Lawn Manor Academy pupils have been inspired by women across the world in a school-wide art competition.
Spurred on by last month’s International Women’s Day, where pupils at the Swindon academy were given special assemblies around women’s rights and achieving your dreams by PE teacher Ms Ayling and maths teacher Ms Cruickshank, the school asked pupils to create artwork around the women they find inspirational and who have changed the course of the world.
Aspiring artists from Year 7 to Year 10 pupils submitted masterpieces for the competition, with the overall winner announced as Year 9 pupil Ayesha who drew Benazir Bhutto, the first female prime minister of Pakistan.
Ayesha explained, “I drew her as, although she was a divisive figure who was accused of being corrupt many times, she was an inspiration to girls all across the Asian and Muslim world who could never have dreamed of being able to achieve such a high position as she did.”
In second place was Year 10 pupil Keona who was inspired by Marie Curie. Detailing why she chose Marie Curie she said, “She inspires me because of how hard working and resilient she was in her lifetime. She was a Polish woman who conducted pioneering research on radioactivity. She was the first woman to win a Nobel prize and the only person to win a Nobel Prize in two scientific fields. To top all of that she made a huge contribution to finding treatments for cancer.”
Head of Art at Lawn Manor Academy, Caireen Young, explained, “This competition was more than just about art, but about inspiring our pupils to step back and take a look at the women in their lives who have made a difference on a local, national and international level.
“By hearing from their teachers about how they were supported to reach their goals in life, sometimes against the odds, as well as seeing the contributions of leading female scientists, politicians and other professionals, we hope to show them that they can achieve anything they set their minds to.”
Lawn Manor Academy is part of the Ascend Learning Trust. For more information visit www.lawnmanor.org.