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AN aspiring artist is to have her portrait of children’s rights activist Malala Yousafzai permanently displayed in City of Glasgow College’s new City Campus.
Helen Cochrane will see her graphite pencil drawing of the youngest Nobel Prize winner installed in the building later this year.
Thousands of students will see the work as they travel through Glasgow’s largest college every day.
College bosses wanted to adorn the building with the work of its students – and now students will see their work hung throughout the campus.
The students were given the brief to create a piece of artwork that showed the ideas of migration and education.
Helen, who graduated with a Contemporary Art Practice degree, has also worked as a learning support worker with children for 15 years.
The 46-year-old said: “Malala Yousafzai’s story is really inspirational. I decided to base this piece on her after seeing a poster of her hanging up in Whitburn Academy, where I work.
“I hope that my drawing will encourage people to look her up and prompt discussions about what she has achieved.
“It felt great when I found out my work had been selected to be hung in the new campus. It’s an amazing feeling to know that so many students, members of staff, and visitors will get to see my work.”
Helen’s work will decorate the walls of City of Glasgow College’s new City Campus in Cathedral Street, part of the £228 million twinsite city centre supercampus that accommodates up to 40,000 students.
The building opened to students last month but will have its official unveiling next Thursday evening.
Helen added: “I’ve always been interested in art but didn’t decide to pursue it as a career until later in life as other things always took precedence.
“I really enjoyed the Contemporary Art Practice course and this achievement has given me a huge confidence boost in terms of my abilities.”
Allison Smith, from Hamilton, is another student artist who has had her paintings displayed in the new college campus.
She said: “It’s an amazing feeling to see my work on display.
“I spent hours and hours working on the paintings and to know that they’ll be seen by so many people is a great achievement.”
Sally Lamont, whose piece on display focuses on mental health, added: “It’s an honour to have my work showcased in the new college campus.”
Paul Little, principal and chief executive of City of Glasgow College, said: “Our aim is to establish the college as an innovative and high-profile centre for industry and the arts in Scotland and further afield.
“One way of achieving this is to establish a unique and beautiful learning environment populated by high-quality, contemporary artworks that will engage, delight, and enrich the experience of the whole college community.
“We are proud of the students’ contribution to this initiative and are delighted she is one of many talented City of Glasgow College students set to have their work showcased throughout our new state-of-the-art college.”