Excerpt from Strabane Chronicle:
AN exhibition of striking and unique felt images which explore the cells, tissues and organs of the human body is now showing at the Alley Theatre.
It is the work of 12 first year nursing students from Queen’s University Belfast’s School of Nursing and Midwifery in collaboration with university teaching staff, Maggie Bennett and Dr Katherine Rogers, and Patricia Lavery from Arts Care.
The project was funded by a QUB School of Nursing and Midwifery Teaching Innovation Award to explore creative ways of learning anatomy and physiology in higher education. The complex organisation and function of the human body can be difficult to understand and the project aimed to enhance students’ knowledge and understanding of anatomical terminology, regions and organs of the body.
A series of workshops were held during which students were introduced to felt-making. Each workshop focused on a specific aspect of the human body which students then used felt to express what they have learned. The workshops were an environment of active and kinesthetic learning, providing a unique and novel learning experience that helped students make sense of these challenging scientific concepts which are essential for their professional nursing practice.
A spokesperson for the exhibition explained they are delighted to be at the Alley Theatre, “This fantastic venue has enabled us to stylishly celebrate the amazing pieces created during the workshops. This has been a wonderful experience for all involved and we hope that this pilot project is only the start of a long and productive collaboration.
“We expect to hold further exhibitions in more venues and it is anticipated that the Breathe Collection will eventually find its home in the School of Nursing and Midwifery”.
Breathe is showing in the Alley Art Gallery until Friday, March 13.