Early Years toolkit ART ADVENTURERS AT DULWICH GALLERY PICTURE staff across all departments about working with toddlers. with asong to sing or something to hold when moving between paintings, and briefing encouraging the group to sit in front of paintings instead of standing, providing families were confident, and that early years audiences felt welcome. These changes included: that could made be to the programme to ensure the collection’s safety, that staff on. Consequently Learning, Curatorial and Visitor Services staff met to discuss changes caring for the collection, and this created an atmosphere that participants picked up was that gallery attendants were anxious about interacting with this new audience and their carers, before launching in September The 2018. greatest finding from our pilots AdventurersArt was piloted twice in August with 2018, two groups of 15 children and to making their own buildings out of scrap cardboard (buildings). gallery’s function room. This ranges from painting themselves using mirrors (people), rewards the group with materials which they will use in an making art activity in the nature, transport or buildings), through song, movement and role-play. Jerome then paintings. In the gallery, the group explore three paintings related to atheme (people, on apainting in the gallery’s collection) invites families on an adventure through our The workshop revolves around the narrative that Jerome the Lion (a lion puppet based children. 15 specialist and ateam of three volunteers, and is ticketed with acapacity for 15 carers and and Helen Maier. It runs once amonth at 10am on aFriday, is delivered by one early years AdventurersArt was developed in collaboration with Early Years specialists Holly Dabbs SUMMARY launched in 2018. in launched Adventurers’, ‘Art programme, toddler new including the Since 2017, the gallery has developed its offer for families, paintings in its unique building, designed by Sir John Soane. gallery.art It houses aworld-class collection of Old Master Dulwich Picture Gallery is the world’s first purpose-built public

Early Years toolkit year olds. year their children reached months. 24 There was clearly aneed for adedicated offer for 2-4 olds, or our drop-ins for 4-12 year olds, so we were losing relationships with families once visiting the Gallery were either bringing their toddlers to our workshops for 6-24 month number of potential local visitors. Furthermore, the young families who were already populated by young families (East Dulwich, Forest Hill, Herne Hill), this presented ahuge children aged 2-4 years old. Given that the Gallery is surrounded by areas that are highly Before the development of this programme, the Gallery had no offer for families with organisationFor our AIMS AND GOALS irrelevant and not child-friendly. not and irrelevant engage with an untouchable collection of Old Masters, which has the potential to feel community, confident in accessing and exploring the Gallery space itself, and able to to develop aprogramme that ensured young families felt valued as members of our their children touching objects or making noise. Consequently, it was really important intimidating place for families to visit. Carers have previously expressed concerns about Given the nature of our collection, building, and location, the Gallery can an be audience our For relationship with them. them. with relationship ‘Mini Masterpieces’ (6-24mths) moving on to Adventurers, Art ensuring we maintain a We are also just beginning to see regular families who had already been attending encouragement to sing and move by friendly staff, has made them feel more comfortable. the Gallery. Many participants have commented that being part of agroup, and the We have witnessed amarked improvement in the confidence of young families visiting audience our For in fact noise is encouraged! And it made everyone in the gallery smile’. review from one participant: ‘A lot of galleries can quite be stuffy and quiet –but not here, It has also led to changes in audiences’ perception of the Gallery as an organisation. A confidently. aloud speaking children or sung being perceivedbe as quiet and intimidating, it is no longer unusual to hear nursery rhymes experimenting with storytelling, singing and movement. In aspace that could previously especially young families. Across anumber of our other family workshops we are now AdventurersThe Art programme has inspired anew approach to working with our visitors, organisationFor our OUTCOMES Early Years toolkit Communication is key internally and externally. visit at another time if they were made aware of the times when ‘Art Adventurers’ ran. not to share the space with toddlers (mainly due to noise), but also awillingness to groups than anticipated. Some of those present during the pilots expressed adesire Our biggest surprise was that other visitors were more open to accommodating toddler has been running smoothly, with all parties feeling invested and confident in it. now ensured that after initial anxieties at the programme’s piloting stage, Adventurers Art would not compromise the quality of the programme or safety of our collection. This has discuss the development of the programme, we were able to agree to adjustments that collaboration is. By inviting our Learning, Curatorial and Visitor Services departments to anAs institution, our biggest takeaway was how important cross-departmental LEARNT LESSONS updating materials. materials. updating years specialist’s delivery fee and cost of adult and one child. This covers the early budget. Tickets cost £12 including one with ticket sales covering the programme’s AdventurersArt continues to run, charged-for. is programme family our Consequently and receives no government funding. Dulwich Picture Gallery is acharity, BUDGET olds and their carers. Masterpieces programme for 6-24 month by profits from the Gallery’s Mini covered were costs These materials. including artists’ development fees and AdventurersArt cost £1,700 to develop, FUNDING questions and communicate effectively. effectively. communicate and questions demonstrated how important it is to ask worked with continually surprised us, and families, other visitors and gallery staff we Make no assumptions. The young TIP TOP 2019 Gallery, Picture ©Dulwich images All Dabbs andHelenMaier.specialists, Holly Manager at DPG,andEarlyYears Prosser, AdultandFamily Learning studyThis case waswritten byRachel Manager ifyou have any questions. the gallery’s AdultandFamily Learning Please feel free RachelProsser, tocontact ly-years-summer-2018/ on/early-years/2018/summer/ear dulwichpicturegallery.org.uk/whats- early years programmeonourwebsite: You read can more aboutthegallery’s FURTHER INFORMATION

-