26
ACADEMIC MATTERS
Art
With the worst of the pandemic behind us, everybody was very excited to be back in the fabulous KGS art studios, flooded with light and equipped with all the materials the students could wish for.
The process of making successful art benefits immeasurably from working collaboratively and the very fact that we were all together again, discussing ideas and encouraging one another, only served to make us realise how much we had missed this experience when we were forced to struggle on alone under lockdown. Some of the first artworks to be presented to us were the new First Year entries for the Junior Summer Art Competition. The theme for this is simply ‘My Summer’ and entrants can submit work in any medium they choose. We received drawings, paintings, collages and photography, with the array of creativity making judging very difficult. The winning piece was a superb watercolour and collage landscape picture by Isabella Marson, with runners-up prizes going to Woody Griffith and Alex Comard. Not to be left out, the staff at KGS get to enter their own art competition each year. The Staff Common Room Photography Competition receives scores of fantastic entries with the prize being the privilege of having your photograph printed, framed and hung in the staff room. There are 18 winners each year, so too many to mention here, and the standard is always very high, with the images making a significant contribution to the ambience of the room. Thank you to everyone who entered.
In March, our Art Scholars paid a visit to the wonderful Surrey Sculpture Showcase event at the Landmark Arts Centre in Teddington. As part of the visit, artist and sculptor Kate Viner presented her work to the students and spoke about her creative process as well as the public art projects she’s undertaken throughout her career. Our scholars also had some time to view the excellent 2D and 3D work on offer, to which they dedicated some time to drawing from observation. These drawings were then put to a judging panel, who had the very difficult task of choosing three outstanding pieces. The selected students received some art-filled goody bags, but all the scholars were gifted a surprise item. The House Art Competition is a fantastic way for older students to engage with junior artists and impart their knowledge, experience and to encourage the next generation. The theme this year was ‘Honey Bees’. Honey bees are vital for the survival of humanity but are a species in crisis. The Houses were challenged to produce a piece of 2D collaborative art based on this fascinating insect. In order to maintain year group bubbles, the format of the event was different this year but proved very successful. The Sixth Form artists were given a fortnight to devise an idea for a piece of art that was to be created during a handful of lunchtime sessions. Each session was attended by 10 artists and was overseen by the senior art directors, with each year group building upon the good work achieved by those who had worked during the previous lunchtime.
The judging criteria considered the level of creativity shown in interpreting the theme, degree of group participation and level of artistic ability displayed in the final outcome. Congratulations to Stanley who produced the winning piece. Walworth came second with the other three houses coming joint third. It was delightful to witness the fantastic collaborative effort made by all the students. In December there were two Christmas card competitions. The first was to design the Head Master’s official KGS greetings for the year. There were five winning designs that included festive images of the school itself as well as a KGS robin, a stag and a re-imagining of the Lovekyn Chapel windows. These wonderful cards were created by Sophie Fuller, Poppy Emerson, Imogen Marinko, Anna Helbing and Amy Marshall, all members of our terrifically talented Art Scholar body. The second competition was organised by the PSA and judged by KGS parent and renowned graphic artist Prentis Rollins. The winning designs by Valerie Wan, Sophia Raza, Chaohan Fang, Yulia Novak, Zac Adigun and Amelia Marinko were sold for charity at the highly successful PSA Christmas Market. A new initiative designed to encourage our developing artists is ‘The Wall of Fame’. This rolling exhibition of artwork made by students of all year groups can be found in the Finlay Gallery. Pieces generally don’t stay on display for more than a few weeks so students are encouraged to check back regularly to see if they have been selected. Mr J Dyson, Head of Art
KINGSTONIAN 2021/22
