Many school events have been halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, one of those being the our Year 13 annual IBDP Art Exhibition which offers an opportunity for YCIS Beijing graduating students to showcase their IB portfolios to the school community before the end of the academic year.

Since students were unable to mount the public exhibition at School, Allison Cusato, Secondary School Art Teacher, opted for a virtual gallery space where she is showcasing some very impressive artworks created by our students, now available for the wider community to enjoy.

According to Miss Cusato,"CoVid19 has caused us to rethink the way we approach curated art experiences. The way a work or body of works interacts with the viewer is an important part of the success of that work(s)"  and virtual galleries are changing the way visitors can explore and engage with artworks.

For Peter Qin from the Class of 2020, although he knew that the visitor’s online experience was going to be different, he was open to the task at hand "I've never done an online exhibition before and I didn't know how to approach it. Nevertheless, I thought it was a great learning experience and good practice especially since we are using more and more technology these days."

As Miss Cusato explained, the theme of the collection is “The Lonely and Layered Human Experience”. The theme was selected based on IBDP standards and selection criteria, where the artwork needs to be front-facing in a way that is similar to how they would actually hang on a wall and the quality of the images also needs to be sharp with a good likeness to the real work.

The thought and effort that went into each student's artwork are apparent, based on the amount of time they spend preparing for the final showcase. Peter started working his portfolio last year, in the second year of his IB Visual Arts with the guidance of Miss Cusato.

In Peter’s case, he navigated his project by first focusing on the research aspect and exploration of different materials to use. The last part of the process was dedicated to making artworks and planning for the exhibition. Although, for an artist, attempting to pick a favourite piece of artwork can be compared to a parent choosing who their favourite child is, Qin was able to select three of his artworks from the collection that stand out to him from the “Layers of Memories” collection.

Although attempting to pick a favourite piece of artwork for an artist can be compared to a parent choosing who their favourite child is, Qin was able to select three of his artworks from the collection that stand out to him from the Layers of Memories collection.;

He shares that "this collection started with a simple sketch and is an ongoing project of mine. At the moment there are three finished pieces part of the collection and more still in the making" the pieces he is referring to are "The Mirror", "The Dark Cut", and "The Cross". The collection is close to Peter's heart because it is an original piece of work which he has spent endless time and effort creating.

His and others’ works can be viewed when exploring the Exhibition.  The virtual gallery which marks for them a conclusion to an important journey of self-discovery and development inspired by their understanding and awareness of the world around them, is accessible until the end of June this year. We encourage our families and friends to take the time to visit our student’s virtual gallery to see their beautiful works.

To view the IBDP Art Exhibition click here.