Abu Dhabi pupil wins global art competition
An Abu Dhabi pupil won the top prize in an international school art competition after drawing inspiration from her love of nature.
Jyoti Sharma, 13, triumphed in the Key Stage 3 category of the contest run by the Council of British International Schools. It said 600 pupils from 99 schools around the world submitted entries.
Pupils were invited to produce a piece of art based on the theme “connections”.
Jyoti, who attends Brighton College Abu Dhabi, used coloured pencils to depict a girl surrounded by wildlife.
She spent six days perfecting her drawing, which she named We are all 1.
“I have been drawing ever since I could hold a pencil,” she said.
“When I draw it takes me to another place. I just plug in my earphones, listen to music and get to work. It brings me a lot of calm and peace and I can spend hours on the smallest details.
“For this piece I spent about a week on it, about three hours a day. First, I drew the details in the border and spent a lot of time blurring and blending the colours to make it as vibrant as possible.”
Jyoti, from India, is no stranger to art competitions and won a national award last year for a drawing inspired by the UAE.
That picture showed the country as an island on the national flag surrounded by items synonymous with the Emirates, including dates, camels and Burj Khalifa.
While Jyoti loves art, she said she was “her own worst critic” and was never fully satisfied with her work.
“I think the older I get, the more appreciative I am of what I draw, but I always strive to do better,” she said.
“When I saw the email earlier this week saying I had won the competition, I yelled out to my mum in excitement.
“I was in total shock because I know so many great artworks were submitted from across the world.”
She received a certificate that has been given pride of place at home, as well as a voucher to spend on art supplies.
Judges said her drawing showed a “super use of colour, lots of attention to detail and a great concept” and it was displayed on the council’s website and social media pages.
The competition was open to pupils at all of the council’s member schools.
When I draw it takes me to another place. I just plug in my earphones, listen to music and get to work JYOTI SHARMA Pupil at Brighton College Abu Dhabi