In preparation for the trip to Yorkshire, members of the Year 9 Athenaeum enjoyed an after-school lesson on the history and practice of Sculpture.
Led by Ms Duke, the students took on the challenge of sculpting pieces of putty whilst watching a presentation about the nature and development of sculpture. Given the task of sculpting adjectives such as “support” and “weave” the students enjoyed a practical and aesthetic challenge whilst considering the work of modern sculptors such as Barbara Hepworth and Henry Moore whose work they will be seeing in the Yorkshire Sculpture Park.
The discussion turned to the nature of conceptual art via the work of Marcel Duchamp and the links with other topics covered in the Athenaeum which have considered the extent to which meaning lies in the work or the mind of the observer. Mr Cavendish said a few words about how what the nature of art in general is, was challenged by the works of Samuel Beckett in drama and John Cage in music.
Finally the students attempted to represent themselves in the style of Barbara Hepworth. The session was excellent preparation for the forthcoming trip, and last year the visit to the Yorkshire Sculpture Park was one of the highlights of the visit.
