This year, 2025, entries from Shiplake College, Henley College and the Piggott School, Wargrave, seven entries in all, were chosen by our Society, TASH, to be submitted to Head Office for possible inclusion.

A Level Art Awards:

SHIPLAKE COLLEGE:

POLLY HART

Title:  ‘You don’t know what you have lost until it is gone’.

I wanted to focus on what means the most to me in the world and that’s friendships. I was also always intrigued with the material of ink and how it could be used through an art piece. I initially had many ideas such as using a paintbrush but overall decided to use the quill with different tips with created different thicknesses of lines and patterns. My art interest overall started in year 10 when I started GCSE art and absolutely loved it. I admired that I was able to be creative as well experimenting with different materials which overall led me to the material of ink. I researched about the use of this and found out when and how it was used for. This inspired me to also follow on with the meaning of connections and history.

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  SOPHIE WOODERSON

Title: 'Venice in Two Lights'

Art Venice Doorways Statements:

For this project, I wanted to slow things down and take a closer look at the everyday buildings we often pass by without noticing. Inspired by my travels to places like Venice, Berlin and Japan, I focused on architectural details - mainly windows and façades - that tell quiet stories about the spaces we live in. Working in a monochrome palette helped me draw attention to texture and form, letting light and shadow take the lead.

I’ve explored different techniques, from fine liner drawings to layered paper cuts using light - both real and implied - to add depth and warmth. Artists like Nikita Busyak and Daphne Judith Lee have really shaped my process, especially in how I’ve played with glowing windows, reflections and shadow. My final pieces consist of white paper cuts which focus on two windows in Venice: one ornate and historic, the other simple and modern. These are further lit to showcase the movement from within the building which allows the image to come to life telling a story behind the overall final piece.

This project brings together my love of architecture, design and storytelling - translating everyday structures into something more thoughtful and tactile.

Venice Doorways size:

2x A2 Paper cuts with LED lighting 

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SOPHIE WOODERSON

Title: 'Infinite New York City'

Photography Tessellation statement:

This piece explores the concept of union through a tessellated composition inspired by the energy and diversity of New York City. Using interlocking triangles arranged into star formations, I merged images from various parts of the city to form a cohesive, layered structure. The mirrored repetition creates a sense of infinity and connection, inviting viewers to look closer and discover new details within each section. Despite technical challenges in aligning the folded forms, the final outcome presents a strong visual rhythm and depth. The work reflects how individual elements - like places and people - come together to form one unified whole.

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HENLEY COLLEGE:

SOPHIE BARNES

Title: 'Crowded Chaos' 

Description: This is an acrylic painting that uses vibrant colours and a busy composition to create an overwhelming atmosphere. Building negative associations with overpopulation and crowds, I took inspiration from Where's Wally and Kay Jackson and focused on generating contrast to magnify the emotions communicated through my painting.

About me: I am passionate about painting, particularly landscapes and portraits using acrylic paints. Colour and its impacts within artwork also interests me. Next year I hope to complete the Creative Arts Level 4 diploma at The Henley College. 

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KATIE GLEAVE

Title: “Our Plastic Ocean”

Yes, it is a textile made of recycled plastic with embroidery. I don’t have the piece at the moment as it is in Henley College, but it is about the size of a normal carrier bag Please see attached image for reference.

The piece is made of waste plastic, e.g. broken carrier bags, plastic netting and used plastic straws, which I melted together using an iron. I also added embroidery using recycled thread from my college sewing room. The slogan was added using screen print.

Throughout my life I have had a keen interest in the planet and a passion for protecting our environment. This has been fuelled by my travels around the world and studying Geography at GCSE and A level. It is important to me to highlight environmental issues and I wanted to use art as a way to raise awareness and make people think about the impact of their choices on the wider world. My piece is produced on a plastic bag to symbolise over consumption. These items are used so often that people do not even notice them, let alone consider their impact on the planet. All of the materials used to create this piece were destined for landfill and each little known fact was chosen to highlight the devastating impact of plastic on the ocean. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

PIGGOTT SCHOOL:

TILLY CROCKER

Title: 'Over Fished'

My name is Tilly Crocker and I chose to study A level English Language, Media Studies and Art at The Piggott School. I am hoping to take a year out to travel before attending Brighton University where I received an unconditional offer for fashion communications with business studies. 

I always had a necessity to work in colours and had an interest in marine life, bringing me to a starting point for a project on fish. It was a long and developing process to get where I ended up with my final piece, as I found myself learning a whole new painting technique called reverse painting. This is often done on glass but in my case perspex. This process involved getting used to a whole new surface while flipping the rules of painting I had done for so many years, where I was painting the highlights first and flipping my piece to see what I was doing and how the outcome was looking. This was all worth it as it gave a lovely finish with a fish tank like effect.

My paintings needed to pair with a background. This is where I started experimenting with pour painting and collaged newspapers. I used five different boards where the centre one represented a strong fish population and as they got further from the centre more newspapers were introduced containing articles on overfishing and the fish became more see-through, revealing the articles behind them.   

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BEATRICE FRASER

Title: 'Lady Stuffing Chicken with Tights'

Title: 'Waiting Room'

LAYLA THOMPSON

Title: 'Hidden Histories'

I visited Oxford in May of 2024 and I was inspired by the protestors occupying the Radcliffe Camera, to bring attention to the conflict in Palestine. I created this piece to reflect the recent social movements, surrounding racial injustices and the removals of statues that link to Britain's colonialist past. In recent years there have been several protests in Oxford in relation to the historic figure Cecil Rhodes, who had huge influence on the city and the university. The protesters created a movement called “Rhodes must fall” and they were calling for a removal of his statue above Oriel College. It was ultimately rejected by the council, due to the apparent need to preserve the heritage and history of the city.

My aim was to represent the divide between the colonialists and the colonised, the historical preservation and the protestors. To bring this to life, I created an inch of separation between the representation of the buildings on Perspex and the protestors close behind. The “cutout style” of the buildings in front of the protest, which was layered architectural structures and buildings, was inspired by the artist Minty Sainsbury. She is known for framing historical landmarks, by cutting out the surrounding area, to bring to the historic architecture the forefront. To create the contrast, I brought the protest in behind to show the recent outrage beginning to catch up to the years of oppression. It highlights how people like Rhodes earned their fortunes and how a British city still benefits from its unsavoury past. To add further impact, I introduced colour to give hope to a more diverse future, embracing the modern people of Oxford, and England from it’s colonial past.