Macleans College students awarded Pat Hanly Creativity Award
Posted on September 21, 2022
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki hosted the annual Pat Hanly Creativity Awards on Thursday 8 September by recognising 88 talented senior visual art students from 47 secondary schools and kura throughout the greater Tāmaki Makaurau region.
Award recipients from Macleans College were Lexi Carter (Hillary House), who is currently studying NCEA Level 3 Design, Painting and Textiles and Arabella Van Der Maas (Te Kanawa), who is studying Photography and Textiles.
Presented by the gallery for the last two decades, the Pat Hanly Creativity Awards have become an important milestone and accolade for some of Aotearoa’s most ambitious, young creative talent.
‘Through these awards, the aim is to empower the upcoming artists of Tāmaki Makaurau, giving them a life-long connection to the arts and an opportunity to continue creating’, said Auckland Art Gallery Director Kirsten Lacy. ‘The awards are an acknowledgement, too, of the critical role of schools, kaiako, whānau and parents in championing students with their mahi and encouraging them along artistic paths.’
Professor Mandy Smith, Auckland University of Technology Head of School Art & Design was impressed by the exceptional quality of the artwork nominated. ‘The high calibre of artwork seen this year was outstanding. The next generation of young artists are pushing the boundaries of creativity by responding to the issues of the modern world and exploring the possibilities of their work.’
‘Ākonga (students) applied a wide range of mediums, including technically accomplished paintings and other mixed media: video, sculpture and photography. A prominent overarching theme was COVID-19 and the resulting long lockdowns, from isolated figures to individuals in intimate interiors, elaborate imaginative worlds, as well as literal references to the pandemic with medical staff and equipment, and organic matter at cellular level’, said Smith.
