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Neigh-bourly students paint new mural down at the farm

Thursday 19 June 2008

Students from the University of East London (UEL) and the Royal Docks Community School have joined forces to paint a colourful new mural on the front wall of the Visitor’s Centre at Newham City Farm in Beckton.

Blaze, the City Farm’s working shire-horse, seemed suitably impressed when he was led over to check out his portrait in the finished artwork on Wednesday 18 June.

Jane Riches, Principal Lecturer in Fine Art at UEL’s School of Architecture and the Visual Arts, organised the project in partnership with Julie Lummis, Visitor Centre Officer at Newham City Farm.

A team of three UEL students took part in the painting, helping three Year 10 pupils from the local school to develop their artistic ideas during a two-week work experience placement.

Julie said: “The Visitor’s Centre was looking a bit drab and graffitied; painting this mural has been a great way to engage local students with bringing the building to life. The UEL students have been amazing, giving up their time to work with the pupils and create such a wonderful artwork.”

Kate Wyatt, of Walthamstow, was one of the UEL students involved. Kate specialises in wildlife painting and has just completed her BA (Hons) degree in Fine Art at UEL.

Kate said: “This is the biggest mural project I’ve ever worked on. It’s been great fun; the kids were lovely and worked really hard. I actually grew up in the countryside, so I’ve really enjoyed working outside in the fresh air, listening to the sound of the birds.”

Newham City Farm has a large collection of farm animals including a shire horse, ponies, cows, sheep, goats and pigs. The Visitor Centre organises school holiday activities and booked group visits. For further information, visit www.newham.gov.uk.

UEL’s School of Architecture and the Visual Arts has established a national and international reputation for excellence and creativity. For further information, visit www.uel.ac.uk/ava.

For details and pictures contact Daniel Cherry: 020 8223 2194

Notes to Editors

The University of East London (UEL) is a global learning community with over 28,000 students from over 120 countries world-wide. Our vision is to achieve recognition, both nationally and internationally, as a successful and inclusive regional university proud of its diversity, committed to new modes of learning which focus on students and enhance their employability, and renowned for our contribution to social, cultural and economic development, especially through our research and scholarship. We have a strong track-record in widening participation and working with industry.

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