ELIZAVETA ROMANOVA

I started the course studying underwater effects through different compositions, where I could explore the marine life and its treasures. One of the global issues is that huge portions of plastic end up in the oceans, which breaks down into millions of tiny particles which collide with water and spread. In its decay there is a danger to marine life, as animals tend to eat those pieces, which leads to their illness and death. I was then interested in the reflections, so I began to explore it in different objects, like water, bottles and utensils, where I worked with the composition in order to reach creative reflections. I was inspired by Jeff Koon’s balloon sculptures which reminded me of my childhood and as the original toys were made from plastic this linked to my initial idea. Since balloons have a curved shape, the reflections in them are distorted, and I found another artist named Maurits Cornelis Escher who drew reflections in different objects, like mirrors, or puddles, which distorted the reality. He also had various works with pipes, and as they are made from metal and have reflective surfaces I explored further, looking at different compositions, different light angles which resulted in different shadows. Various compositions of the tubes reminded me of hands, so I researched the anatomy of a hand and found an artist named Mona Hatoum, who has created a sculpture of a hand. With this inspiration I created two hand sculptures, one with plaster and another one with clay. One of the hand sculptures has a fortune wheel, which has a spherical shape, and reminded me of a balloon. I found an artist named Barbara Hepworth, who created sculptures with the similar shapes, so I created a sculpture in her style, named “Alien Flower”. My last work closes the circle of my project, where I returned to the theme of pollution in the ocean, in order to make the audience become more aware of the damage they create and be more respectful towards nature.

The IB Visual Arts course is an incredibly demanding subject that requires students to reflect on the world around them whilst exploring a diverse range of artistic mediums. It is a personal and meaningful two-year journey, and one of the most rewarding.

This year, we have five Year 13 students who have been an absolute joy to teach. A group with a great sense of humour, talented and hard-working - albeit using every (last) minute available! Most of these students plan to continue further education in the arts sector, and we wish them the best of luck in their future endeavours.

We also take this opportunity in the catalogue to celebrate:

Year 11 Fine Art GCSE students, some of whom will continue the IB Visual Arts programme next year.

Camilla Cortesi and Isabella Recordati’s CAS project. These talented budding designers entered the Junk Kouture competition and were invited to the finals in Abu Dhabi, where they were featured in Teen Vogue.

Many thanks to our alumni: Caroline Pera for inspiring our future students and Matthew Noble for hosting the IB exhibition this year.