An arty link to our school’s past

When Prospect Council contacted Blackfriars in mid-2019 asking for some photos from the school’s past to use as part of a public arts project, Emily Kenny was quick to respond.

Mrs Kenny, the school’s Head of Creative Arts and Design Technology, supplied the council with ten historic images, including one of St Catharine’s, another showing two students arriving at school on their bicycles for the first day of school in February 1953 and a third depicting a stained-glass flower in the school chapel.

Mrs Kenny thought little more of the photos, and where they may have ended up – until last week.

While on an art excursion with Year 9 students, Mrs Kenny and the boys came across a tiled bench in the council’s Payinthi town hall precinct.

Included on the benchtop were three of the images Mrs Kenny had selected and sent to the council more than 24 months ago.

“So, the school is represented there, which is lovely,” Mrs Kenny said.

The custom tile bench, on the rear balcony of Prospect Library, is made up of more than 200 images, including the three from Blackfriars, on the theme “What does Prospect mean to you?”.

“The bench is designed to engage visitors to the space by allowing them to find familiar images, seeing interesting pictures and enjoying the creative collage of tiles that represents our community,” the council’s Newmarch Gallery team said on its website.

“The Prospect community has led the way in South Australia from the mid 1970s, creating some of the strongest community-led public art installations that had been seen in the state.

“Public art in Prospect is something that the council has always valued as an important part of the community fabric.”

Blackfriars is also proud to also be part of the fabric of the vibrant Prospect community.