ACS Egham Diploma Art Students Explore the Tate

On Wednesday November 23^rd 2011 a group of art students from ACS Egham International School visited the Tate Britain Art Gallery in London. The students were all from the grade 11 and grade 12 IBDP art classes, and here is some of their feedback after visiting the gallery

"I really liked JMW Turner's and John Martin's paintings because I found their landscapes detailed and beautifully realistic…I enjoyed being able to roam around the museum at my own pace. I also like the atmosphere of the museum and how everyone was quietly observing different pieces." (Michaela)

"The thick and loose brushwork technique of Gerhard Richter and Walter Sickert might influence some of my art-making…I learned more about different styles of painting (for example Turner's watercolour washes and Richter's heavy strokes. It was a great learning experience and I enjoyed looking at the variety of styles, ideas and messages in one gallery." (Franzi)

"I visited the temporary exhibition of John Martin's 'Apocalypse' and I really enjoyed seeing the way colours were contrasted (like blue and red)." (Anna)

"I learned more about early British artists, and what influenced them (like religion, culture etc), and I enjoyed seeing different forma of art that were all British, and seeing how British art has developed. I liked the variety of works - and the John Martin exhibition was very impressive." (Karolien)

"The artist Turner interested me, because I found his changing style throughout his life to be very interesting - he became more abstract as time went on. Also I found Freud's artworks to be very interesting…A piece called 'Merry-go-round' interested me most, because, based on the time period when it was created, its is a good example of demonstrating the historical atmosphere of the time of the 1^st World War, on the home front." (Riina)

"The film by Ed Akins ('Tumour') surprised me. I was completely shocked by its violence. Nothing in actuality was gory or physically violent, yet as an onlooker I felt attacked…I might try to do a film piece in the future. 'Tumour' has really stayed with me and I want to make a piece with the same impact.

I've learned to better form an opinion on the art of the world, which is very important for the type of analysis we do in class. What I enjoyed most was going out and seeing art. I've been so confined and focused on Google image reproductions that it was quite refreshing to see actual paint on canvas." (Abby)

"I really liked the painting of Ophelia, because it was so big and beautifully detailed, and I really liked the sculptures (even though they were very strange) - and I think that I might want to try making a sculpture in the next two years to add diversity to my final exhibition…I enjoyed seeing paintings from many different time periods and it was also neat that there was a mixture of videos and sculptures as well as they paintings." (Laila)