A very fine art show
Staff and pupils at The Queen’s School, Chester, are currently enjoying the creative efforts of Year 11’s GCSE art exhibition. The show is the culmination of two years hard work, with each pupil developing imaginative ideas and exploring their artistic potential.
Parents, governors and friends of the school were invited to a private view of the students’ work recently. The visitors were extremely impressed by the quality and originality of the art pieces on show.
Art coursework accounts for 60 per cent of the final GCSE, with the remaining points awarded for work produced in a timed exam. The exhibition shows how students researched and developed their thoughts, exploring different themes and materials in order to create their stunning pieces.
The school’s new head of Art, Alistair Tucker, said: “Art is a very enjoyable subject, but it requires a lot of dedication and commitment to create a body of work that can achieve a good grade at GCSE. The girls have worked extremely hard and produced work of a very high standard.”
In order to fire their imagination, the girls were taken to visit the Tate and Walker Art Galleries in Liverpool. Here they were inspired by work created by contemporary artists, as well as the work of artists from centuries gone by.
Students were encouraged to use a variety of media including collographs, lino, monotype, drawing, painting, photography and textiles. They found their inspiration for subject matter in the world around them, exploring topics such as identity, everyday events, shopping and structures.
Laura Le Brocq, a student on the GCSE course, said: “I have really enjoyed GCSE Art. It has given me the opportunity to experiment with materials and learn lots of different techniques. When I look at what I was doing at the beginning of the course, and what I managed to achieve in the final exam, I’m amazed how much I’ve improved.”
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Press Contact: Mrs Jane Taylor, The Queen’s School, City Walls Road, Chester, CH1 2NN Tel: 01244 312078 Fax: 01244 321507 Email: jtaylor@queens.cheshire.sch.uk
The Queen’s School, Chester, Cheshire is one of the country’s leading independent schools offering the highest standard of education for girls from ages 4 – 18.
Since its foundation, The Queen’s School has always been a highly successful academic school. In the latest Government league tables published in January 2006, Queen’s was again ranked as the top school in Cheshire based on both GCSE and A/AS level results.
Academic success is only one aspect of life at Queen’s. The Queen’s School and its staff encourage all girls to participate in a wide range of extra-curricular activities; these include drama clubs, plays and musicals, cabaret evenings, choirs and orchestras, a variety of sports such as tennis, lacrosse, football, athletics and gymnastics as well as a science club, an equine club and the Friday club which involves girls helping in the community. There is also the chance to travel with the school on adventure holidays, foreign treks, scientific research expeditions, French and German exchanges and skiing trips.
Established by a group of prominent Chester citizens in 1878 as the Chester School for Girls, the school was renamed four years later by command of Queen Victoria and is proud to remain the only school in the country to have been granted the name The Queen’s School by royal decree. The school has a number of bursaries available to students. Mrs Catherine Buckley is the present headmistress of The Queen’s School. Mrs Felicity Taylor is head of the Lower School on Liverpool Road.
Past pupils include Beth Tweddle, Olympic Gymnast, Sarah Kelly founder of the UK’s Neuromuscular Centre for muscular dystrophy and Vivienne Faull, the first woman to become Dean of an English Cathedral.
More information available from www.queens.cheshire.sch.uk
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