Celebrating Somerset's Creative & Cultural Practitioners - Darrell Wakelam

Darrell has been working creatively with children for over 35 years now, travelling far and wide creating 3D artwork, mainly in schools, but also in other educational establishments, museums, theatres, etc. His artwork is mainly made from scrap cardboard and other easily available recycled materials. “I’ve always tried to help children to see the potential in what’s around them, to use their imagination and be inventive. For me, there’s nothing more powerful as a child than holding something in your hands that you’ve created and that you are proud of, it’s a memory that stays with many of us, not just artists but everyone who’s ever had that experience.”

“All of my training was really two-dimensional work, my degree is 'design and illustration’, but these skills allowed me to go back to what I enjoyed making as a child and to try to see that through a designers eyes, allowing me to come up with different ways of creating things that might be easier or more accessible for children.”

All of the things Darrell currently makes are built from the same basic ingredients, just cardboard, paper, glue, tape, and paint. This allows him to travel, set up and work pretty much anywhere. No electricity or technology required! A very sustainable art form.

He has worked with all ages, from reception children to university students and has also provided online workshops, enabling him to inspire children & young people across the world. In the last few years that’s included students from Canada, the USA, Europe, and the Middle East. A couple of years ago, during the Covid lockdowns, he also found time to put many of his ideas into a book, ‘Art Shaped’ which was published in 2023 and has been on Amazon’s ‘best-seller’ list for craft books many times since its release.

We first met and collaborated with Darrell during our PlayDay events. We host our free summer and winter PlayDay events across a number of Somerset locations, these family friendly events usually involve creative workshops and give communities the opportunity to learn new skills. At past events, Darrell run workshops making masks, 3D shoes, beasts, and geese all from recyclable, zero-waste materials. And in one full-circle moment last year, positioned opposite Somerset Libraries who were also in attendance at our Winter PlayDay in Chard, unknowingly Somerset Libraries had brought along and had on offer Darrell’s book, ‘Art Shaped’.

“I’ve worked with the Octagon and Westlands a few times over the last few years, providing simple drop-in art ideas for their very popular children’s activity days. We’ve been lucky, they’ve always been well attended and lots of families have taken up the opportunity to come along and join in, we’ve even had some nice weather!”

From an artist support angle, I asked Darrell about his profession and how he made connections and found work for himself. “One of the benefits of working for such a long time in schools is that you make good connections and you find people along the way who like what you do and are willing to promote it. I have many supportive contacts who recommend me, and some who book me on a regular basis. When you are self-employed that is vitally important, you do get new, or one-off clients, but you also need that dependable supply of definite bookings to give you the security and knowledge that your bills will get paid! So, luckily for me, I’m already booked up well into this coming Autumn and beyond. Usually these days, my diary is full about 9 months in advance.”.