Levin Intermediate's award-winning mural represents kaitiakitanga and guardianship for the world and the school. Photo / Nikki Carroll
Levin Intermediate's award-winning mural represents kaitiakitanga and guardianship for the world and the school. Photo / Nikki Carroll
Levin Intermediate has won the Keep New Zealand Beautiful Resene Wall Worthy Competition, for a mural depicting an image of the Earth with one half being destroyed and the other half being restored.
The image's original design was created by Year 7 student Koda Clifton, a self-taught budding artist, who finds his hobby really helps calm him and stop the busyness in his head.
Levin Intermediate art teacher Kelly Moore said the school had its outside areas refreshed earlier in the year so there were blank wall spaces that needed images and colour added to them.
LIS Year 7 student Koda Clifton's original design for the school's award winning mural. Photo / Nikki Carroll
"In term one we let the students know the school was entering the competition [again] and asked for them to put forward some design ideas around a conservation theme," Moore said.
The school offers four revolving option subjects during the year for their students, one of which is Art, and they received about a dozen entries, with the staff choosing Koda's design as the best.
Keep NZ Beautiful ran the Resene Wall Worthy Competition, which is part of the Paint New Zealand Beautiful programme, from February to April 2021, with schools, early childhood centres and youth groups from around New Zealand invited to take part.
Fifteen designs were chosen as finalists and put to public vote for two weeks from the start of April. Moore said Levin Intermediate shared the voting link through the school community and ended up as one of 10 winners.
The winning mural designer, Year 7 Koda Clifton, with his fellow Levin Intermediate student mural painter helpers. Photo / Nikki Carroll
"We received $750 to spend on Resene Paints so I bought a mixture of large cans and test pots in bright and bold colours to use for painting the mural."
Moore said bringing the mural to life was very much a school-wide effort with many students getting involved and the school expanded the mural area to create a bright colourful walkway leading towards the playground.
Moore, who classes herself as an art hobbyist and facilitator, offers lots of "hands-on" art options such as pottery and printmaking and believes encouraging the students to get involved in creating the mural helps to build a sense of pride and ownership in their school.
Another amazing mural at Levin Intermediate, representing belonging, identity and the mix of cultures within the school community. Photo / Nikki Carroll
"This mural represents kaitiakitanga and guardianship for our world and school," said Moore, "[and] with a bright new area comes the desire to protect and care for our own environment ..."
Designer Koda is also being encouraged by his class teacher to help other students develop their artistic ability and he wants to carry on developing his own skills once he gets to Waiopehu College in 2023.
"This was my first art competition and I'm excited to try entering more," Koda said - as it happens art teacher Moore is planning to enter the mural into the school category of the Resene Mural Masterpieces Competition as well.
