Virtual Gallery Opens Its Doors to Celebrate Art in Schools!

dot-art Schools successfully launched this year's annual inter-School art exhibition in a brand new online virtual gallery on 7 July 2020. Carolyn Murray, dot-art Schools Project Manager reveals:- "After the disappointment of postponing our 8th Annual dot-art Schools Exhibition due to the Coronavirus, we are thrilled to host the dot-art Schools virtual exhibition so the creative work of children and young people from our participating Schools can still be shared and celebrated online. We'd like to say a HUGE thank you to Arts Council England for making this possible, along with our sponsors Medicash and Arriva."

Following a judges' shortlist and an online public vote, the 2020 exhibition showcases the winning work from each of 76 participating Schools from across the Liverpool City Region and beyond. The overall winners of the 2020 dot-art Schools Competition were selected by a guest judge and announced at dot-art Schools 1st online prize giving ceremony on Zoom, where the top 3 students from each of the participating Schools were also celebrated.

The dot-art Schools 2020 overall primary winner is Kenzy Ball-Wright of Belle Vale Primary School for his lively flowing drawing:- "Diamond Scaled Fighting Fish." Extra congratulations to the Teachers at Belle Vale Primary as this the second year in a row that they have produced an overall winner! The two primary overall runners up are Tallulah Convey of Blackmoor Park Primary for her magical painting:- "The Unknown" and Georgie Foxall of Acton CE Primary School for the wonderfully textured work "Snowy Forest."

In the secondary (Year 9) age group the overall winner is Elizabeth Lyons-Davies of The Catholic High School, Chester for her exciting aerial view composition "Maps 13." The 2 secondary overall runners up were Nathan Bland of Peterhouse School for his evocative monochrome painting:- "Winter" and Renata Azizeva from Archbishop Blanch School for the harmonious composition:- "Peace-poster 21."

Our guest judge, Susan Coles comments:- "I really enjoyed looking through the work and was struck by the student's creativity and patience. I love art…particularly as it gives a voice to young people. In this competition nobody is a loser, because if you have made art, then you have made something worthwhile."

The winners were awarded a variety of prizes including vouchers from Tate Liverpool, art materials from Cass Art and books and online art classes from dot-art. In addition, as overall winner, Elizabeth receives a scholarship to dot-art, giving her a year's membership to dot-art's network, allowing her to showcase and sell her work alongside professional artists. You can view a recording of the prize giving on zoom, visit the virtual gallery exhibition and complete an online feedback survey afterwards.  dot-art Schools also invited creative Teachers to take part in the:- "Teachers Corner," a special online exhibition to acknowledge how much we value Teachers and demonstrate to students that Teachers are creative too! You can view the show featuring a diverse mix of works many of which were created during lockdown, by 40 Teachers from across the country at:- Schools.dot-art.Com.

The National Lottery is searching for your 'Home Town Hero' or 'Lockdown Legend' as part of the 2020 National Lottery Awards

THIS year the annual search for the UK's most popular National Lottery funded projects will, for the 1st time, honour individuals who have made an extraordinary impact in their community, especially those who have adapted during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. New figures reveal more than ₤422,000 of National Lottery funding has been invested in good causes in Southport in 2018/19 alone. A total of 16 National Lottery grants were awarded in the Region during the previous financial year, providing vital support to arts, sports, heritage and community projects. The National Lottery are calling for nominations of people who have done amazing things with the help of National Lottery funding and are an inspiration to us all. Winners in each category will receive a ₤3,000 cash prize for their organisation and a coveted National Lottery Awards trophy.

Jonathan Tuchner from The National Lottery is encouraging the people of Southport to make their nominations. He said:- "The National Lottery continues to have a positive impact on life across the UK. Thanks to National Lottery players thousands of projects are making an incredible difference to their local communities. Now, more than ever, people have rallied together, and individuals are performing inspirational acts and extraordinary endeavours to help in Cities, Towns and Villages up and down the country. Thanks to National Lottery players, up to ₤600 million has been made available to support communities throughout the UK amid the Coronavirus crisis. People have used National Lottery funding in amazing ways during these challenging times. We want to honour them as part of this year's National Lottery Awards and recognise their selfless dedication and thank them for their fantastic work."

Encompassing all aspects of National Lottery good causes funding, the 2020 National Lottery Awards are seeking to recognise outstanding individuals in the following sectors:-

And there will be a special Young Hero Award for someone under the age of 18 who has gone that extra mile in their organisation. All nominees must work or act for a National Lottery funded organisation or have received National Lottery funding. To make your nomination for this year's National Lottery Awards, tweet @LottoGoodCauses with your suggestions or complete an entry form through the National Lottery's website. Entries must be received by midnight on 19 August 2020.