This term, our Junior School threw its doors open for the annual Art Exhibition, with visitors treated to a spectacular display of colour, creativity and imagination. Read about the inspiration behind each of our year group collections.
Nursery delved into their seaside topic for their art collection. The girls carefully arranged seaside themed objects onto cyanotype paper and placed their compositions in sunlight. The cyanotype process is a camera-less photographic technique that turns white paper with objects placed on it into a striking, monochromatic Prussian blue to reveal the print. As part of their exhibit, they also undertook a series of observational shell drawings, learning to observe and experiment with pencil pressure.
Reception explored the work of Louise Bourgeois, focusing on her monumental metal sculpture Maman. Pupils began with observational drawings of toy minibeasts before sculpting their own using paper, glue and water. Finished with pearlescent paint and set within a carefully crafted habitat, the results were incredible.
Year 1 focused on a collection inspired by Eric Carle, author and illustrator of The Very Hungry Caterpillar. The girls created their own background using a variety of colours textures and explored mixing painting and experimenting with different mark and pattern making. The backgrounds were then cut out to create animals and other imaginative figures – creating unique collage artworks in the style of Carle.
Year 2 were guided by the work of Canadian artist Aleda O’Connor, renowned for her vibrant oil pastel landscapes depicting environments transformed by weather, light and fog. Drawing on her techniques, the girls explored layering, blending and sgraffito to create dramatic scenes depicting the Great Fire of London.
Year 3 studied Henri Rousseau and his imaginative jungle paintings, alongside the work of Clare Celeste Börsh, who draws inspiration from Rousseau to create installations based on imagined habitats and microhabitats. Beginning with observational drawings of animals, the girls then applied paint directly to real leaves and plants.
Year 4’s display centred on Roman art and the ways in which Romans used portraits to convey identity, power and social status. Girls also explored Frida Kahlo’s use of symbolism and Lubaina Himid’s distinctive portrait style, before turning the lens on themselves, creating self-portraits filled with objects that reflect their own identity, culture and heritage.
Year 5 embarked on a journey through flowers and plants in art, moving from tonal observational drawings of leaves to the breathtaking botanical paintings of Marianne North, who has her own dedicated gallery at Kew Gardens. Georgia O’Keeffe’s bold use of shape and colour led them into enlarged petal studies, before the project culminated in paper collage work inspired by the extraordinary, surreal flowers of Yayoi Kusama.
Year 6 produced a stunning gallery of self-portraits, drawing on the work of Lucian Freud, Frida Kahlo and Jemisha Maadhavji. Observing themselves carefully in mirrors, the girls developed their understanding of colour theory, learning to mix a rich variety of skin tones to create portraits of real depth, sensitivity and texture.
A huge well done to all our Junior School pupils who delivered a very imaginative and joyful exhibition!
