Butterfly World

The whole of year seven visited Butterfly World in Hertfordshire.

  

On the 12th and 13th May, we took our Year 7's to Butterfly World in St Albans. We were very lucky with the weather and managed to enjoy both days without getting wet, with the students producing some beautiful study sketches.

We gave each student a piece of A3 paper and told them to fold the paper to create a constantine styled booklet. When opened up the students would be left with a full A3 page study sheet.

A students sketch of the Giant Ant!

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Miss White leading the observational drawing of the ant.

At the end of the students (and staff!) were lucky enough to be involved in insect handling. This involved stick insects, giant African snails and cockroaches!

During the insect handling we were able to see where the life of a butterfly begins. We were even lucky enough to see some breaking out of their chrysalis'

During our visit we also walked around the decorated, unsual, beautiful gardens, where the students could continue with their observational drawings.

Charlies Powerful Portraits

Derived from the theme of decay, Charlie's paintings are uncompromising in many ways. 

A current year 12 student Charlie's work challenges the viewer with faces which glare directly from the page. Behind the features the expressions are edgy and menacing, bringing us to question the mental state of of the people he portrays.

This A2 painting in acrylics developed over just a few days.

These photographs show pages from Charlie's sketchbook. An inspiring artist will often be a catalyst to explore a theme or media. The first page shows studies drawn from the work of Lee Jeffries whose style in terms of composition and texture goes on to influence Charlie's own self portraits.

Seventh Heaven

Year 7 - Colour explorations following the French Impressionist painters.

 Working in chalk pastel onto coloured paper these are A5 studies show how the use of marks and colour blend to create a beautiful section of work. Somehow however the process creates colour not only on the paper but across the students desks and blazers- definitely worth the mess.

The crazy vibrant colours of the Fauves were recreated in oil pastel. The Year 7 students have then used the techniques learnt in these smaller studies to complete an A3 final piece of school building.

Year 11 Coursework Day

A full day of painting, printing, refining, annotating and collating.

This week the two main art rooms were full to bursting with two large groups of GCSE Art students as they worked outside of their usual timetables on any elements of course work needing attention. As is apparent in the images below the students chose mostly to concentrate on their 'Portraiture' project. It's a diverse theme with personal and individual outcomes. The photos below show a selection (mainly found on the drying rack) of the endeavours of the day.

 



 

 

Screen printing is a fast and flexible way to add another technique into a student's portfolio. The A2 size of this student's Matisse style portrait brings a dramatic and bold element to her project.
 

 

Blooming Bottles Sculpture

Year 13 Hanging Sculpture

  

This student has been inspired to develop her work into a three dimensional form by studying the work of Dale Chihuly. Jasmine's sketchbook shows the influence of other artists connected to the floral theme. After taking her own photographs she moves on to experiment using fast, thick daubs of paint enabling her to capture the energy, colour and movement evocative of any British garden in high summer. An uplifting 'flower power' reminder of the warmer seasons to come.

Behind the Scenes at Bugsy Malone

Leventhorpe's annual musical production begins within the Art Department.

The director of Bugsy Malone is the Head of Art, Ms Jeffries. The bolt of excitement and energy that our school production generates begins within the Art Office as students pay short visits eager to hear news of their auditions and grab copies of scripts. As rehearsals get underway, Ms Pickering plans and paints the scenery and props with help from whoever is willing and able. The costumes and students' performances were fabulous. It's a magical and enlightening experience to see all of the dedicated staff and students involved - a highlight of our school year. 

Photos taken during the performances (11th,12th and 13th Feb) can be viewed here.

Maria's Sketchbook.

A sneaky peek inside the creative process - the workings of one of our A2 students. 

These pages show the progression of Maria's ideas. The double A3 pages begin with a mind map and include media explorations, artists influence and development of ideas- resulting in a couple of large scale paintings (although these may not be the conclusion). Some elements remind me of a particular Feature Film and various TV advertising campaigns. An amazing and inspiring section of work. 

The autobiographical nature of Maria's work is an element intrinsic to how many artists work. It is often the drive behind ideas and processes and what makes peeping in a working sketchbook so undeniably intriguing. It also means that this work is precious and on many levels will hold more than the value of an assessed grade.