This year we invited the students to create a poster which illustrates
- Heroines who fought for Equality
We had some truly amazing entries at both junior and senior level. It was very difficult for the Steering Committee to judge; we were so impressed with all of the wonderful and thoughtful posters!
Senior Category Winner
The winning entry in the senior category was a poster Maya Angelou by Daisy Shepherd.
Daisy described why she chose Maya Angelou for her poster:
‘’My passion for Maya Angelou started in English class. When reading her poem of Still I rise, it gave me this empowering sense of voice, within the branch of feminism, which I felt exciting to be evoked from just words. However, looking back at the history of Bristol and the type of society my ancestors would have been bought up in, her poem made me challenge a past which I’m connected to and gave me an awareness for the civil rights movement and also current day problems. The reason I feel that she is still so significant is that her message is still, in a way ‘rising’ and growing as equality is becoming more familiar (though still not completely achieved.) Communities and large numbers of people now feel enabled to support and reach out for what they believe in, for example the Black Lives Matter protests. In my opinion, Angelou is particularly inspiration because despite the obstacles that she faced due to her gender, race and damaging past of sexual assault, her strength and passion is still contagious.’’
The panel were very impressed with the entry by Daisy and we are sure that everyone will agree that this is a worthy winner!
Junior winner
The panel were extremely impressed by Hannah’s explanation for her eye-catching design:
‘’I have created my project with black paper and green and silver pens to represent the radioactive light that she was fascinated by – so fascinated that she slept by a jar of glowing green radium, which we now know caused her radioactive poisoning and made her fall ill often. My project is about Marie Curie and the achievements of her life, from her graduation from her university in Paris, through her interest in the X-Rays, her discovery of radium and polonium and how they react to each other, and finally in getting the recognition she deserves – two Nobel Prizes!’’
Hannah on her choice of extraordinary heroine:
‘’I chose Marie Curie because she is not only an outstanding person in science, she also had to overcome many challenges to become who she was, such as leaving her home country, Poland, so that she would get the chance to study science at a university in France (because there were no women’s universities in Poland where she lived at the time). This must have been quite a challenge and I respect her for this. She was also the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize twice – an achievement which should have happened far earlier, because women and men are equal!’’
Highly Commended
Frida Kahlo by Alexander Smith
Alexander explained his choice of heroine:
“We studied Frida Kahlo at school for GCSE Art. I was really impressed by her work because when we tried to copy it, it was really impossible to do her neck! I didn’t realise the skill needed to do her portraits as they look so simple. She stood out in her time – born 1907 – as someone who pushed boundaries and was brave enough to show women as they really are, which we don’t often do today either.”
Well-done Alexander! Fantastic artwork, we hope that you enjoyed researching Frida Kahlo and drawing some of her portraits!
Hellen Keller by Freya Mackay
Freya explained how her poster was linked to her heroine:
“My project is about Helen Keller – a deaf and blind woman who did amazing things such as helping people become more aware of disabled people’s rights. It displays her achievements, as well as her story and multiple pictures. I included things such as a quote by her and a portrait. It is colourful and stands out, yet also has many facts about Helen that I hope will inspire you.”
Freya explained why she felt that Helen Keller is an extraordinary heroine:
“I chose Helen Keller because she is an inspiration. It is difficult to speak when you’re deaf and blind from a young age, yet Helen persevered. Through touch, she learnt to speak. Furthermore, she learned four other language and gave public speeches helping people understand the importance of disabled people’s rights. The idea for the design of my project came from my cousin. I used one of her styles that I liked for the senses part of my poster, the portrait of Helen and the quote. I wanted my poster to be vibrant and look creative and artistic. Also, I wanted to explain who Helen really was and why she was so important. She achieved something which seems really, really tricky. So, if people hear about her, not only will disabled people feel empowered, but others will feel more able to tackle any barriers that come their way.”
Well done Freya! Fantastic poster and explanation for your choice of heroine! We hope that you enjoyed researching the life of Helen Keller!
Harriet Tubman by Srinidhi Balaji
Srinidhi explained why she chose Harriet Tubman
“In the 1600s, when slavery existed, African-Americans were bound to chains, their families separated, and treated as if they were merely property. During these dark hours rose our greatest hero, Harriet Tubman. At age 27, Tubman fled her Maryland plantation and, with the help of the Underground Railroad, persevered and travelled 90 miles north to the Pennsylvania state border to freedom. Shortly after, Tubman began to give speeches about her horrid life as an enslaved person and deeply moved her audiences. Wanting to help free more African-Americans like herself, Tubman enlisted as a Conductor in the Underground Railroad, making her famous 13 trips South. Even when slavery was abolished, she didn’t stop; she became a Women’s Rights activist and worked hard for the change she wanted to see in the world. I chose to showcase her in my poster because of how deeply this courageous woman inspires me.”
Well done Srinidhi! We thought that your artwork was great! We hope that you enjoyed researching the life of Harriet Tubman.
Simone de Beauvoir by Lincoln Bryars
Lincoln explained why he chose Simone de Beauvoir:
“I have chosen Simone de Beauvoir as she is not quite the same as many feminists defending their rights due to their want for equality. It is her philosophy and book writings that have led me to choose her as my feminist heroine. What I find interesting about her is she doesn’t look at things plainly with a one-sided judgement, but because she is a philosopher and an existentialist she has taken in the broader perspective. She researches subjects on the matter and expresses her thoughts in books which many philosophers and historians’ study today. These books were a big influence on how people thought about feminism and women roles, and are still having that affect today.”
Well done Lincoln! Fantastic sketch of Simone de Beauvoir! We hope you enjoyed drawing and researching this heroine.
Marta Vieira da Silva by Alys Walls
Alys explained her extraordinary heroine choice:
“My poster is a drawing of the great footballer, Marta Vieira da Silva who promoted women’s football across the world.
She came from a poor background in Brazil and didn’t have an easy career in football. Brazil offered little funding for the game so Marta moved to Europe and won a record five World Player of the Year Awards from FIFA.
I think Marta is an important figure head as she promoted equality in women’s sport and was recognised by the United Nations and made a Good Will Ambassador.
She won several league titles and a record of five consecutive World Player of the Year awards from FIFA so that might inspire other people to enjoy their hobbies and maybe go on to make a career out of it.”
Very inspirational, great message to promote equality in women’s sport, particularly football! Well done Alys!
Emmeline Pankhurst and Rosa Park by pupils from Kingsley Community Primary School
Well done Rahaf and Masti for your wonderful posters!
Thank you to all the students that entered this year’s School History Prize! Special thanks to the teachers and parents who sent in entries! All the entries were fantastic! Looking forward to next year!
School Liaison Officers
Tahaney Alghrani & Mary Feerick
