27 August 2024
Bendigo’s Town Hall is set to become a vibrant “garden of art” this spring as it hosts the Art Exhibition from 13 to 15 September.
This year’s exhibition, titled ‘BLOOM’, marks the first time the annual event will be held outside the school, with the historic Town Hall providing the perfect backdrop for this free community celebration.
Girton’s Head of Visual Art, Mrs Nic James – who has curated the exhibition for 27 years – said the event will feature an impressive array of artworks for the public to enjoy.
Attendees can look forward to seeing everything from paintings, collages, sculptures and ceramics through to films and a spectacular mural created by the school’s senior students in collaboration with Archibald Prize finalist Daniel Butterworth.
“It feels as though we are growing our very own garden of art here at Girton in preparation for the exhibition,” Mrs James said.
“Through the lens of botanical beauty, our students have been encouraged to think critically, analyse visual information and communicate their ideas while exploring the patterns and vibrant diversity found in flowers and plants.”
The exhibition will showcase work from the school’s VCE students right down to its youngest artists in Prep, who have been busy creating pastel flowers that demonstrate their knowledge of warm and cool tones.
While Prep student Tex Lee admitted he prefers footy over flowers, he agreed they were the perfect theme for the Art Show “because they are so beautiful”.
His classmate Juri Kim is excited to explore a topic that reminds her of special moments at home with her dad tending to their fruit trees, while Davin Hashemi is already feeling “like a famous artist” knowing that his work will be professionally framed and displayed in the Town Hall.
Mrs James said that hosting the exhibition in such a prominent public space will offer students a valuable opportunity to see their work presented in the same way as a professional artist would.
“It’s a lot of hard work, but seeing the excitement of students, parents and grandparents each year makes it well worth the effort, and the talent on display is truly extraordinary,” she said.
In addition to the visual art on show, those attending the Art Exhibition on the morning of Saturday 14 September will be entertained with musical performances by Junior and Senior School students in the Bendigo Library Gardens.
Attendees will also have the chance to enter a raffle, with all proceeds going to the Running Water Project to help deliver vital water infrastructure to schools in Cambodia.
EVENT DETAILS
When: Friday 13 Sept from 9am–4pm; Saturday 14 Sept from 9am–2pm (instrumental performances from 9–11am); Sunday 15 September from 9am–12pm
Where: Bendigo Town Hall, 189–193 Hargreaves Street, Bendigo
