By Brendan Rees
Talented students added a splash of colour at the Lynbrook Village Shopping Centre with a recent exhibition of their art work.
The centre teamed up with Lyndhurst Secondary College in hosting a ‘Grow your ideas’ teen art competition with students’ artwork displayed at the centre’s foyer for the past six weeks.
They received 59 entries, up from 29 last year with members of the public voting for their favourite.
Student prizes were awarded at a presentation hosted by Lynbrook Village Shopping Centre at Suburban Burger on Thursday 28 June where the school also held a celebratory lunch.
The aim of the exhibition was for students to develop their individual creativity, said principal Konnie Prades.
“The kids are very talented, their very excited and it’s really, really wonderful to see how much effort they’ve put into their work and how proud they are of their art work,” she said.
Art teacher Georgina Gaitanis said she was impressed with the variety of art pieces, adding many students dedicating their time outside of school hours.
“It was their own idea, they had their own inspiration but the theme they work with was ‘Culture incorporating the community and the environment,’” she said.
Lynbrook Village Shopping Centre’s marketing manager Mel Brown said it was an exciting concept and a great opportunity for students.
“This program is great for us because it helps out the school; it encourages the students and helps us out because we can use the centre as a forum to exhibit the art,” she said.
“We give the school thousands of dollars’ worth of art supplies which we source through one of our retailers.”
The winning art piece was painted by year 11 student Rifat for his piece ‘Mother Nature’ using a Digital/Adobe photo shop method, taking 15 hours to create.
For his prize, Rifat won a $300 gift card for the shopping centre and his work will be printed on the centre’s directories book mark.
Runner-up was year 12 student Alex for his acrylic painting ‘Who you are defines your surrounding’ with year 12 student Austin taking out third prize for his work ‘The light of the spiral shows the connection to the community’ using a camera, tripod, steel wool, a battery, rope and whisk to create, while year 11 student Bonnsithick, won the People’s Choice award for her painting ‘Smile, a simple gesture that brings real peace to you and the world.’
