Catholic Arts awards Angelico artists, transports exhibition to virtual world

03 Sep 2020

By Amanda Murthy

A clip from the virtual exhibition for the 2020 Angelico Exhibition was previewed at the awards ceremony for the primary and secondary Catholic schools on 25 August. Image: Supplied.

Primary and Secondary students of Catholic Schools in Western Australia were recently recognised for their outstanding creativity at a ceremony, marking the official opening of the 2020 Angelico Exhibition.

Present for the awards ceremony, which took place on 25 August at the Catholic Education Office in Leederville, were Catholic Education Western Australian (CEWA) Executive Director Dr Debra Sayce, Catholic Arts Chair Darryl Winsor, organisers, award recipients and their parents, judges, several teachers and sponsors – with the event taking place in two slots (primary and secondary) and only presenting for the first prize winners due to social distancing measures still in place due to COVID-19.

Catholic Education Western Australia Executive Director Dr Debra Sayce (left), posing with one of the winners of the 2020 Angelico Exhibition Secondary category Mercy College’s Chelsea Nguyen, and judge Assunta Melaca at the conclusion of the private awards presentation ceremony on 25 August at the Catholic Education Office in Leederville. Photo: Amanda Murthy.

With the cancellation of all physical events for the Angelico Exhibition, the Catholic Arts team changed their approach, resulting in an innovative three dimension (3D) virtual tour of the exhibition, which is available for schools to share with their communities.

This year, there were 166 primary entries from 26 participating schools and 150 entries received from 30 secondary schools.

During her speech for the secondary award presentation, Dr Sayce took the time to acknowledge the people who were responsible for bringing the annual event to life, despite the hurdles faced this year.

“I’m always in awe when I look at young people’s work including the art work we celebrate today, and I would like to acknowledge the incredible talent of the artists who are part of this exhibition, including all the talents, organisers, judges, teachers and families who have contributed in one way or another in the past 27 years.”

In his speech, Mr Winsor thanked all involved in the success of this year’s event, adding that he is proud that the organising team, still managed to find new and creative ways to connect with the community and display the exceptional talents involved for this year’s exhibition.

“While the restrictions that have been put in place for the protection of us all have presented a number of challenges throughout 2020, the staff and committees of the Catholic Arts have risen above these to find new ways for students to engage with all aspects of the Arts,” Mr Winsor explained.

“I am very proud of their efforts and hope that the innovations adopted for this year will both allow students to showcase their artistic talents and provide exciting opportunities for future years.

“The (3D Virtual Tour of the Angelico Art Exhibition), is the first of these that we hope will become a fixture to accompany the physical exhibition in subsequent years,” he concluded.

During the ceremony, Santa Maria College Year 11 student Taite O’Neill was announced as the St John of God Health Care secondary scholarship recipient and St Vincent’s Primary School Year 6 student Mia Kennedy received the primary scholarship.

For more information, go to: https://www.catholicarts.wa.edu.au

Winners of the 2020 Angelico Exhibition Secondary category, at the conclusion of the private awards presentation ceremony on 25 August at the Catholic Education Office in Leederville. Photo: Amanda Murthy.

The Winners for the Secondary Angelico Exhibition include:

  1. Caritas Australia Perpetual Trophy, single photograph – Athena Route, Mater Dei College with “The value of intangible memories.”
  2. Catholic Schools Parents Encouragement Award, single photograph – Isabelle Hughes, Chisholm Catholic College with ‘My sister a virus.’
  3. Phil Somers Sculpture Award, single photograph – Matthew Cox, Aquinas College with “Untitled.”

General Awards:

  1. Secondary group submission – Aquinas College, “Lockdown.”
  2. 3D Artwork (Years 7 to 10) – Leah Frisina, Holy Cross College, “Banksia.”
  3. 2D Artwork (Years 7 to 10) – Isabelle Cross, Corpus Christi College, “Rising Mind.”
  4. Drawing Artwork (Years 11 and 12) – Chelsea Nguyen, Mercy College, “Fish.”
  5. 3D Artwork (Years 11 and 12) – Beth Prendergast, Iona Presentation College, “Man up.”
  6. 2D Artwork (Years 11 and 12) – Siobhan Stevens, Corpus Christi College, “Seperation of self.”
  7. Secondary Fra Angelico Category – Bridgette Galipo, Santa Maria College, “Voices.”