12 Issue 54 – October 2015 – QUEEN MARGARET CALLING
Thanks to parent, Aloysius Teh, students were lucky to take
part in workshops with Laith, a highly acclaimed artist who
regular exhibits around the world.
Laith’s work is autobiographical, often about himself and his
relationships.
“I always work with people I know – my pieces are about my
life,” he said.
After sharing his work with the girls, he went on to assist them
with creating their ownmasterpieces. At their first workshop students
were asked to bring along a picture to work from as a starting point.
The senior students paired up with the junior students and were
encouraged to ‘just draw’.
Year 13 student Niamh Brady thought Laith’s artistic style was
fascinating and different.
“His use of words in the background are personal which is
interesting to read. I like his pieces because there is great detail on
Australian Artist Laith McGregor visited
Queen Margaret College to inspire budding
artists in a unique workshop for both junior
and senior students.
Top Autobiographical Artist
the figures,” she comments.
As part of the workshops, the senior students were invited to
Laith’s exhibition at the Young Gallery, which certainly motivated
the girls.
“I was inspired by his works. I will use Laith as an artist model on
my NCEA Level 3 board,” Niamh says.
“I learnt from Laith that you sometimes have to draw from your
subconscious and not think about it too much.”
The commendation was particularly
special for the Year 7 student
because she was one of only six
students in New Zealand to win an award in
the junior section.
“I was shocked and happy to win a
certificate,” Hayley comments.
The budding author had to choose
between one of four topics based on the
theme of ‘A Young Commonwealth’.
Hayley decided to write about the
disadvantages and advantages of being
young.
”I chose this topic because I felt that
adults sometimes do not understand
children and I wanted to express what it
is like from a child’s perspective,” Hayley
explains.
She argues being young can be tough
when adults have low expectations of young
people.
“We understand more than they could
Hayley Marsh has won a Bronze Certificate in the Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition.
Writer Explores
Age Old Question
imagine and are more mature than they
think,” Hayley writes.
But she believes the youth of today are
very lucky, particularly in New Zealand,
“We have many doors in our life. We can
open any that we choose.”
In her essay, she makes a call to young
people to take responsibility for the planet,
particularly the environment.
“It is important for us to maintain our
environment for the next generation and for
young people to understand how important
it is.”
A keen writer in her spare time,
Hayley jumped at the chance to enter the
competition.
“To me writing is a different way of
expressing yourself, or showing and telling
the world about something,” she comments.
Hayley hopes to write a book in the
future but is focused on school for the time
being.
Hayley Marsh with Rena Day,
Head of Middle School
“It is important to learn when you are
young, because we are going to be leaders
one day and only education and courage can
prepare us for that,” Hayley writes.