Year 13 present Shape of Space Art Show
The show is the culmination of work made in a shifting physical and emotional space during a unique period of time.
Congratulations to our Year 13 art students, who have created a brilliant exhibition of their works in the studio spaces of the Old Music Block. The show contains unique works, exploring the space and responding to it both physically and conceptually.
The students worked with a range of mediums including sculpture, photography, paint, pencil, film and many other mixed medias.
In speaking about the show, Year 13 student Maria said, ‘My work started with the idea of trying to fill an entire page with my art. I have always been interested in creepy art, and in the idea of creating claustrophobic installations, filling massive spaces with my drawings, and specifically using colour and shape to further this sense of restlessness in my work. My project name is “Attitudes towards drawing and mark-making” and I wish to consistently be pushing the boundaries of what a drawing can be. Throughout my project, I have worked with world-building specifically, and I am inventing characters and small storylines hidden within my art. I have created a film, paintings, installations, and a life drawing to reflect this. The space we were given is the perfect location for my work, the small room that I have chosen is the perfect size for me to be able to fill it in a short amount of time whilst also having this feeling of claustrophobia and my drawings being everywhere. The process has been difficult, I spent about two months working on the room and it took lots of effort, but I have had help from my friends and other people in the art class. One of the things I struggle with most is motivation and it has been perfect for me to have other people around me because when I am feeling like I cannot work we can just have small conversations to help me gather that motivation again and continue my work. Overall, extremely enjoyed working towards this goal and I feel like I fully challenge the depths of what a drawing means to me and fully realised myself as an artist.’
In speaking about the show, Year 13 student Maudie commented, ‘My project ‘constructions’ started off with my interest in the amalgamation of organic and structural imagery. My use of different media and techniques allows me to distort imagery to subjectively depict my surroundings. The process of changing media also allows a new aperture to be opened and explored. My piece for the Shape of Space show is a construction of elements that transforms structural imagery across multiple mediums. Scaffolding has been used as a building block within my drawing which allows me to interweave subject matter of different depths and perspectives. Human figures have been included and represented within a confined space. I played with the representation of separate layers by mono-printing on to fabric. This hung as a curtain and acted as a barrier to the piece and a window to look through. My interest in Japanese culture and art has informed my interest in print and the illustrative style in which my work is presented. The structure, the woodblocks hung from, depicted a Japanese shrine.
Having the space for the gallery allowed me to create a more ambitious large-scale piece that incorporated the floor. I covered a large strip of the floor with photocopies of the woodblock prints. I created a pathway to the structure to juxtapose the neatness of the whole piece. It created an amalgamation of images that interconnected through the use of straight lines and repeating shapes. Unlike last year, when the room was shared, I was able to work more individually. However, I made informed decisions about my piece with the help of my friends’ constructive criticism. This made it a much more enjoyable process as we used each-other to strive for better results.
It was interesting to come back to the space I used during the lockdown procedure. This brought feelings of wanting to redefine the room I spent so long cooped up inside. Stripping out the temporary wall and painting over the graffiti with white paint felt liberating. Now that the exhibition is over, I can happily move on from the building with fond memories.’
A huge congratulations to all our Year 13 students on a brilliant and imaginative exhibition.
