Talented Young Artist at King Edward VII Academy Selected as Runner-Up in Spirited Arts Competition 2023

King Edward VII Academy is delighted to announce that Year 10 student, Emily was selected as a runner-up in the National Association of Teachers of Religious Education (NATRE)’s Spirited Arts competition 2023.

Each year, hundreds of schools worldwide participate in NATRE’s Spirited Arts competition, attracting over 450,000 entrants since 2004, with over 4,000 entries sent into NATRE each year for judging in a vast variety of art forms including drawing, poetry, dance, music, and sculpture.  

Emily’s artwork titled ‘Surrounded’ examine the theme of ‘Green faith, green future?’ and uses materials of paint and newspaper. She uses the imagery of news articles, nature, and fire to explore themes of media, protesting, the environment, and destruction. Emily explains: 

“The girl is reading, surrounded by nature and glamorous things, or is it just a reflection? A reflection of what we want the world to look like in the future? At present time, is there even a possibility that we might see that future? This artwork shows how the world might turn out if we do not stop global warming and pollution.”  

Emily hopes her artwork conveys the urgency and importance of the message behind it, saying:  

“The motive of the artwork is to show that what we do now will reflect the future. In the beginning, ‘the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.’ We must continue to take care of the Earth. If we don’t do enough, the consequences will reflect our inaction.” 

Emily was incredibly proud to have had her work selected to be showcased in the online gallery out of the thousands of entries saying:  

“I didn’t expect to even be on the runner up list! However, I was wrong! I am so proud of myself to have been selected, even though I didn’t win. I really enjoyed this opportunity to show my skills in art.” 

Teacher of Humanities at King Edward VII Academy, Laura Watson said: 

“We are so proud of Emily’s achievement. NATRE received over 4,000 entries for Spirited Arts 2023 and Emily’s work was chosen for the online gallery. Her artwork is beautiful, and her written commentary is mature and thoughtful.  

 

All students at KES have the chance to take part in Spirited Arts each year. It provides an opportunity to think critically about current affairs and values. It also provides a great platform for cross-curricular activity, combining subjects such as Ethics, Philosophy and Worldviews with Art, Photography, Geography, and English. We hope to have even more success in 2024!” 

Emily’s work can be viewed as part of the online gallery on the NATRE website here.