Education Archives - Page 12 of 22

Exciting Positions Still Available At GTM

Aberdeenshire, Information No Responses »

Feb 122015

With thanks to Martyn Smith.

Following on from a recent volunteer recruitment drive, the Grampian Transport Museum has successfully inducted a number of new recruits to the organisation.

However there are still a number of exciting opportunities as the award winning tourist attraction gears up for the start of the new season, which commences on Sunday 29th March.

The organisation is looking for volunteers to support the operation in a number of key areas:

Market Intel Officer – The Museum aims to survey one in every ten visitors, to gain all important feedback which will help to shape the future direction of major projects and day to day improvements. Our Market Intel Officer is crucial to ensuring that the target survey sample rate is met and results collated for the Marketing steering group.

Customer Care assistants – Part of the Front of House team, the Customer Care Assistants are always on hand to share their knowledge and passion for the displays with museum visitors.

Junior Driving School instructors – A key part of the museums remit is to introduce youngsters to the basics of road safety. This can be achieved through initiatives such as the Junior Driving School. This is a ‘learning through play’ facility, designed for 4-10 year olds.

Membership Support – The museum runs a popular membership scheme which operates on an annual basis. The membership support role will ensure that all members have a first point of contact with the organisation and are kept up to date with special events and members-only exclusives.

Collections Assistant – Assisting with the photographing and filing of all items as they are acquired by the museum.

The museum, which is an educational charity, relies on the kind assistance of volunteers, who give up their own time on a regular basis or as required. There are a range of benefits and incentives on offer to all volunteers, as curator, Mike Ward, explains:

“It is often noted that the GTM is a very active, popular museum that manages a very high rate of exhibition change each season. This is all achieved with a very small paid staff; in fact just two full time people and a further four ‘full time equivalents’ if the part time hours are added up. The high output of the museum is due very largely to our amazing team of around 70 volunteers.

“Volunteers here are treated very much as staff. They are given a job title and role that they are happy with and fits their skills set. Staff and volunteers work side by side in a totally integrated system. We celebrate success together regularly and ensure everyone’s contribution is valued and rewarded. Volunteers come from all backgrounds and age groups. Many gain vital work experience, training and skills at the GTM that help to build up a CV whilst others enjoy the opportunity to share knowledge gained during their working lives.

“There can be no doubt that volunteering at the GTM is enjoyed by the vast majority. Our longest serving volunteer has given up several days a week for the past 20years. We are always keen to hear from enthusiastic people who want to be part of this great local institution.”

One of the museum’s most recent recruits is Old Rayne resident Graham King. Graham has joined the GTM as a Customer Care Assistant, having worked in a variety of roles over the years including over 20 years service in the RAF and, more recently, working as a tour guide at the Glen Garioch Distillery in Oldmeldrum. Graham is looking forward to beginning his new role with the museum:

“For as long as I can remember I’ve had a real love of cars. When I retired I decided it was time to take on a new project and so I bought myself a Westfield sports car. In my working career I’d always loved meeting new people and it’s these two things combined which got me interested in joining the team at the Grampian Transport Museum. I think it’s important to keep developing my interpersonal skills and would also like to pass on my knowledge and passion to visitors.”

Anyone interested in volunteering at the Grampian Transport Museum should contact Cheree Pithie, Administrative assistant, on 019755 62292 or email events@gtm.org.uk

Eric Auld Retrospective: A Kind Of Homecoming

Aberdeen City, Featured, Opinion No Responses »

Feb 122015

Eric Auld – teacher, artist, source of inspiration for many of Aberdeen’s painters passed away towards the end of 2013. The Rendezvous Gallery on Forest Avenue is holding a retrospective show of his work, organised in part by his daughters. The show opened to a full, appreciative house on Friday 6 February. Suzanne Kelly was in attendance.

