Gardener Schools Group hosts Cezanne art exhibition

“Painting from nature is not copying the object; it is realizing one's sensations.” - Paul Cezanne

Pupils across Gardener Schools Group four schools came together to celebrate the 19th century post-impressionist painter Paul Cezanne by hosting an exhibition of their own artwork.

Maida Vale School’s theatre was transformed into an art gallery to welcome over 200 invited guests, its beautiful light and airy spaces the perfect setting for a stunning exhibition of ambitious artwork, from large still lifes suspended from the ceiling to animations playing on iPads.

The exhibition was the culmination of an imaginative cross school collaboration which gave hundreds of our pupils the opportunity to visit the Cezanne Exhibition at Tate Modern to study the work of Paul Cezanne, particularly his still life paintings. In art lessons back in school, pupils learned about Cezanne’s influences and studied his composition, colour palette and painting technique before creating their own still life projects.

“We really enjoyed that our own interpretations were portrayed in the painting and we enjoyed the bonding experience. We shared ideas between us and our class really got to know each other, feeling comfortable to make mistakes and happy accidents. We are all really proud of our efforts.” - Alexa, Alice, Kira & Marielena, Year 9 pupils at Kew House School.

“I was given an empty canvas and I set up a still life arrangement. My task was to create a painting sharing the inspiration I gathered from Cezanne’s work. I based the canvas with a hue of blue to then mark the outline of the object in a contrasting colour. Then little by little blocking in the colours and adding more and more detail.” - Nancy, Year 7 pupil at Maida Vale School.

"First I painted the background different shades of green, then sketched and outlined with navy blue paint. The last step was painting all the objects. I was trying to make it look as Cezanne like as possible so I used different tones instead of a solid colour. I haven’t painted like this before and it was quite hard doing the details, but I enjoyed the challenge.” - Tasia, Year 5 pupil at Kew Green Preparatory School.

“This piece shows how global warming is affecting our animals hugely and increasing the chances of wild animals going extinct. The bottles represent the ice caps and how it is limiting the polar bears from hunting for food. I wanted to paint this because the climate is changing, and not in a good way. Hopefully this painting will make people think.” - Shani, Year 6 pupil at Ravenscourt Park Preparatory School.

We were delighted to invite Anna Liber Lewis, winner of both the Griffin Arts Prize and Young Contemporary Talent Prize, to view our pupils’ artwork and give a speech encouraging them to keep progressing with their talents.

Maria Gardener, Founder of Gardener Schools Group, said: “The event this evening emerged from a visit to the Tate, which created an idea that every school take on their own project inspired by Cezanne. And they did. Pupils were so engrossed in their art sessions, going to visit the artwork in progress was something special. The pupils went back to basics, no telephones, computers or electronic devices. It’s been an exhilarating journey for all our schools to get here today, and I hope this is the start of something special for the pupils. This is truly what education is all about.”

Like our senior schools’ hugely successful Shakespeare Festival earlier this term, the exhibition showcased the values of creativity and collaboration which are at the heart of education in the Gardener Schools Group.