UNE's got talent

October 12, 2007

UNE's creative talent was on display at Lazenby Hall this week, where the winners of the Student ASSIST and Services UNE 2007 Creative Arts Competition were announced.

The competition, which has existed in various forms for more than a decade, encourages UNE students to express themselves creatively in a variety of media.

This year's competition drew a healthy number of entries in four categories: painting, poetry and song lyrics, photography and short story writing.

The theme of this year's competition was "Healthy Relationships @ UNE", which competition organiser Annette Stevenson (pictured) said had been chosen to tie in with the theme of Mental Health Week 2007: healthy relationships in the community.

"How we treat each other has a huge impact on our physical and mental wellbeing, and that's the message we're trying to get across to the students through this competition," Ms Stevenson said.

Ms Stevenson organised the event in her capacity as the education programs officer in UNE's Student Assist Office, which sponsored the competition.

Other sponsors were Services UNE, The Armidale Express, and United Campus Bookshops.

Winners in the various categories included Marina Makepeace for painting, Benjamin Wales for song lyrics, Phillip Pain for photography and Helen Machalias for short story writing. Second and third prize in the photography competition went to John Flower Emblen and Dan Climpson respectively, while Terence Wong picked up second prize in the short story competition with his entry, "Our Own Healthy Style".

Brennan Wales, a lecturer in Italian at UNE, accepted the prize for song lyrics on behalf of his son, Benjamin, who is currently living and studying in Japan as an off-campus student.

Songwriter Daniel Larkin received the People's Choice Award for his song titled "Just a Memory", while Dan Climpson received first prize in the People's Choice Award for photography. Stephanie Haussler rounded out the popular winners, taking second place in the People's Choice Award for photography with her photo, titled: "UNE – Where You Make Friends For Life".

Ms Stevenson congratulated all the entrants on the high quality of their work, and said she was impressed with the way they integrated the theme of the competition into their creative works.

"I wanted students to explore what it means to have a healthy relationship and to convey that to their peers in a creative way," Ms Stevenson said. "I also wanted to encourage creativity as a way of stressing less and of feeling connected to UNE.

"I think that when a message is being conveyed from one student to another, it can often be more powerful and meaningful than when it is conveyed by someone that students don’t necessarily identify with."

You can listen to Benjamin Wales' prize-winning song, "Healthy Relationships at UNE" by clicking here to download the MP3 file.

Posted by Leon Braun at October 12, 2007 05:56 PM