Southsea art students love to be beside the seaside in final exhibition

GCSE students from St John’s College, Southsea invited friends and family members to celebrate their hard work at the special event last Friday.

The exhibition, which was outlined by a beach-themed brief, featured the students’ favourite pieces and exam coursework created during two years of study.

One of the participating students was current St John’s boarder Edward Beeston, who produced a variety of art pieces based around sunrises and sunsets.

Edward, 16, said: ‘I used bright colours and different styles including batik and applique on two panels of fabric to track the sun’s journey during a single day.

‘I have really enjoyed GCSE art – having the freedom to choose what we wanted to do was really fun.

‘We also got to study some really interesting artists’ styles which I have used throughout my work.’

Students met the brief through a broad range of mediums, including sculptures, drawings, paintings and photographs, and many of their pieces were inspired by the college’s seaside location and the nearby countryside.

This year’s exhibition was particularly sentimental for head of art Karen Brown, who was championed by her pupils during her final end-of-year showcase at St John’s.

Mrs Brown, who has taught at the college for 13 years, said: ‘I am really proud of our Year 11 students who have produced some outstanding pieces for this year’s exhibition.

‘I am delighted and privileged to have been part of their artistic journey and hope that they will continue to be creative.’

Edward added: ‘Mrs Brown really helped me to understand the structure of the projects and pushed me that extra mile to achieve everything I could – and I am very proud of my work.’