Celebrating Nature with the Gillmor Award!

The inaugural presentation of the Gillmor Award took place in Final Collect at the end of the Summer term as the community celebrated the importance of the natural world.

The award is named after Old Leightonian, former teacher and esteemed illustrator, Robert Gillmor, whose love of ornithology and his print-making skills, both developed during his time at Leighton Park, earned him the recognition of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB). Robert’s artwork graced the cover of several of the RSPB’s publications and he provided illustrations for many books and printed items over the years, as well as becoming an author in his own right.

The competition for the Gillmor Award was tough, with a significant number of students entering pieces that aimed to ‘inspire a sustainable connection with nature’; just like the work of Robert Gillmor himself. The entries included photography, songs, poetry, drawings and paintings and even a soundscape. It was the soundscape by Marcus and Oscar (both Year 10) which really captured the judges’ attention and won this year’s award. The judges said: “I found this hypnotic, beautifully crafted, very well-edited and extremely absorbing. The influences of sounds from nature are clearly worked into the piece and the visuals are well-crafted and a very adept counterpoint to the soundscape. This is a super-creative piece of work that draws on nature to directly influence the piece and is something which made me want to hear and see more.” And “a mesmeric reflection of the haunting tranquillity of a woodland walk and it’s transformative powers. Beautifully edited with sound and moving image intertwined.”

Gillmor Award champion and Biology teacher, Jo Toovey, reflected how difficult it is to create “a connection with nature in a way that represents the whole of STEAM.” The award was presented by Robert Gillmor’s son, Tom, with Highly Commended certificates for runners up Jack (Lower Sixth) and Alana (Year 9). The judges commented on Jack’s photograph of an owl saying: “This is a beautifully-shot photograph with tight focus, stunning colour palate, keen eye for composition. The image conjures up a feeling of the fragility and innocence of the natural world, the owl looking up at us to do our bit to help preserve this balance.” Of Alana’s song, they reflected, “It’s beautiful lyric and rendition [in] their simple representation of the complex issues surrounding climate change and our need to nurture our planet. The amount of work and passion in this piece of work is clearly evident. Its original and a very catchy way to express all the factors the award represents.”

The Gillmor Award trophy shows a laser engraving of Robert Gillmor’s ‘Hunting Heron’ artwork on a piece of Juniper wood from the Park. It was one of several new trophies created by our talented team in the DT Department; thanks to their artistic and aesthetic endeavours.

You can experience the winning entries here:

Soundscape by Marcus and Oscar

‘Owl’. Photography by Jack

‘Ballad of the Birds’. Song by Alana