Aberdeen Trams, Castlegate, 1950 by Eric Auld. Rendezvous Gallery

Eric Auld will remain one of our area’s most influential and loved artists. He captured Aberdeen’s harbour, day to day life in his still life work, Highland games pageantry, and the natural beauty of his life models.
As a teacher in Kincorth he influenced many students. One such is Keith Byers, local portrait painter/artist. Keith’s life drawing work is being highlighted in the Rendezvous Gallery’s window as part of the Auld exhibition.

Perhaps the most striking of Auld’s work is the large self-portrait which is also shown on the front of the show’s catalogue.

His still lifes with fish and loaves of bread are gentle, pleasing works; his accomplished nudes are natural and unpretentious. Some of the land and seascapes become bold and expressionistic and are very striking works. Clearly Auld was able to work across various styles and traditions.

As the gallery’s website explains:

“Eric Auld, an artist with an inherent talent for painting, was a member of a well-known artistic, Aberdeen family. His father, Alexander, and his mother, Margaret, were both art students at Gray’s School of Art, Aberdeen. Margaret, herself accomplished in the painting of still lifes, encouraged Eric to follow an artistic career.

“Eric’s sister Rozelle, who married the architect Valentino Morrocco (brother of Alberto) in her turn encouraged her own sons, Nicholas and Jack, to become professional artists.

“From 1948 to 1953, Eric attended Gray’s School of Art where, under the tutelage of Alberto Morrocco, Hugh Adam Crawford and Robert Sivell, he immersed himself in art. During his period at Gray’s, he had his first solo exhibition at the then well-known art cinema, the Gaumont, at 181 Union Street, Aberdeen. According to his diaries, this proved a great success.”

The gallery on the opening night is packed with former friends, students and art lovers. In many ways this show not only charts Auld’s progression as an artist but also shows changing tastes, techniques, and at the same time captures a changing local environment and society. The show is up through 28 February.

It really is a must for anyone who is interested in the North East’s visual arts culture.

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Oil And Glass Introduce New Series Of Workshops

Aberdeen City, Information No Responses »

Jan 302015

Informed by Shelagh Swanson’s studies at Bullseye Glass Company, Portland, Oregon at the end of last year, Oil and Glass introduce a new series of workshops and sessions.

Sgraffito/Stencilling

There will also be a 6 Week Evening Class, during which all of the techniques taught in our individual workshops will be covered, with additional technical information also given to provide a deeper insight into the processes involved.

Block one will take place from 6.30pm – 9pm on Tuesday evenings starting on February 17th.
Block two will take place on Thursday evenings from 6.30pm – 9pm starting on the 2nd April.

Visit the website for class descriptions and also to book!

Suncatcher Making

Saturday 31st January
11am – Relief/Texture Plate Making
2.30pm – Suncatcher Making

Sunday 1st February
2pm – Introduction to Fused Glass

Thursday 5th February
11am – Suncatcher Making

Thursday 19th February
11am – Sgraffito/Stencilling
6.30pm – Relief/Texture Plate Making

Saturday 21st February
11am – Sgraffito/Stencilling
2.30pm – Suncatcher Making

Thursday 26th February
6.30pm – Powder Printing

Saturday 28th February
11am – Introduction to Fused Glass

Sunday 1st March
2pm – Relief/Texture Plate Making

Wednesday 4th March
6.30pm Sgraffito/Stencilling

Powder Printing

Saturday 7th March
11am Suncatcher Making
2.30pm Introduction to Fused Glass

Sunday 8th March
2pm Sgraffito/Stencilling

Thursday 12th March
6.30pm – Suncatcher Making

Saturday 14th March
11am – Relief/Texture Plate Making
2.30pm – Powder Printing

Sunday 15th March
2pm – Introduction to Fused Glass

Saturday 21st March
11am – Sgraffito/Stencilling
2.30pm – Suncatcher Making

Sunday 22nd March
2pm – Powder Printing

Relief/Texture Plate Making

Thursday 26th March
6.30pm – Introduction to Fused Glass

Saturday 28th March
11am – Introduction to Fused Glass
2.30pm – Suncatcher Making

Sunday 29th March
2pm – Suncatcher Making

Sunday 31st March
6.30pm – Sgraffito/Stencilling

Shire Student Reaches Shortlist Of Glover Scholarship

Aberdeenshire, Articles No Responses »

Jan 192015

With thanks to Eoin Smith, Tricker PR.

