Around the Senior School

Art Express Nominations for 2024

It is very exciting to be able to announce that two of our Year 12 Visual Arts students have had their Bodies of Work nominated for Art Express 2024! Ivy Hawker and Kate Adams can both be very proud of their efforts and achievement of an extremely high standard of work. Art Express is a curated showcase of some of the best works from the cohort and those nominated that get into the final selection will be displayed in the Art Gallery of NSW and other locations around the state. 

Kate Adams’ work “Perfectly Imperfect” is a Collection of Work utilizing ceramics, eco-dyed fabric and other materials to celebrate Nature’s unique beauty. In her words;

In my body of work, “Perfectly Imperfect,” I delve into the innate beauty found in nature’s flaws, celebrating the imperfections that make the natural world exquisitely unique. Each piece in this collection captures the essence of imperfection, revealing how these deviations from the ideal are what truly define perfection in nature.

Ivy’s work “Deadly Brews”, takes a refreshingly irreverent look at truancy, energy drinks with preposterous claims, and the iconic “sickie”! Ivy asks the audience:

Do you ever feel like you just need a day off? Well, I have created “Deadly Brews” to help you out with just that. My body of work is a collection of drinks, infused with various viruses, and bacterial infections to get you out of all kinds of occasions. 

A huge congratulations to them both, and a massive thank you to the team of Beck Wansey and the unflappable Matt Thomas. 

Andrew​ Orme‑Smith

Head of Department Visual Art

Year 11 and New Display Cabinet

A snapshot of Visual Arts at the moment would have to include our unsung hero Matt Thomas. He is our technical assistant and accomplished artist who keeps the show on the road. His support of Visual Arts and especially the senior students is facilitated by his very wide range of skills, from ordering supplies, through running the various printers and laser cutter to building cool stuff! Currently he has just completed one of two display cabinets for the foyer of the Visual Arts end of the Anderson Centre. As we have always been short on space to display three-dimensional work, this is a vital, and elegant, solution. 

On display are some of the Year 11 works which are intricate bowls, or stitch-pots, made from dyed fabric, found objects and stitching. They formed part of a “Mini Body of Work” that formed the final unit in Year 11 and was made up of various printmaking techniques and the stitch pot that combined to create a sense of place. This example by Sophie Luelf incorporates rust dyed fabric, ochre palette and stitched found fabrics to convey the location of the Sossusvlei region of the Namib Desert. With artworks of this nature and calibre it is so nice to have somewhere to exhibit them. 

Andrew​ Orme‑Smith

Head of Department Visual Art