Jute Bag Project in Collaboration with the SSA Society of Scottish Artists, Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design and the Natural Bag Company

 

Jute Bag Project

 

SSA Annual Exhibition 2009

As part of our exhibition at Vision Building this year, the SSA has offered an educational project to primary and secondary schools in Dundee in conjunction with Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art/University of Dundee.

We wanted to offer a project that would prove to be creatively and historically stimulating. Since Dundee is synonymous with the jute trade, we felt it appropriate to use this versatile material as our starting point and at the same time give it a fresh and youthful twist. The legacy of the jute industry remains deep rooted in Dundee from historic buildings to the names of streets and parks as well as the influence it had on the city's harbour, whaling industry and shipbuilding. Jute was transported in large bales from India to Dundee by ship and these bales were stamped with a bale mark. The bale marks identified the type, quality and producer of the raw jute. The marks were stamped onto the side and were often quite simple and geometric in shape e.g., a star or heart.

The aim of the project was for each pupil to design their own personal bale mark that best identified themselves. These bale marks were then transferred using any number of methods onto a jute bag. The pupils were free to explore and adapt the bale mark to suit their creative vision using materials and methods such as felt, stencilling, wire, painting and printing. Above all, we wanted them to have fun and be playfully inventive.

An exhibition and competition has been mounted in Dundee's Overgate on the 18th May to showcase the most successful from each school with prizes being awarded to winners from each level as well as a People s Favourite Award given to one overall winner voted for by the public. The project and competition culminates in a civic reception to be held on the 25th May 2009.

This project would not be possible without the very generous donation of several hundred jute bags from Simon Pritchard from The Natural Bag Company, Dundee .Thanks go to Brian Kelly, Education Officer at Verdant Works, Dundee Heritage for giving us his time and information. In fact, it was during meetings with both Simon and Brian about Juteopolis, that the concept was conceived and we thank them most gratefully. We also wish to thank Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design for collaborating on this project.

 

Louise Ritchie SSA Council