AN award that encourages young Scots to explore and express their own personal values is opening its doors to older contributors.
The John Byrne award offers a showcase as well as cash prizes to creative young people working in a range of media from painting, illustration and writing to video, audio and music.
Previously open to 16-19 year olds, the award will now accept work from anyone aged 16-26. Entries are accepted and exhibited 365 days a year on a website, with a £100 prize for each month’s best entry and with £500 annual prizes and a £1,000 overall prize for the best pieces of work that year.
Entries by young people representing creative expression of their guiding principles and ideals, must be accompanied by a 200-word explanation of the values they express and why.
Starting next week The Herald is to team with the Iris Initiative, the charity which runs the awards, to showcase the Highlight of the Month.
Artist and playwright John Byrne, who has given his name to the awards, hailed the standard of entries as fantastic and said: “I am stunned by how much creativity, thought and personal experience go into them. Younger people are taking note of the world as they live and go from day to day. It’s wonderful, just wonderful.”
Crime author Ian Rankin, also praised the awards. He said: “You can take young people and say, I am going to try and get you to do sports or give you money for an art project, but this is a bigger thing. This competition is saying to young people: how do you feel about the way you’re being shaped by the world and the way the world is shaping you?
“How do you want to be shaped and what you do you want to present to the world? What lessons are you not getting at school or from parents or friends?
“How do you go out into the world not embarrassed, and present the real you to the world? Not a you that you think the world wants to see but the real you, the nuts and bolts you, mistakes and all. That’s what really interesting to me about The John Byrne Award.”
Comedian Al Murray said: “What it’s trying to do is connect people to creativity and the values behind it. And you cant argue with that, can you?”
Doctor Who star Peter Capaldi presented this year’s awards at a ceremony where he said the audience witnessed sensational work. “It was inspiring to see a new generation of painters, sculptors and playwrights take their first steps into the limelight. And exciting to look forward to what next year’s entrants will bring.”
Entries can be submitted at www.johnbyrneaward.org.uk and more information can be found via
https://twitter.com/johnbyrneaward or https://www.facebook.com/JohnByrneAward/
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