Young pupils' art on display in National Gallery

Pupils from a Kent school say they are proud and excited that a piece of their artwork is on display at London's National Gallery.

Youngsters from Luton Primary School in Chatham won a competition that attracted thousands of entries from across more than 400 schools.

Yoel, eight, said he was "very proud" of himself and his classmates, while Zimal, eight, said she was excited she could visit the gallery with her best friends.

"We are so excited and so incredibly proud of the children," said head teacher Liz Gamet. "Their artwork being in the National Gallery is an achievement beyond anything that we could have dreamed."

The Year Two collaborative piece was selected as part of the Take One Picture programme and is now displayed alongside works by artists including Picasso and Van Gogh.

The competition sees the National Gallery pick one piece from its collection for primary school pupils to take inspiration from. This year it was Canaletto's Regatta on the Grand Canal.

The winning artwork was a building where each student designed an individual window.

Staff and pupils at the school went on a school trip to visit their work earlier in July.

Gamet said: "We take part in the Take On Picture programme every year with the hopes that something might make its way to the National Gallery and this year we've achieved it."

Darius, eight, said it was a very fun day and he enjoyed "working as a team".

Kiara, also eight, said it felt "like a dream".

The school devoted a full off-timetable week to creating their own masterpiece based on the work, with students collectively creating over 500 pieces of art.

Their art teacher, David Frankum, picked the entry to submit to the gallery.

He said: "It's very much a 'pinch yourself' moment.

"I've seen it several times in the gallery now and the effect hasn't gone away at all. It's still as exciting now as it was the first time I saw it."

A second piece is now displayed at the Royal Academy of Arts as part of The Young Artists' Summer Show.

There were more than 25,000 applicants, with a sculpture from a Year 5 pupil, called The Big Dream chosen.

Both pieces will be on display over the summer.

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