Embargoed: 23 April 2015
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Andrew Marr reveals his greatest hero and the theme for The Big Draw 2015 in an exclusive short film
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The Big Draw’s esteemed Patrons include Sir Quentin Blake, Lord Foster, David
Hockney OM CH RA, Andrew Marr, Sir Roger Penrose OM FRS, Gerald Scarfe CBE and Posy Simmonds MBE
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Over 1000 organisations worldwide are expected to create the biggest ever international drawing festival
Today, the theme for The Big Draw 2015 – Every Drawing Tells a Story – was revealed in an exclusive film by high-profile drawing advocate and long-standing Campaign for Drawing
Patron, Andrew Marr, as registration opens for this year’s Big Draw festival.
Individuals and organisations of all shapes and sizes are invited to register drawing events to be part of The Big Draw 2015, the world’s biggest drawing festival. Organisers are encouraged to adopt Every Drawing Tells a Story, choose their own theme, or take inspiration from the year’s significant celebrations, including the 800 th anniversary of the
Magna Carta, the 350 th anniversary of the publication of Robert Hooke’s Micrographia, the
150 th anniversary of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll and the current
UNESCO International Year of Light.
From 1-31 October, The Big Draw 2015: Every Drawing Tells a Story will see museums and galleries releasing exhibits to bring their stories to life; heritage sites using local materials to reveal hidden histories; schoolchildren creating storyboards to explore subjects; science centres using microscopy and light to enhance perception; performers making marks through movement; libraries transforming spaces into exciting storybook settings; homes for older people connecting generations by inviting residents and young visitors to draw and discuss their favourite objects; health professionals using drawing to ease anxiety and create positive environments…and much more besides.
In the film Andrew Marr introduces this year’s theme by drawing his greatest hero, Henri
Matisse. He reveals that the life and work of the artist (in Andrew’s words, ‘that lovely old sod’) has touched and changed his life – and so become an important part of his own story.

Sue Grayson Ford MBE, The Campaign for Drawing Director, says: ‘Drawing is a powerful way to bring stories to life, reveal the past, capture the present and explore the future. This year we are asking ‘’what story do you have to tell?’’ From nurseries to nursing homes, national galleries to local landmarks, boxing rings to town squares, there are stories waiting to be shared through a Big Draw event, and we hope Andrew Marr’s championship of The
Big Draw 2015, Every Drawing Tells a Story will help us reach and involve many more people in both individual and shared journeys of discovery.’
The Campaign for Drawing is a pioneering arts education charity dedicated to raising the profiles of visual literacy and drawing as tools for thought, creativity, and social and cultural engagement. Against a background of hugely reduced numbers of art, craft and designrelated GCSEs and A-levels, the Campaign’s year-round programmes promote drawing’s role in developing the talent and skills necessary for the continuing success of our Cultural and
Creative Industries.
Since 2000, The Campaign has coordinated the annual Big Draw festival, the biggest free arts event in the UK. The Big Draw provides an accessible platform for creative activities, the increased need for which was highlighted in the recent Warwick Commission Report. This year The Big Draw is joining hundreds of organisations nationwide to become a Get Creative
Champion as part of BBC Arts’ Get Creative – a year-long celebration of British arts, culture and creativity.
View the exclusive Big Draw film, find inspiration, register an event and stay informed by visiting www.thebigdraw.org
.* #thebigdraw
For Big Draw Press Enquiries and Images contact:
Amy Clancy on press@campaignfordrawing.org
or +44 (0) 208 351 171 9
View The Big Draw video featuring Andrew Marr: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=patmFfNjjbE
For The Big Draw Issuu mini-mag visit: http://issuu.com/thebigdraw/docs/everydrawingtellsastory
For Big Draw highlight events, theme branding and press resources visit: www.thebigdraw.org/press

1. Launched in 2000, The Big Draw has encouraged over three million people back to the drawing board. It has notched up two world records – for the longest drawing in the world
(one kilometre) and the greatest number of people drawing simultaneously (over 7,000).
The Big Draw has transformed national museums, Trafalgar Square, and even the South
Kensington underground tunnel into dynamic creative spaces enjoyed by thousands of people for a day. Every year, The Big Draw season includes hundreds of drawing activities in schools, galleries, museums, libraries, heritage sites, village halls and town squares. In 2014,
414,000 people attended over 1800 events by more than 1000 organisers in 26 countries. www.thebigdraw.org
2. The Campaign for Drawing aims to get everyone drawing. It raises drawing’s profile as a powerful tool for thinking, creating and communicating. Its long-term ambition is to change the way drawing is perceived and used by the public and professionals. The Campaign’s annual flagship, The Big Draw, proves that drawing can be a public activity as well as a private passion. The original inspiration came from visionary Victorian writer and artist John
Ruskin, whose mission was to teach people to see through drawing. The Campaign demonstrates that drawing can also connect communities through shared creative experiences. www.campaignfordrawing.org
3. Get Creative is a campaign led by the BBC and What Next? in partnership with a huge range of arts, cultural and voluntary organisations across the UK. It is a major celebration of the arts, the culture and the creativity that flourishes up and down this country and is enjoyed by millions. The campaign is a celebration of the world-class arts, culture and creativity across the UK and sets out to encourage a broad audience to engage more meaningfully with the arts. Get Creative, led by the BBC and What Next? came about as a result of the Warwick Commission on the Future of Cultural Value and collaboration with
Voluntary Arts, Culture at King’s, 64 Million Artists, Fun Palaces, Cultural Learning Alliance and Arts Council England.
4. What Next? is a movement bringing together arts and cultural organisations from across the UK, to articulate and strengthen the role of culture in our society. The aim is to engage the public in new and different conversations about how and why the arts are important, and become a catalyst for fresh thinking and new policy ideas.
5. The Warwick Commission on the Future of Cultural Value conducted a 12-month inquiry into how Britain can secure greater value from its cultural and creative assets. Vikki
Heywood writes in her foreword to Enriching Britain: Culture, Creativity and Growth: ‘The key message is that the government and the Cultural and Creative Industries need to take a united and coherent approach that guarantees equal access for everyone to a rich cultural education and the opportunity to live a creative life. Barriers and inequalities in Britain today prevent this from being a universal human right. This is bad for business and bad for society.’ http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/research/warwickcommission/futureculture/finalreport/warwi ck_commission_final_report.pdf