Student exhibition brings modern twist to art and fashion at Wentworth Woodhouse

Student Danni Ward with her Georgian-inspired fashion design, on show in the Chapel at Wentworth Woodhouse

Talented Graphics, Media, Photography, Fashion and Art and Design students from Rotherham College and University Centre Rotherham are displaying their work in the Inspiring Heritage exhibition until March 28.

Their sculptures, tapestries, oil paintings, collages, photography and digital artworks are gracing the Pillared Hall, Chapel Corridor and the Painted Drawing Room.

Caden Pratt, a Level 3 Art and Design student who painted Renaissance-style portraits of his friends to celebrate their diversity and differing expressions of identity, commented: “I’ve grown up around Wentworth Woodhouse. It’s an iconic building. I feel incredibly honoured to have this opportunity.”

Caden Pratt with his paintings on show in the Chapel Corridor

Meanwhile the mansion’s Chapel is the setting for work by fashion students, who used modern ideas and materials to create outfits inspired by Georgian style.

Danni Ward commented: “It's been a great opportunity, having my work displayed at Wentworth Woodhouse. I based my designs on corsets, a key element of the Georgian period, and fairy skirts, as they were called, with further inspiration from the Lolita style.”

Steve Ash, head of the Trust’s volunteer Digital Team, explained: “We’ve been working with students from these two Rotherham education sites for a few years now.

“We were keen to learn how young minds might be inspired by Wentworth Woodhouse and its stories so we gave the students three themes - Wealth and Power, The Role of Women and Georgian Bling - and their hugely impressive creations now form the Inspiring Heritage Exhibition.”

Inspiring Heritage fashion students in the Chapel

The Preservation Trust’s Digital Team volunteers also added their skills to the exhibition. They created a promotional video www.youtube.com/c/wentworthwoodhouse1 and one painstakingly made a Georgian gown using authentic techniques and materials, which went on show in the Painted Drawing Room alongside a video telling the story.

“The idea was that my dress would be an example of the 18th century garments the students have riffed on in their versions; kind of past and future,” explained Deborah Greenfield, a dancer and choreographer who has worked in stage and film in the USA and Europe and has a Graduate Diploma in Heritage Conservation from the University of Lincoln.

She created her gown from a pair of old curtains she found in a French flea market 12 years ago. “But first I had to create the underpinnings - petticoats, stays (or corset as we now know them) and panniers which hold the dress out at the sides,” said Deborah.

“The stays were pretty mind-boggling. I used patterns I found online, including one from 1776 and it took many hours and the study of numerous YouTube videos to complete them. After that, I felt I could make just about anything!”

A-Level Fashion student Quin Napper, who took one exhibit to an interview at the University of Salford and was immediately offered a place to study a fashion degree later this year

Deborah danced in the famed Marble Saloon wearing her gown for the video. “That was a wonderful experience and my outfit was surprisingly comfortable,” she said. “The panniers made me feel buoyant and afloat as I sailed around the room.”