14 December 2020
Sixth Former Ona’s excellent presentation on the work of contemporary painter Michael Armitage will see her represent Woldingham in the regional ARTiculation competition in 2021. ARTiculation is the Roche Court Educational Trust’s nationally acclaimed public speaking competition for people aged 14 to 23, designed to encourage the appreciation and discussion of visual arts.
Ona was one of four Sixth Formers who gave high quality presentations on Monday 30 November in Woldingham’s in-house round of the competition. The other subjects covered were renaissance art, fashion and contemporary sculpture. The competition was judged by Head Dr Whitehead, Head of History of Art, Mr Alex Cullen, and Nicky Waskett Bannister from the Royal Academy of Arts.
As well as being delighted to win, Ona found the competition a very rewarding experience, saying, “I discussed the work of Michael Armitage and his ability to express significant themes such as cultural identity in the oil paintings he produces. It was an amazing way to seek new ways to articulate and communicate the works of others through the spoken word, where my passion for gesture work is in tandem with language. In taking part in this competition, I have learnt to critically analyse the works of other artists, which will in turn influence my personal artistic practise. I can’t wait to represent the school at the regional ARTiculation competition and hopefully the national finals at the University of Cambridge.”
Art is a strong subject at Woldingham, with students doing very well at GCSE and A Level. Each year some students go on to study art, architecture, fine art, history of art or other art-based courses at prestigious universities and institutions.