A group of 18 volunteers from my school were given the chance to work with Ben last year. Although the aim of the event had been briefly touched upon prior to his arrival, the students were immediately inspired by the sincerity and clarity of Ben’s introduction. Most of the girls involved had not really had any direct experience of the tragedy of AIDS, but through the poignant exercise of preparing a design to commemorate the life of one particular sufferer made the girls feel as though they were creating their design for a friend. The actual identity of victims was never revealed. Ben made it clear that how each student created their design was entirely their own choice. As the project evolved, students collected more and more material to help their design, arriving at a very eclectic mix of final presentations. Some chose to work on the computer, using images from their imagination or exterior sources. Others chose to design by hand, some completing their work on computer. Whichever method they chose, Ben guided them sensitively and with great skill. He encouraged them to look beyond the limits of their own methods, achieving highly innovative and personal responses. By the end of the course the students had a sense of privilege at having been given the chance to work on this project and we are eagerly anticipating another series of workshops with Ben this year.
Julie Stevens
Head of Art, Talbot Heath Girls School, Bournemouth.
Ben (Trill) is the artist engaged by DAMSET to run the workshops.
