Local work from HSC students showcased at the Art Gallery of NSW

By PATRICK MCKENZIE

The Art Gallery of NSW is showcasing a number of works from local students in its annual Art Express exhibition this year.

43 bodies of work, six of which were from schools in the city, inner west and eastern suburbs, were selected from 8440 student works submitted for the 2021 HSC.

‘Fleas on the Blue and Silver Paddocks’ by Scout Dures from the Newtown High School of the Performing Arts uses clay to depict the beauty of the Australian coasts. Inspired by the artist’s childhood, clay making techniques including wheel throwing, coil building and slip casting were used to create a diverse range of pieces.

Jet Marsh-Cashman’s (Waverley College) work, ‘Missed Calls’ pairs expressionist graphics with audio messages accessed through scanning QR codes to explore the range of emotions associated with missed phone calls.

“The 2021 Visual Arts students had a disrupted HSC, with many students completing their artworks from home in lockdown. Despite the many obstacles of finishing school in a pandemic, these students have produced the most exceptional bodies of work,” Art Gallery of NSW Director Dr Michael Brand said.

Alex Janoyan from St Andrew’s Cathedral School experimented with gradients and watercolour in ‘Wicked Anxiety/Servant of Culture’ to create a surreal aesthetic reminiscent of the occasionally mundane yet often challenging and overwhelming nature of adolescence.

Art Express 2022 curator Louise Halpin praised the young artists’ ability to creatively interpret the times in which we live.

“I would like to acknowledge every student selected for ARTEXPRESS 2022 for their elegant and highly resolved bodies of work, which demonstrate creativity, resilience and sustained investigation of the complex world in which they completed Year 12,” she said.

Art Express is running for free at the Art Gallery of NSW until April 25.