An Alford graduate has made it through to the final shortlist of a prestigious scholarship offering the opportunity to visit Japan to study the country’s language, culture and tradition.
Angus Forfar (22), a former pupil of Robert Gordon’s College, is one of six young people being interviewed for the 2015 Thomas Blake Glover Aberdeen Asset Scholarship, sponsored by Aberdeen Asset Management, next week.

The scholarship, which was initiated by the Japan Society of Scotland, enables one Scottish student the chance to visit Japan to study the language, culture and tradition – an experience described as a “life changing opportunity” by last year’s winner.

The scholarship is open to young people who are at a post-secondary educational level, with preference to candidates whose interest in Japan has a business focus.

Angus’ interest in Japan stems from a number of visits to the country in his formative years. Having lived in Japan as a child while his father completed a PhD in Japanese Anthropology, Angus developed a connection to the country which was strengthened by further family trips and his gap year in 2010, during which he spent five months in Tokyo and Fukuoka.

Angus graduated from the University of Glasgow with a First Class Joint Honours in History and Classical Civilisation. His undergraduate dissertation was a comparative study of Ancient Greek Tragedy and Japanese Noh Theatre.

Angus and the other shortlisted candidates will be interviewed on Monday (19th January) at the Japanese Consulate-General in Edinburgh with the panel made up of four members of the Council of the Japan Society of Scotland, and chaired by Dr Helen Parker, of the Japanese Studies Department of the University of Edinburgh.

One will be chosen to go on a fully-funded intensive language study course at a university summer school in Japan, an experience described as a “life changing opportunity” by last year’s winner Giancarlo Bell (19).

The student of medicine at the University of Glasgow spent six weeks at the International Christian University in Tokyo on an intensive Japanese language course where he achieved A grades.

Giancarlo says:

“I will remember the trip and the friends I made forever. But, more importantly I developed language skills and an adoration for Japanese culture that I will build on for the rest of my life. I realised that, despite my success in the beginners’ course, I am only scratching the surface of a massive, beautiful, seemingly-impenetrable written and spoken language.”

The scholarship is named after the Scottish entrepreneur Thomas Blake Glover who was born in Aberdeenshire in 1838. Glover settled in Nagasaki in 1859 and played a critically important role in opening Japan to the west. Known as the Scottish Samurai, he introduced the first railway locomotive, started the Kirin brewery and influenced the industrial development of Mitsubishi.

The scholarship aims to recognise these successes by providing young Scots with the opportunity to learn about business and culture in the hope of further improving Scotland’s historic links with Japan.

This is the sixth year that Aberdeen Asset Management has sponsored the Thomas Blake Glover Aberdeen Asset Scholarship and chief executive Martin Gilbert, says:

“We are proud to support initiatives which give committed and enthusiastic Scots an opportunity to advance their career opportunities.

“This scholarship offers an exceptional opportunity for one Scottish student to experience Japanese education, industries and lifestyle and an opportunity to forge new partnerships with the country, which has one of the world’s largest economies.”

Transport Museum Receives £40k For New Visitor Reception

Aberdeenshire, Articles, Information No Responses »

Jan 162015

With thanks to Martyn Smith.

The Grampian Transport Museum is delighted to announce that it has received a grant of £40,000 from Museums Galleries Scotland, the national development body for museums and galleries in Scotland.

The award, from the organisations Capital Fund, will provide a major boost towards the cost of the museums current development project.

Construction of a brand new visitor reception extension is due to commence at the end of the 2015 season, with completion anticipated in the spring of 2016. The project was one of twenty Recognition and Capital projects in museums the length and breadth of Scotland to benefit from funding in this latest round.

