sign up/login
The Big Draw
  • Festival Festival
    • About The Big Draw Festival
    • All Events
    • Big Draw Festival Awards
    • Sponsor-Partners 2023
    • The Big Draw Festival 2023: Drawing with Senses
    • What the Organisers Say
  • Blog Blog
    • Support Support
      • Shop Shop
        • Gallery Gallery
          • Our Work Our Work
            • About Us
            • Concepts & The Big Draw
            • Concepts Drawing Challenge
            • Contact
            • Drawing in Schools
            • FAQ's
            • Opportunities
            • Press
            • The Big Draw Ambassadors
            • The Big Draw Patrons
            • The Big Draw Trustees
            • The Ruskin Prize


          Membership area

          Drawing Changes Lives

          The Big Draw
          • Festival Festival
            • About The Big Draw Festival
            • All Events
            • Big Draw Festival Awards
            • Sponsor-Partners 2023
            • The Big Draw Festival 2023: Drawing with Senses
            • What the Organisers Say
          • Blog Blog
            • Support Support
              • Shop Shop
                • Gallery Gallery
                  • Our Work Our Work
                    • About Us
                    • Concepts & The Big Draw
                    • Concepts Drawing Challenge
                    • Contact
                    • Drawing in Schools
                    • FAQ's
                    • Opportunities
                    • Press
                    • The Big Draw Ambassadors
                    • The Big Draw Patrons
                    • The Big Draw Trustees
                    • The Ruskin Prize

                  Membership area

                  The World's Biggest Drawing Festival


                  How Drawing Changed Children's Lives

                  "All the children circling the world shows that we are the future"

                  I was invited to Bishop King Primary School in Lincoln to talk about my work as an illustrator and author and to create a big collaborative piece of work in October.  I talked about what inspired me to be an artist when I was young. 

                  "I didn't think I could draw, I never enjoyed it but Stephen showed me I can draw and create characters from my imagination"


                  We discussed ‘imagination’ and talked about how that is the most important thing you need to be a creative person.  The school wanted to create a collaborative piece of work which combined our environment and the schools diversity as they are a 60% EAL school (English as an Additional Language).  So we discussed the idea of us all working together to care for our planet and what we want to help save and sustain.

                  "The best thing about it was you got to draw what popped into your head. There were no rules."


                  We talked about our favourite ‘local environments’ and what could happen if everyone worked together to care for our world on a ‘Global’ scale.  So we talked about a ‘Global’ approach and everyone doing something to help, which would build into something much bigger.  So this resulted in ‘It’s Our Globe’.

                  "The whole day helped my imagination and inspired me to draw"

                  The Year 5 & 6 children started by creating their own portraits to go all the way around the world, to symbolize that they are protecting and caring for it.  The children developed ideas and created artwork for the land, sea and air.  They were allowed to create several versions so they felt they could take risks and create energetic and experimental artwork.

                  The workshop took place over two hours in an afternoon.  It then took me around a full week to cut out the 600 pieces of artwork  and to paint the globe.  I then composed and glued all the children’s artwork on the boards.  The artwork is 2m x 2m and is now on the wall in the school hall.  We had an unveiling assembly last week to show the final completed artwork which was a very exciting moment for everyone involved. 



                  "I loved our day with Mr Waterhouse. It was lots of fun"

                  The artwork is now a great starting point for the children’s story writing and they are over the moon to have this opportunity to show it off to the outside world. The artwork now serves as a constant source of inspiration for the children and they have been enjoying seeing their artwork everyday.  The parents can now see their children’s work in the context of a wider collaborative project with an Illustrator.

                  by Stephen Waterhouse – Illustrator & Author, Lecturer at Loughborough University and Visiting artist to schools.

                  Quotes from the teachers

                  ‘Quite emotional at how fantastic the art work looks’ ……’ The children were 'buzzing' as they were going home. I am sure we will get lots of follow up activities both written and art based’. Organiser Jeanette Bocking, English Lead & Head of Key Stage 2.

                  ‘WOW!!!! That’s brilliant!!! We LOVE our artwork! Thank you’ Cara Craven Yr 5 Teacher.

                  You can see my other artwork here www.stephenwaterhouse.com and I am SWillustrator on Twitter.

                  facebook twitter instagram pinterest YouTube
                  Find an event

                  search Advanced search »

                  Receive Big Draw News

                  Subscribe to our mailing list

                  Add me to the list
                  A Kearsney discovery: drawings for an animated film
                  A Kearsney discovery: drawings for an animated film
                  Dover Arts Development
                  HACA Year 6 & 6th form
                  HACA Year 6 & 6th form
                  Haberdashers' Aske's Crayford Academy
                  The finished mural
                  The finished mural
                  Treefrog Art
                  Cubism
                  Cubism
                  Wickham Market Arts Project
                  Facepainting at Knole
                  Facepainting at Knole's Big Draw weekend ©National Trust Images/Robert Morris
                  Knole, National Trust
                  drawings from Freefall Youth Group showing at TAAG Big Draw Till Nov 3rd
                  drawings from Freefall Youth Group showing at TAAG Big Draw Till Nov 3rd
                  Teignmouth arts action group
                  4 Wilds of 5 Lely Court Sill
                  4 Wilds of 5 Lely Court Sill
                  Garden Museum
                  Drawing eyes.
                  Drawing eyes.
                  Pudsey Primrose hill Primary
                  UCA Epsom helped run a school event
                  UCA Epsom helped run a school event
                  The BIG DRAW EPSOM
                  monoprints made on the traditional printing press
                  monoprints made on the traditional printing press
                  Whitley Bay Big Draw
                  Children
                  Children's watercolour workshop ©National Trust Images/Ian Shaw
                  Knole, National Trust
                  Paint trails and tracks -  marbles on the move
                  Paint trails and tracks - marbles on the move
                  WalktheLoopArts
                  Big Draw in VIlafranca 2016
                  Big Draw in VIlafranca 2016
                  Ajuntament de Vilafranca del Penedès. Servei de Cultura
                  Sophie Rodin
                  Sophie Rodin
                  Sophie Rodin
                  drawing the town in Nairn
                  drawing the town in Nairn
                  Wasps Links Studios
                  Mark-making to music
                  Mark-making to music
                  Animate Arts Company
                  Learning about tonal ranges Punnetts Town
                  Learning about tonal ranges Punnetts Town
                  Heathfield Community College
                  Big Draw "Play" 2018 The Seychelles Team!
                  Big Draw "Play" 2018 The Seychelles Team!
                  Arterial Network Seychelles
                  'Human Lines'. Two of the three finished group drawings of human movement, based on the theme of 'Living Lines', using graphite sticks, househould paint, sticks, rags and brushes. Community Arts Day at Geddington Brickyard Garden
                  Emma Davies
                  The Big Draw 2016 with artist Tim Curtis
                  The Big Draw 2016 with artist Tim Curtis
                  Cartwright Hall Art Gallery
                  Gallery View The
                  Big Draw

                  @ The Big Draw

                  Tweets by @The_Big_Draw
                  • About us
                  • Terms and Conditions
                  • Organise an event
                  • Press
                  • Privacy policy
                  • Contact
                  The Guild of St George Urban Space Management East London Chamber Alan Davidson Foundation Foster and Partners Trinity Bouy Wharf Trust Trinity Bouy Wharf Here for Culture Concepts Derwent Lottery funded