Artist and architect Helen Stratford visited the Academy to talk to students about a project she created based on a day with a duck in Ely.

Helen visited on Thursday, September 20, to speak to Year 11 students.

She told them about her latest project, ‘A Day With a Duck’, which began when Helen spent a day with a Muscovy duck on Ely’s Riverside researching how public areas are shared between human and duck. The day was a starting point for conversations and encounters with residents, visitors, tourists and workers in the area.

The finished project explores alternate and unplanned ways through which places are generated.

‘A Day With a Duck’ is running at the Babylon Gallery, Waterside, Ely, until October 7.

Helen also spoke to the students about a project she did in Manchester which looked at alternative ways to use public spaces.

After her presentation several students asked questions about the projects.

Art teacher Rob Dempsey said: “I am really grateful that Helen generously gave her time to discuss her different community and issue based art projects with the Year 11 BTEC students.

“Her quirky and thought provoking projects encourage us to think differently about how we relate to and use public spaces. Her methods of creating visual and performance art challenged the pupils to think more broadly about what can be considered art.

“She offered an excellent example to the pupils of someone critically questioning and investigating their experience and environment for themselves, and looking beneath the surface of the obvious, to uncover issues of greater significance.”