At present the museum has a 4 star visitor rating from Visit Scotland – improvements to the museums catering, toilet and retail offerings, which are included in the new facility -being all that stands in the way of a prestigious 5 star rating. The new area will also provide the museum the opportunity to showcase the range of work it undertakes with young engineers from across the region, including the Greenpower F24 teams.

Funding for the ambitious project has now surpassed the half way mark as curator, Mike Ward explains:

”This is a terrific start to 2015! We’ve made no secret of the fact that we want to improve the welcome that our visitors receive and provide a reception facility that is beyond their expectations! This extension will not only help us achieve a much sought after 5 star award from Visit Scotland but also to showcase, for the first time, the hitherto largely hidden educational work the museum undertakes.”

Museums Galleries Scotland Chair, Douglas Connell said:

“We are pleased to start 2015 with a substantial funding round to support ambitious museum projects which increase the accessibility of museum collections and range from Renfrewshire Council’s Paisley Shawl Collection Digitisation project to Biggar Museum Trust’s plans for enhancement of its exhibitions and interpretation.

“The Scottish Government has demonstrated its continued support for the sector through funding which has enabled us to invest almost £1.5m over the last 12 months, with demand for financial assistance to deliver high-quality museum projects now well exceeding the funds available. Momentum is clearly increasing as we develop plans for building sector sustainability in line with the National Strategy.”

Former Grampian Police Car Returning Home

Aberdeenshire, Featured, Information No Responses »

Jan 162015

Museum curator, Mike Ward with the former Grampian Police Rover SD1 Vitesse

With thanks to Martyn Smith.

The Grampian Transport Museum, Alford, can today announce the latest addition to the museums extensive vehicle collection.

A former Grampian Police Rover SD1 Vitesse, which is due to feature on the Channel 4 series ‘For the Love of Cars’, was purchased at auction on Saturday (10th January)

The vehicle – registration C356 YST – was commissioned by the force in 1985 and used to check for speeders on the then new Stonehaven bypass.

Thanks to its 190bhp 3.5litre V8 it proved to be more than capable of catching the many high performance vehicles which the relatively new oil industry had brought to the region – typically the Audi 100s and Quattros which were popular around Aberdeen at the time.

Presented by actor Philip Glenister (Life on Mars, Ashes to Ashes), For the Love of Cars follows a crew of mechanics as they recover and restore classic vehicles which are in need of some TLC. The former high-speed pursuit vehicle has been stripped down to allow for new metal to be welded in where required, before receiving a full respray.

Complete with original Grampian Police livery, the vehicle has a number of original features including stop signs, sirens and blue lights which are all in good working order.

Curator Mike Ward is delighted to be able to bring the vehicle back to Aberdeenshire.

“We’ve been aware of this particular vehicle for some time now – it’s no stranger to our museum and in fact has appeared here before. When we found out that it was up for sale it was always our intention to try and bring this rare example ‘back home’. The hammer went down at £9,750 which is a new world record for a Rover SD1 at auction.

“It’s sure to be a fantastic addition to our collection and we’ll also make sure it’s put to good use at our very popular Emergency Vehicle Rides session which takes place on 10th April.”

Aberdeen Forward Courses 2014

Aberdeen City, Environment No Responses »

Jan 082015

With thanks to Angela Theobold.

Environmental charity Aberdeen Forward are hosting a range of workshops and courses up until the end of 2015.
Aberdeen Forward works closely with local communities, businesses and individuals to educate and promote projects that help to protect our environment, reduce waste & encourage sustainability.

Available courses are as follows.

Hobby Club: Every Wednesday, 10am-12pm/1.30pm-3pm, these are drop in craft sessions.

Plant ideas workshop: We are pleased to offer this plant ideas (http://www.plantideas.org/) workshop which teaches how to make the most of plants in various useful ways. The cost is £35 per class. Here is the format of the classes:

Personal Hygiene: 24 Jan 11-13:00 at Aberdeen Forward building Make your own deodorant, toothpaste, hand sanitizer and shampoo. Learn about the cold process that produces Plant Ideas soap, used as a base for the shampoo. Discover the actions of the ingredients in your products that keep you clean and smelling fresh.

