Art & Design

Whether through the millions of painted rainbows in sitting room windows, up and down the land, or powerful imagery created by contemporary artists, standing up against racism and prejudice, at a time of national and international crisis, change and uncertainty, Art has the power to respond swiftly, unite communities and evocatively express ideas and emotions. During the 2019-20 academic year Churcher’s College students were equally swift to respond to change, adapting their own creative ideas, skills and approaches magnificently, in order to produce highly imaginative and refined work, both before and during the national lockdown. In terms of a uniting force, the fleets of First - Third Year Churcher’s Ship Challenge images were truly something to behold. They transformed the familiar image of the school’s iconic emblem into radically new and different visions that echoed the palpable feelings of hope, positivity and thanks that united the nation as well as the school. Once the ships had set sail, Lower School pupils only further impressed with the dynamic impact of their photography. Stunning doesn’t quite do justice to the mesmerising, monochromatic effect of their abstract visions, whilst their quirky, surreal photographs were certainly out of this world! The Being Art Challenge, inspired by the international ‘Getty Challenge’, added a further spark of creative fun to complete the Lower School year. At GCSE level the Surreal Portraits and Pop Art works never fail to captivate viewers and this year was certainly no exception. During the period of remote learning, the Art of the Week page on the school website offered a perfect space for all to still view the brilliant array of artistic talents of both GCSE and A Level students. In the Fourth Year, this included a fantastic pencil study of an old lady with a mask by Phoebe Batt and a Pop Art collage by Kwado Asante which visually engages with issues surrounding racism, sparked by recent events in the USA. Other stand out GCSE work from the Fifth Form included Lowri Hegan’s floral observations and Charlotte Schryver’s farmyard portraits.

The many A Level highlights included Jamie Land’s portrait of fellow Lower Sixth student, Tom Wild, Amy Robinson’s plastic wrap portrait and highly topical photography by Vicky Farmer focusing on masks and social detachment in modern society.

Everyone would agree that, from March 2019, the lockdown measures, which brought about the need to learn remotely, were a genuine challenge for all. The Art Department has been so impressed with the level of dedication, initiative and creativity that pupils and students of all year groups have employed within the creation of their artwork whilst overcoming that challenge. Although the visual impact of their work is staggering, their overall creative achievements in the face of sudden and dramatic change is perhaps even more so. Well done! Mr D Heath