Seychellois students excel in Unesco regional art competition |05 May 2015

Angela Hoareau and Lisette Roseline, both aged 18, are the first prize winner and runner-up respectively of an art competition organised by the Unesco under the theme ‘Living Together with the Ocean’.

Unesco organised the competition through the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Sub-Commission for Africa and Adjacent Island States (IOCAfrica) to mark the 2014 World Ocean Day and Africa Day of Seas and Oceans.

The ocean related art-competition provided children and youth of all ages the opportunity to express themselves artistically as well as scientifically.

Accompanied by Carol Athanasius, a teacher of the Beau Vallon secondary school, the two students recently travelled to Nairobi, Kenya to collect their prizes.

During their April 12-16 trip they also met oceanographers and researchers from all over Africa for the third session of the IOCAfrica
Speaking to the press last week the two students expressed their pride and joy to have secured top positions in their age category – above 15 years old – in this contest.

Angela's artwork is entitled ‘We are inseparable’ and that of Lisette is entitled ‘Living sustainably with the ocean’.

The third prize went to a Mauritian girl Keshni Soorkia from Windsor Girls’ College.

Describing her artwork Angela, a student of the School of Visual Arts, said: “I created a human-like figure with different marine species around it and in some ways they are all merged together and this portrays my title really well.”

She says she loves art and has been very interested in drawing since she was a little girl. She also noted that she is working on a blue economy project based on marine pollution.

A student of the Seychelles Tourism Academy, Lisette said she based her drawing on life under water and the people of Seychelles in relation to the sea. She said she used the same artwork for the Subios arts competition but worked on some aspects for this competition.

For Lisette art is just a hobby as she believes it is a good way to spend her free time.

“Drawing is not my calling but I do love to paint,” she said.

Both girls said they did not expect to win any prize in the competition and were overwhelmed  by the amount of interest in their work and recognition they got in Kenya as people lined up for them to autograph their books.

The best art works received have been published in a book entitled ‘Stories of Africa’s Oceans and Coasts as told by Africa’s children and youth’ and distributed to all countries which took part in the competition.
 
Ms Athanasius also expressed her joy and pride at being chosen to accompany the two girls and shared their joy.

“I am really very happy and honoured,” she said.

She noted that even though our schools often lack materials, the children are resourceful in their sense of creativity.

“Our Seychellois students are very skilled. They have a certain imagination filled with the nature that surrounds them which they combine like seen in their work. Their works have been recognised as those done by experienced artists but not students,” she pointed out.

In Kenya, the two students visited various sites including an animal’s orphanage where they got to see various types of animals which we do not have in Seychelles.

The two girls expressed their gratitude to their teachers, to the Unesco and the Ministry of Education who have made this great opportunity possible for them.