FAT BIRDS ON THE MOOR WORKSHOP

with Year 3 from St Vincent De Paul Catholic Primary School in Knutsford

“The whole class had a wonderful day that was inspirational and fun.  They all produced great mosaic that they were proud of.  It was a fantastic opportunity to work with a professional artist.”

Mrs Benson, Class Teacher (Y3)

St Vincent de Paul Catholic Primary School, Knutsford, Cheshire

Fat Birds are the creation of Cheshire artist Patricia Lee whose 3-D sculptures keep popping up all over Knutsford!  Recently she’s been working with Y3 pupils at St Vincent de Paul Catholic Primary School helping them create their very own pieces of Fat Bird art that will go up in school and in the town.

Lulu Smith (aged 7) has written this report about her experience working with a well-known professional artist.

“On Tuesday me and my class went to the Knutsford Moor with Patricia Lee and some of her friends from the Heritage Centre. When all of us were at the Moor we sketched some ducks and saw a duck with 8 ducklings.

In the afternoon Patricia came to our class and gave us loads of information to help us design a mosaic Fat Bird. To start with the tiles were square so we had to wear special goggles and we learnt how to cut them with special cutters. 

On Wednesday we stuck our mosaic tiles onto a big stone tile. 

I really liked that we could make up our own thing… it didn’t have to be a normal bird with dull colours but we could use our imagination to create something special. I designed the ‘Helpful Hider’. He lives in the bin and eats all the litter that people throw on the floor.  He doesn’t really like being seen but sometimes children can see him because he’s so colourful. He makes a ‘tweet-quack-tweet-quack’ noise.

It was great to create something you can’t make without special people like Patricia.”

Her class mate – Cameron – couldn’t agree more …

“This is the best day I’ve ever had at school!”  Cameron, Y3.

Additional information:

The week began at The Knutsford Heritage Centre (where the famous Knutsford Tapestry is housed) with an introduction to the history of the moor.  This was followed by a tour of the moor led by renowned Superlambanana artist Patricia Lee, speakers from Cheshire Wildlife Trust, Cheshire East and a group of Friends of the Moor volunteers.   The children learnt about some of the unique wildlife that can be found on the moor and the birds that travel thousands and thousands of miles across the world to nest in Knutsford. They then sketched ducks and other birdlife before heading back to learn all about THE FAT BIRDS.

Back in school, the children created their own Fat Bird designs which included what their bird looks like - its colourings and characteristics as well as where it lives (and why), what it eats and the noises it makes.

About the Artist
Patricia Lee is based out of a studio in Holmes Chapel Cheshire and has an art gallery at Hills Garden Centre, Allostock.  From her Salford roots, she went on to study Graphic Design in Blackpool and more recently, gained a First Class Honours Degree in Design and Technology at Manchester Metropolitan University.  Patricia creates unique and beautiful, indoor and outdoor artworks using glass and complimentary materials. She also works in schools and on projects across the North West as a community artist and is available for commission work. www.patricialee.co.uk