A Year On: What Winning the Cygnets National Art Awards Meant to Joey
Last year’s inaugural Cygnets National Art Awards saw hundreds of brilliant artworks submitted by young artists of all ages across the UK. The entries showcased the imagination, originality and exceptional talent of the next generation of creative talent. One of last year’s winners was 11 year old Joey, who won the Mixed Media category, but […]
Meet The Judges: Cygnets National Art Awards
This year we have an esteemed panel of judges who will be casting their vote on the winners and runners-up of the Cygnets National Art Awards across 7 categories. We’re delighted to have them on board and ahead of the competition closing on the 30th October, we thought you should get to know them a […]
How to display your child’s artwork (without drowning in it)
When your child enjoys art, it’s such a joy to watch them create – they go into their own little zone, seeing where their imagination takes them one swipe of the paintbrush, or a stroke of a pencil at a time. And if they’re lucky enough, they may well be creating art not only at […]
My Favourite Art Medium
Headteacher Alice, owns the Cygnets Edinburgh Southside branch, but she is also a self-taught artist in her own right. This week she tells us about her favourite art medium to work with, and how having the right tools can give you that added confidence to achieve the artwork you really want. ________ Being a self-taught […]
A look behind-the-scenes at our Summer Holiday Workshops
Our Cygnets Summer Holiday Workshops have been in full swing, for some since the end of August. Take a look at what a typical day looks like for our students over at our Cygnets Edinburgh Southside branch, with Alice, the Headteacher there. ________ The sun has come out for us in Scotland and Summer Workshops […]
3 Ways To Spark Creativity This Summer
The summer holidays are a great time for children to explore and experiment with creativity. Suddenly, school is on pause and your child has all the time in the world to fill those sketchbook pages! There’s nothing quite as valuable for nurturing creativity as having the time and freedom to experiment and create. To get […]
My Favourite Artist: Claude Monet
This month, Nathalie, Headteacher at Cygnets Glasgow Southside, talks to us about her favourite artist and why – and we have a feeling quite a few other people might share this favourite too… Claude Monet is my favourite artist because I love the atmospheric, dream-like quality of his paintings. His work feels like it really […]
Art Is Her Happy Place: How Creativity Helps Children with SEND Thrive
For many parents of children with SEND, finding activities outside of school that your child enjoys and connects with can be difficult. The search for somewhere that truly understands your child; somewhere they feel safe, included, and free to be themselves can feel challenging. But when Tiffany spotted a Cygnets Art School poster on the […]
An Art Teacher’s Favourite Artists
This week our guest post comes from Alice, Head Teacher at Cygnets Edinburgh Southside, who talks to us about her favourite artists and how they speak to her favourite themes in art – colour, nature and light. ________ Asking an art teacher to choose their favourite artist is like asking a chef to choose one […]
5 Things I Wish I Knew As A Young Artist
For many young artists, creativity begins as something instinctive – doodling in sketchbooks, experimenting with colours, or spending hours making things simply for the joy of it. But as we grow up, confidence, comparison, and expectations can sometimes shape the way we see our own artistic abilities. In this guest post, Cygnets Glasgow Southside Headteacher, […]