Beaulieu student wins with “undeniably accomplished portrait”

Saturday 24 October 2020

A 16-year-old student from Beaulieu has won a local art competition in the under 18-category with an “undeniably accomplished portrait” of a woman that was inspired by female issues.

Eleanor Chambers was one of many local artists to enter this year’s Fox Open Art Competition.

Sponsored by Fox International Ltd, the competition is now in its 38th year, and has previously featured local artists such as Jason Butler, Ian Rolls and Kevin Pallot.

This year, over 180 entries in a wide variety of mediums, including oil paintings, etchings and ceramics, were submitted.

The pieces were judged remotely by artist Chris Mould and a selection of them, including Eleanor’s ‘Domestic Bliss’ can be seen at the Berni Gallery at the Jersey Arts Centre until Saturday 7 November. 

Talking about the inspiration behind the painting, which won the Jock Russel Award for 12- to 18-year-olds, Eleanor said: “I was looking at female issues and things I still consider an issue, things that are often overlooked.

“The main point of the painting I entered was to show the woman as being catered to service men, which is represented by the cutlery. But I also wanted to show the oppression of women through being expected to cover up more than men: that’s why she has a sheet over her head.” 

The young artist explained that she has been “quite passionate” about looking into feminism and social issues for the past three years and that ‘Domestic Bliss’ is part of a bigger project she is working on for her A-levels. 

Eleanor has already created other paintings as part of the project and is planning a five-foot tall one, entitled ‘Feast for the Eyes’ and based on the fact women are being seen as objects. 

In the meantime, she is also working on a series of pieces for an exhibition in the bar area of the Arts Centre at the end of January. 

While she has been into painting since a young age, Eleanor says she had never really thought about it as a career until more recently. 

“I loved the lesson so much that my teachers suggested it for my GCSE. I completely fell in love with it,” she said. “I started working so hard and doing lots of work for the class, I was always a month ahead. 

“Now it’s my main hobby I would say; it’s my definite intention to do art at uni." 

Eleanor explained that her art teacher, Debbie Jones, had not only been instrumental in her participation in the competition but also in her artistic journey as a whole.

“She is an amazing teacher, she really helped me getting started and get into it to do my GCSEs,” Eleanor said.

“She let me know about the competition. I had actually never heard of it or thought about it but I was immediately interested.”

Mr. Mould praised Eleanor’s work, describing it as “an undeniably accomplished portrait bursting with life behind the eyes. It looks like it would be at home gazing out from an old master painting."

In addition, he selected the other piece Eleanor submitted to feature in the exhibition, a result that the teen hadn’t imagined.

“I was waiting for the buses at school when I received the call and I was just over the moon,” Eleanor said. 

“[Seeing my work in the exhibition] was really surreal, I was not expecting it at all. I was so pleased to have two pieces and I really enjoyed everyone else’s work as well.”

Martin McDowell’s piece 'Cherchez La Femme, La Dame et le Mouton' earned him the top spot in this year’s competition.

“A really charming piece of work,” Mr Mould said. “A beautifully lit, fairy tale-esque composition that gives an intriguing sense of narrative... a gem of a painting with an appealing palette that glistens with character."