News
Friday, 23 July 2010
The CIAO! Ark is awarded its second London 2012 Inspire Mark
The CIAO! Ark, an innovative arts and environmental science project which saw the installation of a giant Ark on the front lawn of Oxford University Museum of Natural History for a five day celebration of low carbon living, has been granted the Inspire Mark, the badge of the London 2012 Inspire Programme.
The London 2012 Inspire programme recognises innovative and exceptional projects that are inspired by the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
CIAO! was inspired by the fact that the London 2012 Games will be the first ‘green’ Olympics and the first Olympic and Paralympic Games designed with young people at its heart. In response the CIAO! Ark project has introduced children to leaders in their fields of environmental science, inspiring them to use their best efforts to address climate change issues through arts projects in their schools.
Seb Coe, Chair, London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games said: “The CIAO! Ark is encouraging young people to fulfill their potential. I am proud that with the help of partners such as CIAO! we are delivering on our vision to use the power of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games to boost participation in the arts and environmental science.”
Around 10,000 people turned out to experience the CIAO! Ark in Oxford and joined in the celebration of low carbon living. The event was a huge success attracting visitors from far and wide. Children and adults alike were captivated not only by the Ark itself, but by the artworks and performances on the Ark, created by children from ten Oxfordshire primary schools who have been participating in the project since January, conveying their positive visions of a clean, green future. The Ark project has been supported by car manufacturer MINI Plant Oxford. A team of engineers from the plant visited each of the participating schools with hands-on workshop session which included a task to propel a model MINI using only sustainable energy.
Interactive exhibits kept families entertained for hours as they pedaled frantically to power a sound installation or watch the ‘Sea of Troubles’ light up. Around the Ark were art, storytelling and music workshops. In the evenings the upper deck was transformed into a stage to host an array of open-air concerts powered by solar panels, cycle power and a bio-diesel generator fueled with chip fat collected from East Oxford. The façade of the Museum of Natural History was lit-up to create a visually stunning backdrop to accompany the performances by the likes of Graffiti Classics, Nature Boy and The Brickwork Lizards.
Karen Draisey, Artistic Director, CIAO! said, “The Ark Project has been hugely successful in giving children a platform for their creative responses to an important issue. The London 2012 Inspire Mark recognises the achievement of Oxfordshire schools working in partnership with CIAO! and we are grateful to them and to all our project partners for helping us to gain this prestigious award for the second time.”
For further information about the CIAO! Ark Project go to the CIAO! website.
