Creative Activities

Take part in creative online tutorials and workshops, just for fun or to learn a new skill. Make sure to share your creations on social media and use #challengenottm and we'll share them on our social media  

• Nottingham Contemporary Family Activities: The Play and Learn Team have been busy planning lots of creative activities to keep families entertained during lockdown. There are a mix of activities that you can do inside or outside, some use objects from around the home and others use art materials that can be posted out to you on request. To accompany the activities there is also a playlist of Grace Jones tracks to listen to whilst you create. Take a look on the website for more information. To reserve a free material pack please email ljacques@nottinghamcontemporary.org 
• NOTTINGHAM CASTLE: Nottingham Castle reopens this Spring, in the meantime they have lots of creative activities on their website to try out at home, from Building Your Own Castle to creating a piece of art inspired by Violas in the Window by Winifred Nicholson from Nottingham Castle's collection. Find out more on the Castle website.
• The NEW ART EXCHANGE have lots of great creative online activities for you to try, with step-by-step instructions, you'll find them here. You can also take a look at interviews with artists, 3D Gallery Walkthroughs and more here.
• Illustrator Rob Biddulph’s  popular YouTube series Draw With Rob continues into the new lockdown, teaching children how to draw anything from wizards to sausage dogs
• Olaf Falafel's Art Club series, teaches you to draw and offers quick and funny biographies of famous artists. Every Monday at 11am on his YouTube channel.
• NOTTINGHAM CONTEMPORARY have step-by-step instructions to create a cardboard sculpture inspired by Diane Simpson's artwork. Find out how here.
• Nottingham's CITY ARTS  have a City Arts YouTube channel with lots of creative and crafty tutorials to try.
• LAKESIDE ARTS invites you to learn about the drama of Roman theatre masks and other fascinating faces from the past and then create yours in your very own at home. There’s a step-by-step guide for you to follow. 
• BAME: WeTeach have created a free, downloadable Black Lives Matter colouring book. You'll find lots of other resources in their Google Drive Folders
•  Join artist Shamila Chady and her young friends as they explore 'respect' using art activities. The digital workshop was originally created for RSE Day. Find it on the ChalleNGe YouTube Channel. You'll also find artist Charlotte Tupper's two-part  workshop exploring resilience through visual art. She encourages you to make a self-portrait with everyday objects, and then rearrange them to make something else!  
• Set your imagination free with LAKESIDE's The Alien. Read through the poem and create your own extraterrestrial inspired art or even craft your own poem. Find out more. 
•  The National Saturday Club Online has activities and Masterclass briefs developed by Saturday Club tutors and industry experts which includes Art and Design and Fashion and Business projects that you can take part in at home.
• Nottingham's DUKKI GIFTS AND SOUVENIRS have created free a downloadable colouring book of some of Nottingham's finest Landmarks. Download it here.
• World famous architects FOSTER + PARTNERS have created #architecturefromhome where they're be sharing  drawing, making, playing, thinking, reading, watching and other activities. Pop over their website and be inspired.
• The NOTTINGHAM PLAYHOUSE Drawing Club has tips to help everyone from novice to experienced artists.
• Stay inspired with Firstsite’s artist created activity packs, featuring contributions from UK artists including Antony Gormley, Gillian Wearing, Idris Khan, Jeremy Deller, Mark Wallinger and more. 
• Learn how to Create paper flowers to place in a vase.
• Experimental Paint Fashion Designs is just one of the great tutorials with pics and video on the Making Space website.
• Cheats Stained Glass: make stained glass from things you have lying around the home.
• Plastic Bag Bangle tutorial. 
• The NATIONAL SATURDAY CLUB Online: have some excellent Masterclass briefs developed by Saturday Club tutors and industry experts, including Art and Design and Fashion and Business, which you can take part in at home.
• CARNIVAL ARTS have all things carnival for children to enjoy - mask making, making carnival headpieces, word searches and activities. 
• The WORLD BOOK DAY website has some fab activities in the Make and Do and Colouring sections. Take a look here.
• CBBC's Art Ninja has lots of great art ideas and makes. 
• Famous cartoonist PETE MCKEE is running Cartoon Workshops for Beginners. Pete will be posting a cartoon workshop aimed at children every Wednesday for the next few weeks. You'll find them on YouTube here.
• TATE galleries have an excellent kids section that's full of things to make, games and quizzes exploring different artists and videos. Take a look here 
• TOY PHOTOGRAPHY  introduce your children to toy photography, once they get the hang of the basics, there's so much they can do that will keep them entertained for hours.  
• Mo Willems is the Kennedy Center Education Artist-in-Residence and you'll find his Lunch Doodles on the Kennedy Centre's YouTube channel. Learners worldwide can draw, doodle and explore new ways of writing by visiting Mo’s studio virtually. Grab some paper and pencils, pens, or crayons and join Mo to explore ways of writing and making together. If you post your art to social media, be sure to hashtag it with #MoLunchDoodles! 
• Find hundreds more ideas on the Get Creative website