Stained glass windows created by a group of teenage artists took pride of place at an Oxford school’s summer show.
And the artwork will be on display at Cheney School, Headington, for just a week, as the two glass panels have been bought by property developer Segro to hang at its UK headquarters.
A group of 12 pupils at the school won a chance to work with artist Sarah Ebdon earlier this year after being selected as one of 10 schools in the South East of England in the Segro Young Artists Programme 2009.
The work produced by all 10 schools went on display at the Royal Society of Artists in London – but Segro chose just two pieces of artwork to hang permanently on the walls of its offices.
Cheney head of art Michelle Johnson said: “The children were so excited when they saw the work at the Royal Society in a really prestigious gallery.
“And while they did want to keep it, they were delighted when they found out that Segro wanted to buy the work.”
Parents, fellow pupils and staff had an opportunity to inspect the work at the summer show at the school last Friday before it had to be returned to Segro to its new permanent home.
It was the first time the mix of year eight, 12 and 13 pupils had worked with stained glass.
They produced two panels roughly A2 in size, one showing a head bursting with ideas, represented as yellow and orange strands flowing out to the second panel, which depicts a city lit up by the orange and yellow ideas.
Mrs Johnson said the school had now bought materials and equipment so that other pupils would be able to try their hand at producing stained glass.
Segro will pay the school £300 per piece, which will be ploughed back into the art department.
Ruth O’Leary, 17, from Cowley, was one of the group involved.
She said: “We were ecstatic to sell it, but at the same time we wanted to keep it, having put so much time and effort into it.”
And Ellie Johnson-Bullock, 17, from East Oxford, added: “It’s quite cool to have your first piece of work commissioned by Segro and bought by them as well.”
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