Shortlisted for Top Arts 2023
Congratulations to Visual Arts Captain, Jevons W (Year 12) along with Priya G (Year 12) and Lizzy M (Year 11) who have all been shortlisted for Top Arts 2023! Their success reflects the creativity, innovation and talent of Mentone Grammar’s VCE Art and VCE Studio Arts students in what has been an extraordinary year.
The annual Top Arts Exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria presents exceptional and thought-provoking work of students undertaking their VCE. Drawn from a range of media, topics, schools and students, Top Arts is part of the Victorian Curriculum Assessment Authority’s annual VCE Season of Excellence.
Jevons, Priya and Lizzy discuss their incredible work below:
1. Jevons W
‘Memorise & Legacise’
152 x 104cm
Colour pencil & gold leaf on paper
“As the seven figures entwine together, the human experience is illuminated in the form of our reactions to grief. Meticulously blended using colour pencils, the decorative blue pattern glazes across the piece, acknowledging a historical significance in the form of Chinese porcelain, pondering the influence of one’s personal heritage when experiencing inter-generational loss. Finished with gold leaf, the kintsugi-inspired cracks grant a newly found novelty for supposed ‘shattered’ sufferings.”
2. Jevons W
‘Where Your Faith Lies’
Dimensions variable
Plywood, Polymethyl Methacrylate acrylic sheets, acrylic paint, aerosol paint, synthetic polymer clay, air-dry clay, paper mâché clay, wooden dowel, paper.
“Where Your Faith Lies is an ode to belief. As the lotus figure emerges from the water, I aimed to portray the natural and spiritual energy which imbues the notions of rebirth. Using various technological methods and materials, the polymer clays and laser cut processes juxtapose against their natural counterparts; of hand-cut paper and wooden dowel. Their opposing origins morph into visual harmony, united by simple monochromatic blues and gold accents. Depicted through the growing stages of the lotus, this symbol for rebirth depicts a simultaneously natural yet mystical metamorphosis.”
3. Priya G
‘Indigo Child’
841 x 1188mm, Mobile 235 x 32cm
Inkjet print on satin paper, glass vials, plastic petri dishes, acrylic paint, watercolour paint, polymer clay, fishing wire, wooden frame, wooden beads, pipette, 4mm rope.
“Indigo Child is the reimagining and celebration of my creation as an IVF Baby, being artificially conceived and stored in a freezer as an embryo for two years.”
4. Lizzie Muller
‘You look mature for your age’
Dimensions variable
Expanding foam, aerosol paint, acrylic paint, polyvinyl chloride, sculpey, recycled shoe and clothing hanger.
“Captures the purity and innocence of a child and their blindness to their surroundings of the engulfing, parasitic atmosphere of forced premature sexuality and maturity at the hand of the media.”
