Workshops
‘ Art and culture are central to my love of life. I’ve been lucky enough to work in arts education for 25 years, initially as a volunteer in youth clubs and then as a PGCE trained teacher. For the last 15 years I’ve been a freelancer in public institutions, working with all ages from primary pupils to degree and MA level students in the UK and abroad. I’m interested in creative thinking and I’ve seen first hand the difference it makes to people’s lives in diverse community settings and in prisoner education. I work as a resident artist or devise specific bespoke art projects, talks and lectures for educational institutions and corporate events. I’m interested in the concept of art as a cross-curricular experience within school settings’ Ed Gray
Contact info@edgrayart.com for details of how to book Ed Gray for workshops, talks and events
Education,Training and Teaching Experience
Ed Gray has a diploma in Fine Art Foundation and a BA Hons in Fine Art. He began volunteering in the art room in a south London youth club and ran workshops for Magic Me and worked as a Notting Hill Carnival designer for M2K Mas Band before completing his PGCE and QTS in 1998. Ed taught art and design for five years in a secondary school in Peckham and has over 20 years of experience teaching and lecturing about art and curating exhibitions in primary and secondary schools, colleges, adult education, universities, galleries, museums and public institutions.
Clients have included FIFA , Sir John Soane’s Museum, Dr Martens, Dulwich Picture gallery, Tate, Royal Drawing School, Masterworks Foundation, Guga S’Thebe Arts Centre Cape Town, Masterworks Museum of Bermuda, City Hall, Thames Festival, Thames Luxury Charters, The Gherkin 30 St Mary Axe, Float Art Fair London, Southampton Solent University, University of Connecticut London, Queen Mary’s University London, HMP Belmarsh YOI, Walworth History Festival, 2Inspire Youth Centre, National Museum of Football
National Museum of Football Manchester INSET
Southwark secondary school talk
Langa Township Cape Town art workshop
Langa Township Cape Town arts workshop
Gallery talk
Lecturing about Hogarth at Sir John Soanes Museum London
Walworth History Society Talk
Primary School Testimonial
University Testimonial
JF, PhD Associate Lecturer in Human Geography, School of Geography, Queen Mary University of London
Studio visit from School of Visual Arts New York
Museum INSET Testimonials
‘The Artist V Athlete perception and the similarity in their process – really insightful. I think it shows you can link art to any subject. Also the Visual Art Language – I will look at art more analytically now!’
‘I wasn’t aware of how extensive our museum collection was’
‘Ed’s approach very clear, inclusive, friendly, and non threatening and therefore ultimately very useful’
‘Great to have the opportunity to attend training focused on a specific area of the collection and linked to an exhibition; great to have this offered ‘in-house’ and for all departments. It was really good to see staff from other departments engaging with collection & exhibition’
‘Made me feel they wanted me to have as much knowledge as possible to do my job’
‘It has made me feel privileged and important within the team’
‘Ed’s approach very clear, inclusive, friendly, and non threatening and therefore ultimately very useful’
‘Adapted content to the audience really well – very supportive”
‘Really knowledgable, approachable, friendly, encouraging. A great teacher’
‘I had some art knowledge beforehand, but this has refreshed and expanded on that and I feel re-inspired!’
‘I can pass art knowledge onto Museum visitors.
I’ve never really spent much time looking at art before’
‘The 2 page crib sheet was good, makes you think more than the superficial’
‘It’s a rare opportunity for me to be included in a course that isn’t about business critical stuff eg. Health and safety’
Sample workshops for primary and Secondary Schools and Colleges: Key Stages 1-5 and FE
- Drawing- materials and techniques
- Observational drawing
- Painting: brush skills, mark making, colour theory
- Urban drawing and painting
- Creating compositions
- Museum and gallery stimuli- research skills
- Clothed life-drawing for primaries/secondaries
- Life sculpture- 3D modelling, maquettes, modroc, clay, paper mache
- 2D into 3D and back into 2D
- Contextual studies- art history
- Studio visits
- Professional skills
Sample Lectures,Talks and Workshops for Schools,Colleges, FE, HE and Corporate Clients
- INSET Training: Creativity in the Classroom- Using art as a stimulus for cross curricular learning
- INSET Training: Concepts and Conceits: Ways of Looking at Art
- We Are Creative: The Least important Most Important Thing of All
- William Hogarth: The First Modernist
- Dissecting Georgian Society: Hogarth, Soane and the Picture Room
- Hogarth at the National Gallery
- Watching Watchers Watching the Watched:The Spectacle of Adoration Scenes at the National Gallery
- Social and Urban Painters: Hogarth, Lowry, Shahn, Lawrence, Bellows, Burra, Motley, Neel, Eardley, Mcfadyen, Perry
- Professional Skills for Art Students
- Capturing the Crowd: Urban Drawing and Painting- practical workshop
- Dynamic Life Drawing: Drawing moving figures- practical workshop
- Feeling the face: Portraiture workshop- practical workshop
Gallery talk
Speaking at City Hall London for launch of London and Londoners exhibition
Speaking at GX Gallery exhibition launch
Gallery talk St Martin’s in the Fields London
Exhibition launch for Thames Luxury Charters with journslist and broadcaster Robert Elms and George Dyer Threadneedlman Tailor
Speaking at RichMix London launch for Ed Gray: Londonessence ‘A London Entertainment’
RichMix London Launch
Speaking at St Martin’s In The Fields Exhibition Launch