A colourful collection of portraits created by talented Telford College students has found a temporary home at Weston Park this summer, bringing smiles to staff who feature as the artistic subjects.
The exhibition showcases 42 portraits of Weston Park team members, from gardeners and security staff to curators and volunteers, all brought to life through the creative talents of art and design students.
Gareth Williams, curator and head of learning at Weston Park, said: “It's a real delight to host this portrait exhibition by Telford College students. Their creativity, dedication, and passion truly shine through in every piece they have created. Our staff have been quite amazed by how incredibly life-like some of the portraits are.
“Projects like this bring people together and highlight the incredible potential in our region and we hope these young artists have been able to develop and test their artistic skills by being involved.
"We're now looking forward to welcoming visitors over the summer weeks to enjoy this fantastic exhibition.”
Johnathan Abbott, Telford College's learner manager for creative and music, said: “It's really important for us that we are able to give our students the opportunity to take on real-world projects, in partnership with local businesses. We're thankful to Gareth Williams and Alison Poole at Weston Park who commissioned us to create portraits for a broad range of their staff.
“The Weston Park team took photos of the staff – ranging from curators to gardeners, volunteers, security and marketing officers, and more – as well as supplying us with a brief statement about their backgrounds and interests.
“The students then took part in workshops to experience working in various media such as paint, digital, textiles, wire and ceramic, and chose which material they wanted to use, to create their portrait.”
More than 40 Telford College students took part in the project, with each selecting their subject by drawing names from a hat as part of their coursework and work experience.
The completed portraits vary in size from A2 to A3. The result is a vibrant and diverse collection of artworks that not only showcases the students' developing talents but also celebrates the people who make Weston Park such a special place to visit.
The exhibition will be available to visitors to view until the end of August, with the artworks on display from 11am to 4pm daily on the mezzanine floor of the Granary Café.
