OC INSPIRED ARTS MAGAZINE LAUNCH
On Thursday evening, over 100 pupils were involved with celebrating and exhibiting their wonderful work through the launch of the new arts and humanities magazine Cat Among the Pigeons. The thought-provoking and stunning magazine features pieces written by pupils outside of the classroom, alongside some of the very best GCSE and A Level artwork. Pupils from across the School have explored topics of intrigue or passion and submitted them to the magazine, with the very best pieces selected for publication; the full gamut of writing is displayed with poetry, short stories, translations, investigative essays and discursive articles. Some pupils were invited to read their pieces from the magazine to an enraptured audience, making this a particularly special occasion.
The inspiration for the magazine came from an Old Caterhamian, Geoffrey Pidgeon, who wished to express gratitude to the school whilst also, as a published writer himself, promoting writing within the school. Therefore, all pieces submitted were considered for the Geoffrey Pidgeon Prize for Literature, to be awarded at Speech Day and we were delighted that Geoffrey was able to attend and present his own book The Secret Wireless War to the award’s first winner, Hermione, whose short story The Birds won for its mesmerising craft, nuance and compellingly ambiguous narrative.
Following the magazine launch, pupils and parents were lead on an exciting immersive trail through the school to explore the impressive proliferation of artwork on display and were even further delighted by the musical, theatrical and dance performances of pupils inspired by the art pieces. Visual and performative displays throughout the site created a treasure hunt of curiosity and creativity for guests, who were wowed by the talents of our pupils.
