On Friday 29 January, a group of art and drama students exhibited and performed their piece titled: ‘Records of The Revolution’ at the V&A museum.  This was part of a major exhibition exploring the significance and impact of the late 1960s.  This is the second time Wren students have been invited to perform at this prestigious location.

The 1960s was a fabulous and revolutionary era that is still evident in our society today.  This project has taught me that there are so many different perspectives to history.  Prior to this project my knowledge on the 60s focused around its popular culture with the bright colours, funky fashion and its extensive new genres to music.  However, when visiting the exhibition ‘Records and Rebels’ at the V&A, we have learnt that the 60s were not always swinging with sunshine.  This decade also faced serious matters on the political spectrum including war, fights for women’s rights and discrimination.  We tried to show this through our artwork highlighting this strong contrast with two opposing sides to the 60s, combining both the good and the bad.  This project has been an enlightening experience and I feel holds great importance corresponding with issues we still face in today’s society; with continuing revolutions still fighting for freedom and it has also helped me to understand there’s more to the 60s than what first meets the eye.

Elizabeth Lankester, Year 13 Art Student

Performing Arts

Throughout the creation process we have been exploring issues such as racism and sexism as well as the subcultures and rebellion of the 60s.  The arts have allowed us to understand and present the complexity of the time period studied in a performance that reflects the juxtaposition of stimuli we found.  The 60s for many was a time of progress and change, but our exploration has helped us to conclude that there’s still a lot of work to be done.  What better way is there to present the contrasting stories of the swinging 60s than live performance?

We hoped to guide the audience through the sounds and sights of the time whilst leaving them to reflect on the parallels to now.  The music of the time has been vital to setting the backdrop of 1966-1970 reinforcing the society and history we discovered, hence the title: Records of the Revolution.  For many of us this has confirmed the important partnership between history and the arts more than ever before.

Kofo Ajala, Year 13 Drama Student