The Big Draw

Themes for 2008

These themes are suggestions only and are not intended to be restrictive. One of the successes of The Big Draw is the huge diversity of themes, activities and media explored. Our broad themes allow connections with contemporary and historic programmes, and can be adapted to meet your own priorities. Organisers should feel free to select their own focus.

Drawing on Life

From anatomical studies to designing for sustainable futures


University of Brighton	The National Gallery	Royal Botanic Gardens Kew

Drawing on Energy

From sport to designing sustainable futures


Salford Lads' and Girls' Club	Leaf Cogs at Gardens of Easton Lodge Preservation Trust	Solar Ovens at Layer Marney Tower

Shape the Future The Royal Academy of Engineering's joint project with The Big Draw aims to show how much we rely on the design and innovative skills of the engineer in everyday life. Download the templates (pdf): STF drawing template (colour); STF drawing template (b&w); STF info template (colour); STF info template (b&w) Illustrated below are some of last year's Shape the Future activities from ReachOutRCA, Royal College of Art, Architecture Centre, Bristol and St George's Church of England School, Worcester

Changing Places

Community, architectural and environmental projects


Changing Cities at The Big Draw East	Cityscapes at Gallery Oldham	Thanet Coast, Margate

Doves for Peace

Make your mark for children affected by armed conflict

Use the Save the Children toolkit below to give them a chance of a better future by funding schools Colour template; Black and White template. You can find more information about this exciting collaboration and the Rewrite the Future campaign here and on the Save the Children website.

Big Draw t-shirt workshop in Sierra Leone	Drawing better Futures in Sierra Leone	Big Draw t-shirt workshop in Sierra Leone

The Big Picture Party

Celebrate picture books and promote family learning through drawing in a month long extravaganza initiated in partnership with the Campaign for Learning and Booktrust

Resources to help you plan and register your event are available here. Additional suggested activities can be found on the Booktrust website.

The Big Draw is for

Family Learning

Children can persuade adults to join in, and enjoy developing ideas on an equal footing with older relatives and friends.

Community Learning

The key to success is participation without fear of failure. Collaborative drawing involves the wider community and may explore non-Western conventions.

Adult Learning

There is no informal context for drawing outside a college or art club after childhood.

Older Generations

Drawn from Memory projects invite older people to record their memories in drawings.

New Audiences

Drawing can bridge the known and the unfamiliar. Drawing is accessible to those for whom English is a new language, or for those with learning difficulties.

Schools

Nursery, primary and secondary schools often run their own events, using these or other formats:

Great BIG DRAW – suspend the normal timetable and devote a day to drawing experiments
Cross-curricular BIG DRAW – feature drawing in every lesson
Saturday BIG DRAW – invite parents, carers and friends to participate