Picture This: The Robson Orr Visual Literacy Research Initiative was launched today. This three-year research project seeks to measure the impact of visual literacy tools on students' visual literacy and oracy skills as well as the relationship between improved visual literacy and social and academic outcomes. The initiative will also compare the effects on visual literacy skills and wider learning outcomes of using original artworks versus digital images in educational settings.

The research project, originated and funded by Sybil Robson Orr and Matthew Orr, in collaboration with the Government Art Collection (GAC), Art UK and the University of Oxford, will measure how the observation and discussion of artworks in schools can support the development of visual literacy and oracy skills in students. The project will also evaluate how these skills – the ability to critically observe, analyse, question and interpret images – enhance students' potential for success in life in an increasingly image-saturated world and fast-changing workplace.

The aim of the research and resulting report is to provide the evidence to government to support the establishment of visual literacy as the fourth pillar of education in order to ensure that visual literacy is fully embedded in the curriculum.

Over the three years of the study (2025–2027), Art UK and the GAC will work with research teams from the University of Oxford's Department of Education and Oxford Gardens Libraries and Museums (GLAM) to engage with several thousand students and hundreds of teachers in primary and secondary schools across the UK.

The research work will target areas of low engagement with the creative arts, including priority education investment areas (PEIAs), primarily in England, but including Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The study will track student progression from primary to secondary education and propose best practice models to improve students' visual literacy and support school professionals and collections across the UK to bring artworks into their schools.

Teacher Penny Huntsman looks at a Mary Fedden painting

Sir Chris Bryant MP, Minister for Creative Industries, Arts and Tourism, said: 'Art and culture is an essential part of supporting young people to develop their creativity and find their voice, which is why giving children greater access to art is at the heart of this government's priorities. The Picture This initiative is supporting our ambition by bringing original artworks from the Government Art Collection into schools to unlock the creative imagination of young people and provide them with the essential skills for a rapidly evolving workplace.'

The launch event for Picture This: The Robson Orr Visual Literacy Research Initiative, 26th November 2024

Art UK's Chief Executive Andy Ellis said: 'We are delighted to be part of this partnership with Sybil Robson Orr and Matthew Orr, the Government Art Collection and the University of Oxford, which will, among other things, provide vital evidence of the impact of Art UK's programme The Superpower of Looking. We have already seen 1,700 primary schools engage with this important resource in the classroom and we look forward to working with the Oxford research team to understand better the impact of Superpower, how we can improve it further and how, with our Picture This partners, we can prompt a major shift in the curriculum towards visual literacy.'

More about the partners

The Robson Orrs, through their partnership with the Government Art Collection, developed the annual Robson Orr TenTen Award. Recognising the impact of art on students through pilot programmes, they aim to expand these efforts with Art UK. The Robson Orrs are committed to funding a major academic partner to measure the educational impact of these initiatives over the next three years.
The Government Art Collection (GAC) displays art in UK government buildings in nearly every capital city, making it the world's most dispersed collection of British art. It has a long-standing relationship with Sybil Robson Orr and Matthew Orr through the Robson Orr TenTen Award, a 10-year commissioning programme supporting new work by leading British artists including Hurvin Anderson, Tacita Dean, Yinka Shonibare CBE, Lubaina Himid, Rachel Whiteread, Michael Armitage and Denzil Forrester. The programme also raises funds to acquire work by under-represented artists and in the past year has supported the GAC to provide workshops and educational resources for school children (Years 7–9).
Art UK is an art education charity and the online home for every public art collection in the UK. It aims to make the UK's national art collection accessible for enjoyment, learning and research, showcasing art from nearly 3,500 British institutions, including more than 300,000 artworks by more than 50,000 artists. It has a global audience of 5.5m users. Its platform is rich in story content, learning resources, public engagement opportunities and opportunities for collections to generate commercial income.
The University of Oxford has been placed number 1 in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings for the eighth year running, and number 3 in the QS World Rankings 2024. At the heart of this success are the twin pillars of their ground-breaking research and innovation and their distinctive educational offer. Oxford is world-famous for research and teaching excellence and home to some of the most talented people from across the globe. Their work helps the lives of millions, solving real-world problems through a huge network of partnerships and collaborations. The breadth and interdisciplinary nature of this research alongside their personalised approach to teaching sparks imaginative and inventive insights and solutions. Through its research commercialisation arm, Oxford University Innovation, Oxford is the highest university patent filer in the UK and is ranked first in the UK for university spinouts, having created more than 300 new companies since 1988. Over a third of these companies have been created in the past five years. The university is a catalyst for prosperity in Oxfordshire and the UK, contributing £15.7 billion to the UK economy in 2018/19, and supports more than 28,000 full-time jobs.

Picture This programmes and resources include:

Art UK's The Superpower of Looking: Free online resources supporting primary school teachers to develop students' critical observation, analytical skills and oracy using digital reproductions of artworks. These resources include films, lesson plans, teacher training videos, and access to Art UK's database of artworks. The Superpower of Looking programme is funded by the Freelands Foundation. The original concept for The Superpower of Looking was brought to Art UK by Alison Cole.
The GAC's schools programme: Taking GAC artworks into primary schools across the UK, with a focus on areas with low engagement in the arts, and hosting CPD sessions for participating teachers at the GAC. Free visual literacy resources are available online to support teachers to develop their own workshops based on GAC artworks. Pilot school programmes were generously supported by Sybil Robson Orr and Matthew Orr. With thanks to Andria Zafirakou MBE for her invaluable guidance and support.

For any press enquiries, contact Erica Bolton on erica@boltonquinn.com or +44 (0)7711 698186.