01 May 2018 was a great day for Hillview Art students . Lauren Browne, Will Holloway and Zoe Biagini-Jones were shortlisted for the Turner Contemporary Portfolio Prize (a prestigious competition open to Kent students from all Key Stages, including FE). The students and their families met up with Mr and Mrs Pledge at the Prize Giving in Canterbury Christ Church College.

We are really excited because Zoe Biagini-Jones was awarded two prizes. She won the Key Stage 5 art prize and also the Lilford Gallery Award for ‘Best Up and Coming Young Artist’!

Zoe’s winning extraordinary painting ‘Pigs in Blankets’ will be exhibited at the Turner Contemporary summer exhibition ‘Animals and Us’ from 15 June.

Please do go along to see the artwork. The exhibition will include artists Keith Arnatt, Joseph Beuys, Marc Chagall, Marcus Coates, Mark Dion, Charlotte Dumas, Tracey Emin, Barry Flanagan, Laura Ford, Lucian Freud, Henri Gaudier Brzeska, Mishka Henner, Candida Höfer, Andy Holden, Marguerite Humeau, Kiluanji Kia Henda, Permindar Kaur, Alice Neel, Kananginak Pootoogook, Stephanie Quayle, Paula Rego, Michal Rovner, Khvay Samnang, Roelandt Savery, Raqib Shaw, Shimabuku, Gilbert Soest, George Stubbs, Andy Warhol, William Wegman, JMW Turner. So good company for Zoe then!

https://www.turnercontemporary.org/exhibitions/animals-us

Please also see the link: https://www.artfund.org/get-involved/art-happens/paula-bear#details

And consider sponsoring ‘Paula the Polar Bear’

It is with great sadness that I write to inform you that we learnt last week of the death of Stephen Bovey, the former Headteacher at Hillview. Stephen joined Hillview in 1996 as Deputy Headteacher and was promoted to Headteacher in 1999 until his retirement in 2014 due to ill health.

Stephen was instrumental in achieving the school’s Performing Arts status and making Hillview the school that it is today.

A Level Dance and Musical Theatre students spent 4 amazing days in New York City over the half term break. Upon arrival the students got straight into their first masterclass at the Ripley Grier studios where they learnt the opening sequence from ‘A Chorus Line’ which they all loved! On day two students went to see the Statue of Liberty as well as the haunting 9/11 Memorial. After a quick slice of pizza it was on to another incredible workshop at the Pearl Studios to learn how to prepare successfully for auditions. This workshop was particularly valuable for the students wanting to pursue a career in the industry. Dinner was then at Ellen Stardust which is a dining experience like no other where Broadway stars perform for you whilst you eat a yummy dinner! Needless to say the students didn’t want to leave and were up dancing most of the evening. On the Sunday it was time for the students to visit two of the most iconic dance studios in the world and experience another two amazing masterclasses. The day begun at the Alvin Ailey Studios and ended at the Martha Graham studios. The day was then finished off with a trip to the theatre to see Kinky Boots! The final day was all about the shops! Students had such fun looking around and buying souvenirs. As well as the shops the students visited the Empire State building, Grand Central Station, Rockafeller Center, Radio City Music Hall and Central Park. All in all, an amazing trip!

Stars in their Eyes

Our annual ‘Stars in their Eyes’ concert, this year featured a ‘Back to the 80s’ theme.  There was definitely an energy in the air as the performers took to the stage with a 6-piece live band, awesome lighting, makeup and costumes to deliver some knock-out performances.  I continue to be amazed at the wealth of talented singers and professionalism shown by our students. It is a joy to work in an environment where the arts are respected and supported and we would like to thank all the staff that have supported us, as well as the audience who bought tickets to see the show.

The 2^nd September marked a special occasion for The Hillview Sixth Form. Following a student competition in March 2016, the successful designers: Phoebe Horn, Kelsey Sowerby and Megan Brown, together with their parents, saw their designs turned into reality at the opening of the new Sixth Form facilities. The areas which include: a Sixth Form café/social space; large student centre, including its very own ‘snug’, library and ICT suite with PCs and MACs, have been redeveloped in a clean, smart, modern style to offer dedicated facilities to the 250 strong student body within the Sixth Form. Evie Webb, an Art Ambassador and Year 13 student at the school, designed a striking geographic motif which now defines the Sixth Form area from the rest of the school. Evie, along with younger sister Grace, mum and friends, gave up their time in the holidays to turn the design into reality.

Mrs Burkett commented “It is essential that our students have access to facilities to enable them to study independently, work with their peers and relax. All the students involved did an incredible job and created fully functioning Sixth Form areas. I am so proud of what they have achieved, for the benefit of their peers and future Hillview Sixth Form students. These facilities will support the ongoing high achievement of our students in the future.”

The new facilities were opened by Tom Tugendhat MBE MP and long-standing friend of Hillview,

“I was delighted to open Hillview’s newly refurbished Sixth Form area. This will give the elder students at the School greater independence this year as they make the transition from GCSE studies to A Levels. Hillview School for Girls takes pride in being a place where students want to study, and impressive facilities such as these help cement their reputation in the community.

“The work of staff, and also the students involved who gave up their summer holidays to contribute is incredibly worthwhile and I know the space they created will be used and appreciated by sixth formers for years to come.”