Wearable arts extravaganza shines again
In a 21st coming of age celebration, the Evento Wearable Arts Awards showed the audience just what is possible when imagination is given a place to shine.
After an epic opening sequence where Feilding High School pupils told the story of Okatia, the spirit who carved out the Manawatu Gorge, about 40 pupils from nine schools took to the stage.
The categories for this year’s high school event at Manfeild, Feilding, were twenty one, Asianinspired, everyday superhero and green.
The supreme winner of the night was Kaitlyn Johnston from Feilding High School for her green category entry Arte Della Natura. Kaitlyn, a year 12 pupil, took out the title last year and said she was thrilled to win again. ‘‘I’m a bit calmer about winning this year. I didn’t cry. I am so glad I didn’t cry. I spent about a month making the inside of the cape and then another month on everything else.’’
It was her hard work that caught the judges’ eyes and Jo Guy said it was a well thought out design.
Kaitlyn also won the student choice award and her prize included a Bernina sewing machine. Because she also won one last year, ‘‘this one will be for my grandma’’, she said.
Jenny Gatehouse, from Awatapu College, won the Westpac design scholarship of $1500 for her green category design Viridescent. Molly Ratana, from St Peter’s College, Palmerston North, picked up the year nine award and the recycling award for her Doll Hunter design. Taihape Area School’s Cheyanne Hurinui won the performance award for the everyday superhero category and Waiopehu College’s Miah Marsters-sasa won the twenty one category with her musicallyinspired design The Fragmented Orchestra.
Evento is run by volunteers, with a huge input from pupils and Feilding High School.