The Superpower of Looking | The Argyll Collection on Tour

The Reconnected team has been on tour around Kintyre, engaging pupils in visual literacy as part of Art UK’s The Super Power of Looking. Project manager Ros McKenna and Technician Sam Kilday collected work from Lochgilphead, Tarbert, and Campbeltown secondary schools for use in The Superpower of Looking project, which took place in 6 Kintyre primary schools from 29th October to 6th November. During their Kintyre road trip, Ros and Sam took the opportunity to meet with staff in each school, discuss potential new displays of the collection, and assess hanging systems and the best practical solutions for displaying work in multiple different types of space.  

Ros visited Dalintobar, Glenbarr, Rhunahaorine, Gigha, Clachan and Achahoish Primary schools with Joan Eardley’s Little Girl with a Piece and James Morrison’s Kelvinhall Street.  Spending a day with each school, Ros explored the 2 paintings with the pupils, using an exciting variety of tasks designed to develop the children’s ability to really ‘see’, developing their ability to critically observe, analyse, question, interpret, and empathise. Ros also designed a range of activities to engage the children, including a mixture of looking, talking, moving, making and creating. 

After her visit, Ros left the schools with a range of activities to continue exploring the Eardley and Morrison paintings, including a fantastic digital resource commissioned by Art UK and made by artist Lou Fraser. In this resource, Lou shows children how to discover the joy of a sketchbook, explore materials and techniques, and use them to create different effects within their art. In addition to this, Art UK also provided a pack of materials, including a sketchbook, for every pupil participating in the project.

Each primary pupil is now working towards creating their own series of artworks in response to the Argyll Collection paintings and will receive an Explore Arts Award at the end of the project! These will be exhibited in the next few months, offering the children the amazing opportunity to share their experiences with others and celebrate their learning and achievements.