Young artists following their success at the eighth annual Bright Lights: Youth Arts Exhibition held at the Washington Arts Centre. The long‑running exhibition once again highlighted the exceptional creativity of local students, whose artwork received enthusiastic praise from visitors and invited guests.
Students from St Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy, part of Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust, are delighted to be part of this year’s exhibition. Each year, the exhibition offers young people the opportunity to have their work displayed in the venue’s main gallery. Submissions undergo a competitive selection and curation process led by the Celebrate Difference Collective, a group of 13–25‑year‑olds from across Sunderland who co‑produce cultural events with support from Sunderland Culture.
This year’s theme, “Connections,” inspired a diverse range of artistic responses, from traditional fine art to innovative photography. Students from St Anthony’s embraced the theme with originality and depth, resulting in a thoughtful and varied collection of pieces on display.
Dominic Campbell, Subject Leader for Art and Photography, said: “As you can see from the exhibition, our students’ work is a shining example of the talent and ability we see every day. It is fantastic to see students gaining recognition beyond the classroom, and we are exceptionally proud and privileged to be surrounded by such amazing creativity.”
Daniel Appleby, Learning and Engagement Assistant at the Washington Arts Centre, added: “Year on year, we are absolutely bowled over by St Anthony’s submissions to the Bright Lights: Youth Arts Exhibition, and this year is no different. The quality of the work is consistently high, and the students’ exploration of the theme is always original – these young artists have a very bright future.”
Students involved in the exhibition also reflected on the pride they felt seeing their work displayed publicly. Fern, Year 12, shared that she was “really proud to see her work on display, surrounded by other great pieces from across her community,” while Francesca, Year 12, said, “It gives a real sense of purpose to my work, beyond just my classwork.”
St Anthony’s extends its sincere thanks to everyone involved in this year’s exhibition and congratulates all students whose work was selected for display.
For more information about St Anthony’s Girls’ Catholic Academy on Thornhill Terrace, visit www.st-anthonys-academy.com
For more information about BCCET, visit www.bccet.org.uk
ENDS
Photo captions: Art works by Maiya Y12, Francesca Y12, Fern Y12, Francesca Y12, Elva Y12.
Press release issued by Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust. For more information, email [email protected]