, Sales Assistant and Front of House Assistant and with the exhibitions team during de-installation of exhibitions, condition checking and installing new work. During change-over periods, I also worked with the events team, marketing, writing content and updating website events and data entry. My voluntary work is varied; I have held a position at the first commercial gallery in Nottingham, Syson Gallery, where I assisted with installing and dismantling exhibition work, invigilation and public events. At the end of 2013 and for an academic year I volunteered on the Art Foundation course at NCN Lace Market, offering advice and support in practical work and with research to students doing fine art, illustration and fashion/design. Since this position I've had significant experience working in the education sector, in both Secondary and Post Compulsory education. As a Tutor at Djanogly City Academy, working within the Student Referral Centre, I worked one-to-one with students who need extra support completing their GCSE in fine art. This position furnished me with experience and knowledge of working with young adults who have unique and challenging behaviour. My role was to support students with their written and practical work, facilitate learning in an engaging and stimulating environment and to advise students who may be experiencing issues in their personal life. Over the duration of the following three years, I established my own business, Make-Time; operating in the care sector, organising and delivering workshops to individuals living with acute learning disabilities, adults in residential care and adults living with Alzheimer's and Dementia in Nottingham city centre. Alongside this work I worked with Bangor University and assisted with a research project, to investigate whether art can positively impact the life of a person with Dementia. I assisted in planning and delivering a twelve week programme at a Derbyshire Day Centre for 'Dementia and Imagination'. These workshops were documented and culminated in an exhibition of artwork. In 2016 I began teacher training in Birmingham, within secondary education. I graduated from my PGDipEd in 2017 and have been working in Kenilworth at a mainstream comprehensive school teaching Art and Graphic Design as a fully qualified teacher since 2018. I currently teach key stage 3 Art, and key stage 4 and 5 Fine Art and Graphic Design. I am also a freelance artist and designer and have my own practice creating videos, print-making, developing teaching resources and taking commissions for logo and website design.