Household: 21 Feb 11-13:00 at Aberdeen Forward building Natural alternatives are often pretty pricey so why not make your own? Learn with us about natural household scents – make your own incense, evergreen and citrus infusions and orange oil lamps. Make your own natural polish and laundry liquid and learn about citrus cleaners, citrus dustcloths, anti-bacterial sprays and washing up liquid. Find out what houseplants can purify the air in your home.

Herb Walk: 21 Mar 11-13:00 Location to be announced Join us as we identify plants and their uses. Learn some wild food recipes and simple plant remedies and many other great plant ideas. Expect some surprises and the chance to sample some finished products made from wild plants

Wild Food: 25 Apr 11-13:00 Location to be announced
Skincare: 16 May 2015, 11-13:00 at Aberdeen Forward building Learn how to make a moisturiser, lipbalm, bath melts and massage bar all with organic base ingredients and essential oils

Intensive Upholstery Weekend: 31 January to 1 February 2015, 9:30am-4pm both days, £190

Evening Upholstery (Tuesdays): 20 January to 17 March (one week break on the 17 February), 6pm-8pm, £190

Back to Basics Sewing courses 2015: 6pm-8pm, £92, every Thursday in each block

15 January to 19 February
5 March to 9 April
23 April to 28 May
11 June to 16 July
30 July to 3 September
17 September to 22 October
5 November to 10 December

Intermediate/Advanced Sewing courses 2015: 6pm-8pm, £92, every Tuesday in each block

12 January to 16 February
2 March to 6 April
20 April to 25 May
8 June to 13 July
27 July to 31 August
14 September to 19 October
2 November to 7 December

Curtain Making: 12pm-4pm, £92, every Saturday in each block

7, 14 and 21 February 2015
2, 9 and 16 May 2015
1, 8 and 15 August 2015
7, 14 and 21 November 2015

Candle Making: Wednesday 18th February (6pm-8pm)

Crochet Beginners Course: Wednesday 4th, 11th and 18th March 2015 (6pm8pm)

Booking: To book or find out more please contact courses@aberdeenforward.org or 01224560360.
Venue Unless otherwise stated, the venue is: Aberdeen Forward, 2 Poynernook Road, Aberdeen, AB11 5RW

Uni Students Required Develop New Green Space

Aberdeen City, Environment, Featured No Responses »

Nov 072014

By Catherine Wilkinson. Pictures by Rebecca Dunn and Caspar Lampkin.

The Secret Garden Open Day.

The Student Garden Committee are seeking University of Aberdeen students interested in creating a green space in the heart of the Old Aberdeen campus.

The ‘Secret Garden’, located beside the Butchart Building, was recently acquired by the university’s Environment and Ethics Committee but has remained relatively unused since then.

Our vision is to shape this space in to an area to grow vegetables for potential use by our cafes; where wildlife can thrive and students can relax – a garden shaped by students, for students.

We are keen to find more students to join our committee, to put forward their ideas and help out as much as they are able to, to put ideas in to action.

Projects that we are getting started with are: composting, preparation of vegetable beds, making bird boxes and feeders, and completing a greenhouse made entirely from plastic bottles.

If gardening is really not your thing, we’re also looking for people to make signs, leaflets and help publicise the gardens to fellow students. The shed is also looking a little sorry for itself and is in need of a good layer of wood preserver so if any arty students would like to come up with a design to decorate the shed with, please get in touch.

As we have a very limited budget, we would also be extremely grateful for donations from anyone (not just students) of wood and offcuts for making bird boxes and raised beds, gardening and basic DIY tools, and empty, clean 2 litre plastic bottles for our greenhouse.

If you are currently a student at UoA and are interested in finding out more about our committee meetings and the gardens, or you would like to donate any materials to us, please get in touch.

