From 2005 to 2008 I have been working as an artist alongside the artist Shona Watt on an International public art and education commission for the Thames Festival and British Council.

Each year the final project is cited along the River Thames, during the Mayor's Thames Festival and also showcased internationally in participating countries; China, India, South Africa, and Egypt. An estimated audience in excess of 5 million people see the river themed visual artworks.

Shona and myself have now worked with over 80 inner city London schools and more than 1500 pupils in three years, developing a methodology which combines drawing and digital technology and collaborative techniques to produce a wide body of work, which is now recognised to be a leader and model in the field of art and learning in the UK.

The high standards of the 2005 project drew the attention of the British Council who subsequently supported and expanded the work to a number of other countries; India, China, South Africa, Egypt, culminating in all the 2007 work being showcased at the Oxo Gallery on the South Bank, as well as in every participating country.

Thames Festival 'Rivers of the World' is in partnership with the British Council with support from HSBC Global Education Trust and funding from DfES - The London Challenge and Jack Petchey Foundation.

Myself and Shona Watt conceive and research visual references, encourage experimentation and motivate a diverse range of pupils from schools across innercity London.

The aim is for pupils to work together and for each class group to create a single and coherent artwork that integrates contributions from all the pupils in the class.

This collaborative art work is guided and shaped by Shona and myself, in conjunction with each participating group.

We attempt to create a learning experience from a different perspective, challenging pupils expectations with unusual methods, detailed discussion and creative experimentation.
We work at professional level to a very tight deadline, with a requirement that each group works as a collaborative team.

Pupils often produce work that exceed their own and our expectation. We have often found that on our return to a school in a follwing year, pupils will seek out myself and Shona and enthuse about their experience to the current group motivating them to produce even better work.