‘Plunket babies’ part of milestone show
Young people from around South Canterbury will be part of a special feature at the 40th RSM Law Plunket Art Show in late May.
Each year artists from around New Zealand contribute works to the show and a percentage of the proceeds goes to the Timaru branch of Plunket, fundraising committee chairwoman Di Hay said.
This year artists at schools around South Canterbury had been invited to submit works, as a way of acknowledging they were probably Plunket babies.
Sixteen schools had been sent plywood squares measuring 40 by 40 centimetres and invited to use them to create something relating to the number 40, Hay said.
The boards will be displayed in a special feature of the milestone show, titled ‘‘FORTY’’.
The works will be arranged into a grid on a wall at the Aigantighe Art Gallery, for sale alongside the show’s other works.
What the schools did with the boards was entirely up to them, Hay said.
‘‘They have to incorporate something that is 40 – 40 dots, 40 screws, anything. They can do whatever.
‘‘All the money from the boards will be donated straight back to Plunket.’’
Waimataitai School teacher Lara Sargent said pupils had each made a piece of art on a cardboard square matching the dimensions of the plywood boards.
Teachers had then selected the pupils who made the top 12 artworks to help put together the works which would go on the school’s three pieces of plywood.
The school had not made a start on its artworks yet, but had talked about using photos and paint to create them, Sargent said.
Hay hoped including the young artists’ works in the exhibition this year would encourage their friends and family also to attend the show.
The show celebrating its 40th anniversary was a ‘‘huge achievement’’ for the people involved and the community supporting it, Hay said.
Last year the exhibition raised about $28,000 for the Timaru branch of Plunket.
The show will run at the Aigantighe from Saturday, May 27 to Sunday, June 11, with a ticketed opening night on Friday, May 26.
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Correction
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