The Art of Tomorrow

Lusungu Mufune
On Tuesday, 31st May 2017, St Paul's College held their annual Art exhibition for all. The atmosphere was calm, friendly and warm despite the cold weather. All the art lovers came to experience the wonderful evening. One of them was a special guest, Mrs Su Naude, who was a former Art teacher at the College. The art exhibition started off with beautiful and inspiring speeches from the Principal, Mrs Gudde, Mrs Mendelsohn, Mrs Su Naude and Ms Hentze. The atmosphere gave a feeling of belonging and creativity as well as support. Parents and visitors alike were treated to some refreshments and food while admiring the students' art exhibition.
"I think Art is a very important subject. It teaches you a great deal of discipline and it teaches you time management. Beyond that, the discipline also comes from learning the skills." Mrs Mendelsohn, Art teacher for grades 8-12 said. "It's lovely because you can see yourself improve. If you have some paintings you've done at the beginning of the year and some at the end of the year, there's a big difference. There is the creativity which is something else; it makes your mind feel as if there are fireworks going off."
When asked why St Paul's has an art exhibition every year Mrs Mendelsohn stated that, "only at this time do we see what everybody does all at once. Otherwise you see one little piece at a time, which doesn't have an impact." She added, "It's just a wonderful celebration that makes people proud of what they've done because while you struggled, felt unsure of yourself and felt you didn't do a good job, it is still beautiful. Even when you only got a 60, it is still fantastic!"

Parents, teachers, students and visitors came to join in the experience of art. The art exhibition displayed many paintings, sculptures and drawings from all students in all grades. A parent and member of the community commented that the exhibition was so diverse in terms of the topics as well as the various grades. “They are all so very beautiful and set in different perspectives".
When asked if they enjoyed the art exhibition, Florence Wilkinson, a grade 9 pupil answered "Yes, there are a lot of talented people. It looks really realistic and makes me we want to be that good in the future."
When asking Ruben Stein, a grade 11 art student what his thoughts were on Art, he commented, "I think of art as a way to express oneself that is not just bound to a language, but universal because everyone can understand art."
The art exhibition not only displayed the art of many talented students, but the capability and promise of younger students' art which inspired many spectators to either continue with Art as a subject or to pursue it as a spectator.