Congratulations to Lakeside’s grade 6 student, Abigail H, on earning a commendation in the SOTA (School of the Arts Singapore) Primary 6 Art Competition. 650 students from over 140 primary schools in Singapore submitted their artwork and only 50 received commendations.

Tell us about your experience. What prompted you to sign up for this art competition?

I signed up because I have always been passionate about visual art and this competition was a great opportunity for me to express this passion. While working on my painting, I had lots of fun being creative and was able to use different art skills that I have learned over the last couple of years. It was a great experience!

Tell us about your painting. What was the theme and how did you express it?

I chose the theme of ‘spreading’ and expressed it in two ways. First, I painted the ‘light’ that illuminates the path and its surrounding area in the dark. Next, I used a palette knife to give the painting extra texture to emphasise how the light ‘spreads’ out to its surroundings.

Were there any challenges along the way?

I remember two challenges. One was finding a good way to express the theme of ‘spreading’. The other challenge was when I first finished the painting, I realised that the objects in the painting were not aligned properly so I decided to do it again even though the deadline was getting close. My hard work eventually paid off and I was very pleased with the final product.

Were there any memorable moments while creating your artwork?

I was very excited to visit the art shop to buy the art materials I would need to create this painting. I was also very happy when the bushes in my painting came out in the different shades that I wanted.

Who is your biggest artistic inspiration?

My mum is my greatest artistic inspiration. She studied shoe design and has worked for fashion companies. She taught me different visual art techniques and introduced me to a number of forms of visual art like fashion design. I’m also inspired by Leonardo Da Vinci. I am surprised to see how mysteriously beautiful his painting of Mona Lisa is. His paintings look old/traditional yet modern because Leonardo paid a lot of attention to the littlest details.

I understand that you had a chat with the Singapore Minister of Education. What was it like and what did you guys chat about?

I explained the story behind my painting. I told him the light in my painting is actually illuminating a path to a door leading to an unknown place. He commended me for my work and the principal of visual art at SOTA also said that my painting was really expressive.

Is there anyone you would like to thank?

I would like to thank my parents for their constant encouragement, especially my mum for being a wonderful artistic inspiration to me over the years.