Art Fund has launched The Great Escape – a new UK-wide creative project for museums to engage with schools and families, inspired by the nature around us.
It will bring schools and families into museum, galleries, and historic house spaces, inviting primary school children aged 7-11 years to explore the nature in their collections and create stories and pictures that imagine a creature’s journey to a future habitat, rich in biodiversity. The things they make in the classroom, online and in museums will be brought together in a collective work of art, unveiled during a weekend of activities for all ages on Earth Day 2023, Saturday 22 April.
Together with Art Fund we are encouraging museums, galleries, and historic houses to run their own activities, workshops, and events – big or small – to support the project. If your organisation wants to get involved, the best way to start is by registering your interest so you’ll be the first to get exclusive updates, including news about partnerships, funding and free resources throughout the project.
Funding is not a prerequisite for getting involved, but where organisations do require financial support, there are a limited number of small grants available. We are working in partnership with Art Fund to distribute small grants from £500 to £3,000 or up to £24,000 for consortia applicants to support participation in The Great Escape. The fund will be open for applications until 9am on 2 November 2022, you can find out how to apply here.
To help you draft a strong application we will be hosting workshops to help organisations with this application process. You can book onto them here.
The Great Escape is made possible with support from Arts Council England’s National Lottery Project Grants.