Year 11s Sage, Lowena, Emma, Catherine and Fiona alongside Year 8s Bella, Sophie and Melissa (not pictured) and Sixth Former Holly (not pictured) have just received the news that their work will be going on show at the historic Penwith Gallery in St Ives – home of the Penwith Society of Arts in Cornwall.
The society was founded in 1949 by Barbara Hepworth, Ben Nicholson, Peter Lanyon, Bernard Leach, Sven Berlin and Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, amongst others. This association with so many progressive and influential artists has given the Penwith Society a unique place in the contemporary art scene.
The exhibition is the result of St Ives School of Painting’s hunt for Cornwall’s most prodigious young talent and received an overwhelming response. More than a hundred 13-18 year-olds applied, and a short list was handpicked by renowned artist and former Director of St Ives School of Painting, Roy Ray.
The call-out encouraged young artists to challenge ideas of what drawing and painting can be and the School of Painting said that the overall standard of work was outstanding.
The exhibition takes place from Friday 29 March to Saturday 6 April. The show will culminate with a closing celebration on Friday 5 April from 5:30pm, where the prize winners in two age categories will be revealed, as voted for by the public.
Votes will be cast for the duration of the exhibition in the space at the Penwith Gallery and all are very welcome to attend. These votes will decide the winners for Public Favourites in two different age categories and there will also be prizes for ‘Best in Show’ as selected by the School of Painting.
Online voting has already started on the gallery’s Instagram account @porthmeor_youngartists where each piece will be posted on the lead up to the exhibition and collect likes. Five winners will be revealed at the closing party on Friday 5 April.
The prizes will support young people in their artistry and bring them exposure as emerging artists.
