Final touches: Jaze Anderson, a pupil at East End Primary School, on the home stretch of the school’s project at the mural contest (Photograph by Akil Simmons)
A kaleidoscope of colour inspired by pop art went on display at a competition in Hamilton yesterday as students explored their talents with a chance to win a $5,000 cash prize for their school.
The Green family partnered with the Bermuda National Gallery to host the competition at 69 Pitts Bay Road, the site of the former Belvedere Building.
Its underground parking lot, which is being prepared to house Luscar Place, was buzzing with activity as students from 17 schools worked with the help of art teachers.
The completed murals will be displayed on the outskirts of the construction site at Luscar Place throughout the duration of the project.
The primary, upper primary and middle school students were asked to paint scenes representing Bermuda in the iconic style of the American visual artist Andy Warhol.
Mixing the colours: students make final decisions on the colours to add to their painting at the event (Photograph by Akil Simmons)
Alexander Green said: “Similar to past development projects, we wanted to involve young people looking to explore their artistic talents.”
He said registered participation in the mural competition surpassed his family’s expectations, with increased interest from an inaugural event at Waterloo House in 2010 and at Point House in 2019.
He added: “It is heart-warming to know that so many students will come together to express themselves freely through art and teamwork. We look forward to seeing their designs on a large scale.
“The artwork will be a welcome pop of colour on Pitts Bay Road.”
Jennifer Phillips, the executive director of the BNG, said: “The Bermuda National Gallery was pleased to partner once again with the Green family and Bermuda’s schools.
“Today’s increase in school participation demonstrates our young people’s desire to be creative, and it highlights the importance of providing them with platforms to express themselves.
“Through this collaboration, we continue to nurture the next generation of artists, encouraging innovation, critical thinking and a deeper appreciation for the arts within our community.”
Ms Phillips told The Royal Gazette that she was impressed by the response from schools, with the number almost double the response to the Point House project, which was run by the BNG.
She added: “Andy Warhol’s name is synonymous with the pop art movement, so we’re seeing a lot of repetitions of the same image but in different colours — but everything with a Bermuda twist.
“All the schools have been really creative and we’re really impressed with what we’re seeing so far.”
Attention to detail: students of the Bermuda Institute pay keen attention as art teacher Richard Sutton offers advice for their project depicting the image of the late Johnny Barnes (Photograph by Akil Simmons)
Richard Sutton, an art teacher at the Bermuda Institute, said his students decided to depict portraits of the late well-wisher Johnny Barnes.
He said: “We decided to focus on Johnny Barnes because of the message he was bringing forward.”
He said his team of five students also brought flavour to the mural by adding Barritt’s root beer, which he noted “is very Bermudian”.
It’s falling into place: a student looks on as her colleague brings his sketches to life (Photograph by Akil Simmons)
Shiquita Carr, an art teacher at Elliot Primary, said her students chose to depict the motorcycle, synonymous with transport on the island.
The flag of Bermuda was embedded into the painting.
She said: “This is helping the students to connect to their Bermudian culture by giving them a chance to explore their artistic talents.
“They had fun thinking about it and by coming up with ideas of how to create a piece based on the ideas.”
She said P4, P5 and P6 students took part.
Nicole Ratteray, an art teacher at Somersfield Academy, said P5, P6 and M1 students brainstormed several ideas for their project.
She said the students studied Warhol’s work and, along with art teacher Louise Tannock, she examined several sketches that the students submitted.
She added: “We pulled it together and tried to stick to the theme, and so we thought of Bermuda kites as truly Bermudian, with the ‘hummers’, of course.
“It is something that is unique to Bermuda and some of the colours are a bit different on the painting, but it’s OK because that’s all part of the art process.”
Each participating school will receive a cheque for $1,000.
Once the winning design is announced, the student team with the top design will receive $5,000 for their school.
The second and third-place murals will receive $3,000 and $2,000 respectively.
Judging for the event will take place today.
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