Announcing Stephanie Jefferies' Tiny Tetley Studio Commission
Journal 29 Nov 2021
Opening in February 2022, The Tetley has commissioned artist and early years specialist Stephanie Jefferies to create a dedicated space for young children to explore, play and make art with their parents and carers.
Working with community groups, young children and families, Jefferies will create an artwork that comments on and addresses the barriers that the increasingly commercialised urban environment imposes upon a young child's sense of place, community and self.
This new Tiny Tetley Studio Commission creates a new, free and inclusive resource, open five days a week, and is designed to use playfulness, creativity and contemporary art to break down social barriers.
At The Tetley, we are making more space available for public and community use and investing more in our existing spaces for participation to meet the needs of local communities. This new commission by Jefferies will create a new offer and extend our remit as a relaxed, social venue and centre for making art for all.
Stephanie Jefferies creates immersive spaces that encourage playfulness and creativity in galleries and other spaces. Her practice challenges the predominant hierarchical models for art and learning.
Jefferies graduated from Leeds College of Art in 2006. During a placement at St Joost Design Academy in The Netherlands, Jefferies was introduced to Montessori Pedagogy, and learning through practical experience, subsequently gaining a scholarship to study Montessori Pedagogy in London. Later, Jefferies studied an MA Art Gallery and Museum Studies at Leeds University.
Supported by a National Lottery award from The National Lottery Community Fund
Image: Stephanie Jefferies workshop at Yorkshire Sculpture Park. Photo: David Lindsay