This is one of six projects in the Ballymoney Borough which has been funded by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland through the lottery scheme The Art of Regeneration in partnership with Ballymoney Borough Council and Ballymoney Borough Arts Committee.

Working with P7 pupils from Stranocum’s Bush Valley Primary School, artist Gavin Weston encouraged the participating children to imagine themselves as professional, commissioned artists, engaged to create a public artwork (a sculpture, a mural or a kinetic artwork) for their own village on the theme of recycling.

Work began by discussing the merits and necessity of recycling and maintaining an eco-friendly environment, both locally and globally. This was followed by initial ‘brain-storming’ and examining other public artworks, after which process the children were directed to research work by other artists and to produce ‘roughs’ of their own ideas for subsequent workshops. The strongest and most relevant of these were then developed in school sessions and these resulting panels encompass only a fraction of the children’s treasure trove of ideas, clearly displaying an affinity, pride and understanding of their community and environment.

The Council’s Cultural Services Officer, Margaret Edgar commented: “Through the Art of Regeneration Scheme, we invited artists to work with local schools and community groups to create public art which would visually enhance children’s play areas. We have been delighted with the imaginative and creative work which has taken place so far and look forward to seeing the remaining projects completed within the next few months”.