Originally established in the 1950s, the award is aimed at encouraging all pupils to have a go at making something creative – whether they considered themselves to be “artistic” or not. As such, both the merit of individual entries and the total number of submissions from each House count towards the overall scores.
This year, a panel comprised of teachers and Old Brightonians kindly gave their time to judge over 600 entries from pupils across the senior school. One such judge was Philip Mitchell (Ha. 1960-65), who revived the award after a hiatus since the 1990s. We would like to thank Philip and all the OB judges: Phoebe Haines (Wi. 2004-06), Mel Williams (Fe. 1985-87), Jo Moloney (Fe. 2002-07) and Rachel Smith (Fe. 1988-90). Their time and expertise has meant that the award could become the success it is today.
This year pupils submitted artwork, ranging from poems to collages to original dance choreography, on the themes of either ‘Healing’ or ‘Windows of the mind’. The competition culminated in an art exhibition and awards ceremony, curated by Ms Le Brun, which took place in the School of Science and Sport and was an opportunity the judging panel and pupils’ families to see live performances of some of the winning entries. New House took the top spot and the coveted Leonardo Trophy will proudly reside in their common room for the coming year.
Do you have an interest in the arts or creative projects? If you might be interested in judging the Leonardo Competition 2024, let us know by emailing the OB office.
{gallery}Leonardo Competition 2023{/gallery}