#climateemergency: City of Glasgow College Schools Design Competition

#climateemergency: City of Glasgow College Announces Schools Design Competition Winners

In December 2020, City of Glasgow College (COGC) launched an exciting jewellery design competition for secondary school pupils across Scotland based around the theme #climateemergency. The competition challenged the students who took part to consider the environmental theme to create a pendant that incorporated their interpretation of the threat of climate change on the world. The competition was launched by COGC to raise awareness of climate change and to encourage students’ interest in design, specifically jewellery design. Over 300 students entered the competition, with a range of innovative and imaginative designs. City of Glasgow College recently announced the winners of this competition, whose designs for the pendants are featured below.

Judging for the competition was done by Ebba Goring, Director of the Scottish Goldsmiths Trust, and Peter Crump, VP of Vipa Designs and Chair of Goldsmiths Craft and Design Council.

S1-S3 Category

In the S1-S3 category, the judges selected Mirin Scott of Carluke High School as the winner. Her design highlights the threat climate change poses to bees becoming endangered.

Designs by Mirin Scott

S4-S6 Category

In the S4-S6 category, the judges selected Grace Anderson from Blairgowrie High School for her pendant emphasising the urgency of time as it relates to our response to climate change.

Design by Grace Anderson

Lisa McGovern, Curriculum Head for Craft and Design at City of Glasgow College, said:

“We had over 300 entries for the competition and the standard was really high. Mirin and Grace are two very worthy winners, and they should both be extremely proud of their winning designs. The world’s young people are rightly vocal about climate change, so this was a very topical theme for the competition. All the pupils who picked up a pencil and thought about their planet, their future and channelled it in such a creative way, are winners. There is hope and their teachers should be proud.”

Grace and Mirin’s designs will now be printed in the workshops at City of Glasgow College, and will then be cast and turned into silver pendants using recycled silver by Vipa Designs.

Ebba Goring, Director of the Scottish Goldsmiths Trust, said:

“Thank you to Lisa McGovern for asking me to be one of the judges. I was so impressed and inspired by the entries and congratulate all who took part as well as the fantastic winners. I hope the entrants are also inspired to follow a career in Jewellery or Silversmithing, there is clearly a great deal of skill and talent here in Scotland’s schools. This project is a great way for young people to express concerns about the threat of climate change and think about sustainable and responsible making. I look forward to seeing the winning designs in recycled silver.

The full list of winners and runner-ups:

S1-S3 Category

Winner: Mirin Scott, Carluke High School

Second: Amna Naveed, S3, Holyrood High School

Joint Third: Archie Titterington, S2, Portobello High School, and Calum Gillespie, S2, McLaren High School

Designs by Amna Naveed, Archie Titterington and Calum Gillespie

S4-S6 Category

Winner: Grace Anderson, S4, Blairgowrie High School

Second: Evie Brightey, S6, Belmont House School

Third: Kitty Styles, S4, Trinity Academy

Designs by Evie Brightey, Kitty Styles

Highly Commended: Bethany Dewar, S3, Beath High School, with Deivids Vietnieks, S3, Blairgowrie High School, Luke Forbes, S3, and Hannah Brown, S3, of Bertha Park High School