A Kilkenny teenager’s been named the overall winner of the 72nd Texaco Children’s Art Competition.
16-year-old Loreto Secondary School student Aurianna Hanlon took the top prize in the senior 16-18 years age category for her piece titled ‘Falling Up.
It’s been described as a ‘striking self-portrait’ which she created using acrylic paint and it’s yielded her the €1,500 prize.
Final Adjudicator and Chairperson of the judging panel, Irish visual artist, curator and educator Pauline O’Connell, described the artwork as “an ambitious and compelling self-portrait that challenges perspective and draws the viewer into a shared space, demonstrating both technical control and emotional depth”.
“An exceptional painting that is well deserving of first place in this year’s competition, the perspective places the viewer below the subject, who looks down with a steady, engaging gaze. The division of light and shadow across the face is masterfully handled, with tonal shifts ranging from warm umbers to cool purples and blues. Set against a richly textured ultramarine blue sky, the brushwork remains fluid and expressive while retaining remarkable accuracy,” she added.
The middle child of three, Aurianna first discovered her passion for art at a young age and comes from an artistic family, who, with her teachers, have always given her great encouragement to continue developing her talent. Now in Transition Year, Aurianna says art will be her ‘top choice’ subject for her Leaving Certificate and foresees it playing an important role in her future as a career option.
The choice for her prize-winning work came when, after deciding on a self-portrait, Aurianna chose an image from her photo collection that she thought would be fascinating to bring to life. “I found a selfie I had taken and really liked the contrast between the light and shading, created by the shadows, and also the perspective of the photo, looking upwards at the bright blue sky in the background,” she explains.
The Texaco Children’s Art Competition is popularly regarded as the longest-running sponsorship in the history of arts sponsoring in Ireland, with an unbroken history that dates back to the very first Competition held in 1955. This year, as has been the case throughout its life, it has been a platform on which young artists from Kilkenny and counties throughout Ireland have had their talents recognised and their creativity commended.
Aurianna with her prize-winning work ‘Falling Up’ with her mum, Edel; sister, Seraphina (14) and dad, Gareth. The picture was taken at a function to announce the top winners held in Dublin.
