In my role as the Young People's Programmes Manager I have recently been managing the training of a group of eight Youth Forum members leading to them delivering public talks giving a 'Youth Insight' into Van Dyck: Transforming British Art at the National Portrait Gallery (display on until 3 January 2016). There were five training sessions with myself, an art historian, other learning staff and visitor services staff. The young people decided to work in pairs to deliver the talks. After the first set of talks on Saturday 21 November, the Forum members said that they felt the talks flowed more than they had expected, that they were good at answering questions, and that they enjoyed the audience support. To improve they would use the props more, refer to the paintings more and try to be less nervous. We asked the audience: "Pick one thing that the Youth Forum told you today that made you look at Van Dyck in a different way." Responses included: "I learnt that Van Dyck had a star status and introduced a new style of portrait paintings showing brush strokes and more dynamic poses." The second set of talks takes place on Saturday 19 December featuring different Youth Forum members, again in pairs. The first set of talks was part of Museum Takeover Day run by Kids in Museums.

Visit the National Portrait Gallery's Van Dyck website here