Our annual art competition, run in partnership with DegreeArt.com, aims to ignite creativity among young artists – not only nurturing their talent but also giving them the opportunity to cultivate networking skills through connecting with their peers and industry professionals, and raising their aspirations through exploring careers and pathways into the arts and creative industries.

In the competition’s fifth year, we received over 130 entries across five categories: Fine Art, Graphics, Film, Photography and Textiles.

Our finalists experienced an enriching day out in London, exploring the diverse array of artwork on display at the Tate Modern and Hayward Gallery. This was followed by a celebratory lunch where we had the pleasure of hosting a captivating talk by Elinor Olisa and Isobel Beauchamp, co-founders of DegreeArt.com who spoke about the importance of creating a personal brand and letting your uniqueness shine through your art: “Don’t be afraid to show your personality through your work – your artwork is an extension of you – and that’s often what sells!”  Our aspiring artists learnt the significance of taking risks and “creating opportunities for their work to be seen, rather than waiting to be discovered.”  

Our finalists also had the opportunity to meet the Bankside’s artist in residence, Frankie Curtis, whose work is a vibrant collection of crazy characters with a sprinkle of humour throughout. Her unique style was inspired from watching cartoons as a child and uses acrylic paints, markers, spray paint, and digital techniques to bring her work to life in an animated format. Frankie spoke about the endless opportunities available in the creative industry, many of which for her have been unexpected or unplanned, and advised students to stay open-minded and to explore all opportunities that come their way.

Finally, our finalists wonderful pieces of work were presented at a private exhibition at the Bankside Hotel – London’s ‘Art Hotel’ – on the renowned South Bank and the winners were announced: 

PHOTOGRAPHY CATEGORY: Leo from Darwen Aldridge Enterprise Studio for his piece ‘CONFLICT’

FINE ART CATEGORY: Izma from Darwen Aldridge Community Academy for her piece ‘BLUE’

TEXTILES CATEGORY: Emili from Kensington Aldridge Academy for her piece: ‘SARMA – A DISH FROM HOME’

GRAPHICS CATEGORY: Jo from UTC@MediaCityUK for their piece: ‘CAR PARK’

FILM CATEGORY – Sebastien from UTC@MediaCityUK for his piece: ‘VENTANA’ 

View the 2024 catalogue to view their, and all our finalists, work.

Izma Tanveer, Winner of the Fine Art Category and DACA alumni, entered the art prize to challenge herself creatively and gain exposure for her work. Her piece “Blue” explored how colour can affect our mental health, leaving it up to the viewer to interpret the emotions caused by the different shades of blue.  

Being recognised among so many talented artists was a tremendous honour and validated the hard work and creativity I had poured into my piece. When I was announced as the winner of the fine art category, I was overjoyed and deeply grateful. It was a moment of immense satisfaction and fulfilment, knowing that my efforts had been acknowledged and celebrated.

Izma Tanveer