On Tuesday January 21, a steel arch entrance will be unveiled at the Wix and Wrabness Primary School as part of the Youth Voice project run by Tendring District Council (TDC), Arts Council England, and Colchester Art Centre.
The Wix and Wrabness Primary School is an Artsmark Platinum school, an accreditation by Arts Council England, and is the only Primary school in Tendring and only one of three in Essex to have the accreditation.
Lawford artist Luke Edgar, 29, has designed a steel arch for the school while his partner has created a “great steel panel” that will be added to the arch and will include line portraits of the school children.
Luke Edgar was portrait artist of the year 2023 and the prestigious Dubel Prize’s emerging artist of the year in 2024, and is known for combining both tattooing and art.
Luke said in his application: “I intend for the arch to have a surreal quality to it, as though by walking under it, you are stepping into another world.
“A kind of whimsical portal. I have designed this with the aim that it will also add to the aesthetics of the school, and be a point of visual interest that will inspire both students and faculty.”
A school spokesman added that Luke has been asked alongside his father John, who is also an artist, to give an assembly about creative careers to further inspire the children.
Source: Harwich & Manningtree Standard 20th January 2025.