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Alfie Williams
Upper Sixth
South Town

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House Art 2008 Review

The Prichard Room is, with this collection of work displayed, looking unquestionably more sensational than I have ever seen it. This is a welcome change from the drab rows of desks and blank walls many of us have spent hours in the company of, in either exams or detention. The room is colourful and inviting – even the walls are plastered with drawings and portraits! The display of art is diverse and multifarious and it is with delight that I begin to examine it.

The first thing that strikes me is the Hallwards display. It is intense and kaleidoscopic, with a large array of sculptures and paintings on show. The fanciful and decorative cakes are an innovative addition to the exhibition and this houses’ stand is an impressive one. In particular, the odd and slightly scary masks by Damaris Dresser are notable and her painting on a similar theme is also great. There is an atmospheric painting of the quad, which, although perhaps an overused location for a painting is nevertheless effective and relevant considering this is the Clifton College House Art exhibition. Lizzie Harper’s painting of skulls is also very biting and acute.

North Town’s display is just as impressive. Olly McAndrew’s paintings are well-crafted reflections of every day life. They depict conventional circumstances such as sitting in a car with your father and, with a slightly cartoon-like twist, manage to make this seem incredibly interesting and dramatic. This is a strange experience. James Lewis paints in a very different style – dynamic and visually overpowering paintings with elements of psychadelia, his paradigm-breaking representations are exciting and unique. One of his paintings even includes a picture of the horse from the cover of progressive metal band Mastodon’s 2002 album ‘Remission’, earning him infinite respect. This is my favourite painting in the exhibition.

School House is more focused on ordinary situations. Giles Nuttall, having recently moved from South Town makes his debut as a School House artist with some impressive observations of various scenes, many from around the College. His solitary, melancholic figures are well painted and are pleasing on the eye. Also notable was the assortment of photography from Alessandro Polledri. This display was impressive aesthetically but perhaps lacked the divergence of the other houses.

Worcester’s shrine is absolutely phenomenal if obviously from a girl’s house. Tansy Duncan’s detailed and accurate painting of people hugging goodbye is effective and captures the raw emotion involved in the circumstance. More great and congenial paintings are on display courtesy of Verena Koelln, whose glamorous and elegant delineation of girls getting ready for a formal event in a room with a piano, really capture the essence of privileged life. Lucy Telling’s drawing of a couple kissing under an umbrella on the quad is romantic and colourful. Natasha Cheung’s contributions are also first-class. The girls of Worcester were deserved winners of the prize for the best exhibition.

South Town present a wide variety of art with Miles Wragg at the forefront of this house’s display with an excellent drawing of a robot with a violin. His unique drawing style is evident in this and a different side to him is brought out in the drawing of the Cathedral at College Green. Matt Dixon’s paintings of masked and suited men seem to have some possibly metaphorical edge, but if not are at least pleasant to look at. Ben Pyrke’s painting of a person washing up is a welcome insight into his take on everyday life, and Theo Harding’s collection of work is exciting and incendiary. An all round good display from South Town.

Watson’s House also demonstrates an all-embracing assortment of work with an obvious artistic flourish. Great photography in black and white is on show and contrasts magnificently when adjacent to the pop-art of Michael Foxall-Smith. This is exciting and colourful and is reminiscent of Lichenstein in places. To continue with the theme of masks in this exhibition, more are on display here, and are a real spectacle. Toby Marshman’s realistic impression of the Clifton Suspension Bridge is impressive and flawless, as is the work of Marco Li. This was a varied collection that even included pictures of graffiti.

Some quite impressionist undertones are evident in the West Town display, particularly in the work of Rose Nisbet, whose alternative and quirky spin on what would otherwise be an ordinary photo of two schoolchildren made this stand particularly outstanding. Her depictions of nature in the butterfly painting were also very different and absorbing. Charlotte Greenslade’s photography is radiant and pleasing, as is her dog mask. The theme of masks in this exhibition really adds to the sense of occasion and the room as a whole is a real spectacle.

Johnny Chan steals the show in terms of the Wiseman’s manifestation. His great still life which is of the same robot that Miles Wragg drew is a very different take and at an alternate angle this piece really comes to life. His etching of the Chapel is, for lack of a better word, perfect, and his experience of art is evident. Arsen Sikalov’s photo project which contains images of pretty much all of Wiseman’s House is, regardless of the low printing quality, a sweet sentiment which adds a sense of house pride and unity to the event which is not so evident anywhere else.

Charlotte Bowden’s detailed drawing of cogs is the first thing which captures my eye for Oakeley’s and its accuracy and precision makes it look more like a factory machine than a piece of card on a display. This is a real feat. Lauren Tang’s drawing of the quad with the Chapel in the background shows great use of sunset colours and has melancholic undertones of solitude and reflection. Sophie Quaile also makes a great contribution to this house’s art with a fanciful, labyrinth style painting and a great drawing of a PRS Santana SE, which is an aesthetically beautiful guitar even if it is not so great to play.

East Town, who won the House Art trophy this year, reveal a vast array of craftsmanship and imagination. Charlie Franklin and Ed Musgrove both present magnificently large and well crafted sculptures which stress the work that went into this competition. Mark Archer’s insightful and poignant painting of a beautiful seaside landscape devastated by industrialization – an abandoned shopping trolley and bicycle lay at the forefront of the sea in what is otherwise a classically admirable image. Milo Whitfield, a third former, steals the show for his house with his army of exceptionally crafted rabbits. These sculptures were truly a sight to behold and it is not surprising that this clinched the title for East Town.

This being my first House Art exhibition, I was thoroughly taken aback by the quality of some of the work, and it is a grand shame that I have only discovered the talents of my peers in this, my final year at Clifton. The list of prize winners is as follows:

3rd Form:
Drawing: Francesca Ffiske (WoH)
Painting: Tom Lloyd-Hughes (WiH)
Sculpture: Milo Whitfield (ET)
No photography prize.

4th Form:
Drawing: James Heaven (ET)
Painting: Katie McInally (HH)
Sculpture: Philippa Davies (WT)
Photography: Arsen Sikalov (WiH)

5th Form:
Drawing: Jane Wang (OH)
Painting: Frankie Tromans (WT)
Sculpture: Hester Allen (HH)
Photography: Alessandra Polledri (SH)

Lower 6:
Drawing: Coty Mo (WoH)
Painting: Matthew Dixon (ST)
Sculpture: Amanda Tong (OH)
Photography: Damaris Dresser (HH)

Upper 6:
Drawing: Tansy Duncan (WoH)
Painting: James Lewis (NT)
Sculpture: Ed Musgrove (ET)
Photography: David Terry (ET)

Best Rep: Lizzie Harper (HH)
Best overall display: Worcester House
House Art Trophy: East Town

17 November 2008

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