Ahead of the 2022 Big Draw Festival, Miss Cagnino and our two Art Reps Saira and Georgia led assembly this week all about Art.

Miss Cagnino spoke about the impact of art in the world, from architecture to science to advertising. She also spoke about the importance of drawing and sketchbooking – how drawing is our first means of communicating, before we even talk or write.

Most importantly we need to remember that the point of art is to bring joy, and we can do this through drawing or sketchbooking. Sharing examples of her own sketches from a school trip to Cambodia, as well as sketchbooks from Frida Kahlo and Turner, Miss Cagnino encouraged students to think about doing their own sketchbooking. She showed how to think of sketchbooking as journalling, citing examples of Anne Frank’s diary and Courtney Love’s lyrics and poems, suggesting that students collect things that are personal to them to stick in their own NHEHS journals at half term, to create lovely memories of a particular time in their lives.

Next Thursday will see art bringing joy to all our lives at school, with the 2022 Big Draw Festival!

The Big Draw Festival #ComeBackToColour is a love letter to each other and the world around us. The theme encapsulates what we all hope will be a rediscovery of the vitality, health, care and vibrancy in everyone’s lives after what has been a challenging last few years. The organisers believe that this year is a great year to bring our communities back together to capture, celebrate and find joy in the colours that surround us in nature, in our family culture and heritage, through experimentation and more!

There are three main activities planned.

1. Shadow drawings inspired by Olafur Eliasson
2. Mini abstract sculptures inspired by Alexander Calder
3. A spectrum installation – coloured objects inspired by Tony Craggs

We are also looking forward to inviting our Junior School students over to Senior School to take part too! We will be sharing the final results on our social media on Instagram and Twitter.