Email:

Sarah (sarah.j.brady.11@aberdeen.ac.uk)
or Catherine (c.wilkinson.12@aberdeen.ac.uk)

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North East Charity Nominated For Prestigious National Award

Environment, Featured, News No Responses »

Oct 312014

With thanks to Jennifer Kelly.

Jennie Martin, founder and executive director of Moray charity Wild things!, has been nominated for an environmental award in The Glenfiddich Spirit of Scotland Awards 2014 – a unique scheme that recognises and rewards the contributions of extraordinary people working in Scotland.

Jennie, an ethnobotanist by training, has worked with great passion and commitment over the past 12 years to develop the work of Wild things!.

The environmental education charity provides unique and inspiring outdoor experiences for people of all ages regardless of emotional, physical or financial barriers.

Based on the Moray Coast, it successfully delivers quality outdoor learning experiences that encourage a greater custodianship of the outdoors, as well as opportunities for life-changing personal development. Over the years, approximately 10,000 individuals have benefited from the programmes, opening their eyes to the wonders on their doorstep or to remote wilderness regions of Scotland.

Jennie Martin comments:

“It’s a great honour to be put forward for this prestigious award and one that I share with all my colleagues at Wild things!. It’s such a privilege to do the work we do, to see the changes in our clients and the benefits to the environment; all of which come about through our programmes. A very special thank you to the mystery person who put us forward for this award!”

Receiving a Glenfiddich Spirit of Scotland Award is now one of the country’s most sought-after tributes – made all the more important because the final winners are selected by the people of Scotland. Please show your support for Wild things! by heading to http://www.glenfiddich.com/uk/explore/spirit-of-scotland/ and placing your vote.

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Middle East/North African Films Showing At Peacock

Aberdeen City, Information No Responses »

Oct 032014

Peacock Visual Arts presents a season of Middle East/North African films and an exhibition by internationally renowned artists The Otolith Group. With thanks to Kirsty Young.

Following on from festivals in 2009 and 2011 (Cruel Weather and Breaking Point), Intelligence Report will allow audiences to delve further into the sphere of moving image work from the Middle East and North Africa.

The programme is divided into two areas: the screening of six powerful new feature/experimental films from the Middle East/North Africa (at Belmont Filmhouse); and an exhibition consisting of video installations by noted artists The Otolith Group, and a group of repeating experimental shorts by seven artists, shown at Peacock Visual Arts (Saturday 4th October – Saturday 8th November).

The exhibition in the gallery will feature an installation by The Otolith Group (Turner prize nominees in 2010). The Group is a collaborative platform that seeks to rethink the dynamics of cultural production under conditions of accelerated, unstable and precarious global conditions. The seven shorts are the recent work of seven artists from Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco and Palestine.

Intelligence Report is a programme of films that reveal the problem of conveying revolution (Crop) or treating trauma-in-process (Sleepless Nights). Intelligence Report attempts to arrive at some comprehension of what the present may mean by taking a different inflection of the past – as in Annemarie Jacir’s When I Saw You (2012) set in 1967 Jordan.

In addition to the screenings, and giving context to the work, are introductions to three of the six films.

A representative from the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign Aberdeen will introduce When I Saw You (Lamma shoftak) by Annemarie Jacir (2012) on Sunday 5th October at 6pm.

On Thursday 9th Oct, 6pm Sleepless Nights (Layali Bala Noom) by Eliane Raheb (2012) will be introduced by Dr. Stefanie Van de Peer, Global Cinema Fellow, University of Stirling.

And on Sunday 12th Oct at 6pm Crop, Johanna Domke and Marouan Omara (2012) will be introduced by Dr. Andrea Teti, Professor of Politics and International Relations, University of Aberdeen.

Intelligence Report is is organised by Jay Murphy, a writer and independent curator based in New York and New Orleans.

The full programme of film screenings and the exhibition is available on Peacock Visual Arts website – www.peacockvisualarts.com. A printed programme is available to collect from Peacock Visual Arts at 21 Castle Street and at various outlets in Aberdeen city centre.

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