Another first for the Art Department was the running of a double Third Form independent show within The White Gallery. Firstly there was the annual exhibition showcasing the Headmaster’s Independent Project, the theme being ‘Memory and Conflict’. That lead superbly well into pupils from the Third Form being involved with producing an individual piece of artwork inspired by a piece of poetry from the First World War. Pupils had free reign with the choice of poem they selected, the words that inspired them, the design of the artwork, and the techniques and materials they employed to create their work. Finished pieces were displayed alongside pieces by professional artists and printmakers from the Gloucestershire Printmaking Co-operative, (GPC), who were welcomed back for their second exhibition. The GPC judged the work by Phoebe Janes (3rd, W) as the most outstanding and creative, winning her a weekend at one of their Printmaking Workshops. During the ‘Meet the Artists’ evening, music from the First World War was played, pupils talked about their work and read stanzas from their selected poems, Mr Tim Brewis, Head of English, read poetry from his personal experience in the army, and Mr Michael Henry (1956‑1960, Thirlestaine), read extracts from his most recent book. It was a wonderful way to commemorate the centenary of the War and reflect on the enormous sacrifices made by those who played any part in it. During the year, the Rotunda library was used as a collaborative learning centre (our very own CLC!), where pupils can discuss their work and ask and give advice to their peers. It is proving to be very successful in developing confidence when sharing, discussing and developing ideas. Space has been created to extend the library, especially for Lower College to access; the Ceramics area has had a facelift; and, now all four pottery wheels are in action, we hope to see our pupils expanding their skills in throwing clay! A new printmaking facility has been built within one of the studios, with an upgrade on the cards for our old faithful printmaking press, ready in September for our new temporary Artist-in-Residence, Linn O’Carroll, to teach our Sixth Form students more diverse printing techniques, as well as working on a project called ‘Curious Finds for Curious Minds’. Throughout the year, we continued to replace and upgrade the washing facilities and build new storage spaces and larger workspaces for our pupils, so that they can increase the size and scale of their work.
in both his coursework and exam units, and to Nicole Vanner (Q), Solène Tsitos (Ch) and Philippa Froud (W) who were all awarded the illusive A*, having to gain over 97% to achieve that result. Of the nine in our Lower Sixth, seven gained an A or B grade. Olympia Olympitis (Ch), Rosie Cooper (W), Liza Klepikova (Ch) and Francesca Ball (Ch) all gained an A grade, with Fran achieving 100% for her thought-provoking exam unit based on the trials of the Suffragette movement. She was also awarded a Headmaster’s Commendation and the first internal Art Department prize for an outstanding piece of independent work. At GCSE, there was 100% pass rate at A*‑C, with just under half of the pupils gaining an A* or A grade. Congratulations to Katherine Stanton (A) who gained 100% in both her coursework and exam unit, and to Anne Lyubareva (Ch), AnneMarie Bowring (Q), Jana Bourhill (Q), Rosie Pratt (A), Annabella Kohler (Ch), Mimi Haycraft Mee (Q) and Georgia Taylor (Ch) who all received an A*.
Miss Juliet Wallace-Mason
Classics It was a supremely busy year! There was the arrival of Dr Duncan McCombie and Mrs Tammy Penny in full and part-time roles, the expansion of AS Classical Civilization as an option subject, and the introduction of Mr Nick Nelson as a teacher of Classical Civilization. High points included Elizabeth Caffrey (U6, W) securing a place to read Classics and French at Oxford University, Ludo Millar (L6, BH) winning his category in the Gloucestershire Classical Reading Competition, and Christopher Bowring (U6, S) winning the prestigious Galahad Cup for Academic Excellence – the second year in a row that a Greek student has secured that honour. The Classics Society went from strength to strength, with almost fifty pupils at our
March meeting; in April, the arrival of the Society tie generated Bacchanal levels of excitement amongst our premier Classicists. At the top end, our Sixth Form produced another impressive set of results. Constance Tombleson’s (U6, Ch) A* grades in both Latin and Greek A2 have set new record scores for College, with her high of 397/400 in Latin throwing down a daunting gauntlet for future Classicists. Strong A grades from Chris Bowring in Greek, and from Libby Caffrey, Ernest Hil (U6, L), Doug McEvoy (U6, S) and Jack Westlake (U6, S) in Latin, brought the Department’s tally to seven A* and twelve A grades out of twenty entries in recent years. The Lower Sixth look set to keep up the trend, as they beat last year’s average in securing six A and two B grades. Special mention must go to Xavier Houben (L6, L) and Ludo, who scored over 95% in Latin, and to Alex Hall (L6, L), who not only beat this landmark in both Latin and Greek, but also became the first Cheltonian to score full marks on both of his language papers. The Fifth Form also produced some fine performances. In Latin and Greek, the Department maintained its average of 80% A*‑A for the fourth year running, with twelve A*, 15 A grades and six B grades. Genevieve James (Q) and Isabelle Winstanley (Q) joined the double A* club in Latin and Greek, with Izzi’s 396/400 equalling the school record; Katherine Stanton (A) and Anne-Marie Bowring (Q) also beat the 95% barrier. In Classical Civilization, Dmitrii Usynin (NH), Alex Grutter (Xt) and Neil Hacker (H) joined College’s top ten all-time scorers, and we look forward to seeing how our eight Lower Sixth students take to the challenges of the new AS course. Beyond the exam hall, June in Provence proved as inviting as ever to our Third Form Latinists who took in two theatres, a triumphal arch, two amphitheatres and the world famous Pont du Gard – as well as finding time to interview the locals in a market, sample the regional cuisine, and paddle in the sunshine in Nice. I am sure that they will all join in my huge thank you to Miss Elizabeth Rawkins for organizing and leading the trip, and to Dr Duncan McCombie
ACADEMIC & CO-CURRICULAR
be applied equally to STEM or Art/Design.
Finally, the Art Department would like to celebrate with our talented students on some outstanding performances again. Congratulations to our talented Upper Sixth, some of whom will continue their Art education over the coming years: Nicole Vanner (Q), secured a place directly onto the Graphic and Communication Design degree course at the University of Leeds; Angel Ruen (A), accepted a place at Leeds to study Fashion Design; Rebecca Reynolds (W) accepted a place at the University of Creative Arts to study for a degree in Fashion Design; and Tom Pennick (L) secured a place on the City & Guilds foundation course. Of our nine Upper Sixth students, six achieved an outstanding A* or A grade. Special mention goes to Chai Tephabutra (BH), who gained a rare 100%
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