d'Overbroeck's College ISC

Past student launches own organic bars

2013-06-03T08:29:00.000-07:00

As well as running her own catering business (which includes supplying lunch for the sixth form) past student Steph Croft Simon has been busy creating her own healthy, organic bars.

Her "NOM" bars (naturally, organic matters) are organic, free from dairy and refined sugars and a good source of slow release energy. They are also extremely nutritious as they are coconut oil based, and full of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals.

Steph's NOM bars are due to go on sale at Planet Organic , the UK's largest organic supermarket, in July. She is also due to meet buyers from Tesco shortly so we'll keep you posted on the progress of her new products.

ISC Arts Festival Review

2013-04-30T02:13:00.005-07:00

Review by ISC student, David Guo

Last term ended at the ISC with the International Art Festival - lots of different culture art from different countries. The Art Festival of course has an art part. These showed differences between the different countries and different cultures. For example, one student drew a picture which was about the differences between Chinese and German people. He drew in comic form two pictures for each face to show reactions to the same thing, which showed how Chinese and Germans will have different ways to react to something. That was a very clever idea and now students will find out what the difference is between themselves and students from different cultures. It might help them to learn more about integration.

There was also a cooking competition. Some students made or brought their own country's food to the festival. That was also is a good way to integrate as students can get a deep impression about one country because of its food. It could also be a good talking topic for students.

Of course, there were also some performances about from the students' different countries. For example, some Russian students did a traditional Russian dance and some Chinese students sang a traditional Chinese song. There were also two performances from students of different nationalities who did a performance together. This performance showed that now the world is a globalised, people from different places need to and can work together.

In conclusion, the important thing is that in our school students need to communicate with others from different countries and learn about these cultures. That precious experience and knowledge for them, they will be very useful when the go to university and go to work. If they don't learn it now, they will have a big regret. And the International Art festival is already a great chance to learn about integration.

Join the Jig

2013-03-26T02:39:00.000-07:00

In the lead-up to St Patrick's Day last weekend (the patron saint of Ireland), the Irish pub chain O'Neill's held an event involving the whole of the UK, including Oxford, to attempt to beat the record of 'The most people Irish Dancing at the same time'.

Since the incorporation of Irish Dancing in our Christmas pantomime, I have been running an Irish Dancing sports club for the student's on Tuesday afternoons.

As soon as i heard about this event, i thought it would be a great opportunity for the students to get involved in something to do with the Oxford community, not just the d'Overbroeck's school community, and they were all equally excited and prepared for the challenge.

At 20:00 on Thursday 14th March, all of the O'Neill's pubs in the UK started the challenge at the same time in the hope of cumulatively beating the current record of 10,036.

We all had to dance a particular step continuously for five minutes, which is longer than you think!

Overall, we did not manage to beat the existing record however the students and myself had a lot of fun attempting.

During the evening there was a reporter from the Oxford Mail present who were particularly interested in our students and who also took a photo for the paper. This added to the experience for the 6 ISC girls as they were able to send an Oxford paper with an article and a photograph of themselves to their parents in their home country.

I am delighted that i have been able to give them this opportunity as they were very excitable and grateful and i have since had an extra two girls sign up for my class.

You can view the online version of the newspaper article by following the link:

http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/10294217.Pub_hopes_to_jig_its_way_into_the_record_books/

Lisa Gilmore

Administrative Assistance, Activities Coordinator and Irish Dance Teacher

Comic Relief/World Book Day

2013-03-26T02:38:00.000-07:00

On Friday 15th March, the students at the ISC got involved in fundraising attempts for British charity - Comic Relief.

Due to another recent UK event, World Book Day, we decided to combine the two as they both seemed causes worth celebrating.

Comic Relief's motto to encourage the fundraiser is 'Do something funny for money' so to try and fit in with this the students all had to come dressed up as a character from their favourite book.

Each student who came dressed up paid a donation towards Comic Relief, with the ones who didn't having to pay a higher 'forfeit' amount.

Students were encouraged to dress as characters from a book from their own country where possible, and during assembly particular students were asked to explain a bit about their character and their chosen book.

Melanie, the ISC administrator, also made cakes to be sold during break and lunch times.

Overall, we managed to raise an amazing £165.31 for Comic Relief!
Take a look at some of the pictures on our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/dOverbroecks-International-Study-Centre/53044674775?ref=hl#!/media/set/?set=a.10151516628074776.1073741826.53044674775&type=1

Mathemagicians!

2013-03-08T10:26:00.000-08:00

We are fantastically proud of our International Study Centre mathematicians who took their IGCSE Maths exam in January, after just one term of teaching.

Maths teacher, Ursula Boughton, was ecstatic to learn yesterday morning that her 16 students had achieved 82% A*-A Grades and a 100% pass rate!

Amazingly one student, Anna Yamshchikova, who has won a scholarship to our Sixth Form, gained 99%, with Kadence Lu and Xida Li just a couple of marks behind.

"Overall this is an incredible achievement" said Rob Dixon, who also teaches the students. "We are looking forward to seeing how the rest of the students do in the summer" said Ursula, adding that the students who have already taken the exam are now moving on to Further Maths.

International Women's Day

2013-03-08T10:25:00.000-08:00

This morning all the female ISC staff were greeted with flowers and cake from two very thoughtful students to celebrate International Women's Day.

Darya Naumchenko and Ingrid Marin generously gave each female staff member an individual box of flowers along with a cake for everyone to share.

International Women's Day is a celebration of respect, appreciation and love towards women to a celebration for women's economic, political and social achievements. It is celebrated all over the world especially in countries such as Romania and Russia.

More information about International Women's Day can be found by following the link to a promotion video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaf_X9qSeVY&feature=youtu.be

Jill Partridge, Melanie Johnson, Darya Naumchenko, Ingrid Marin, Helen Wood, Sandra Monger and Lisa Gilmore

Ice Skating Disco

2013-02-28T02:27:00.000-08:00

A review from ISC student Cathy Zhang

"Last Friday a group of us went to an ice skating disco which was an amazing experience that we all enjoyed a lot. I was the only one who had never skated before so I started with a really nervous motion. Larisa helped Sherry and I to walk and slide on our skates, teaching us to keep our legs straight to help glide better on the ice. It was quite difficult for us to keep balance at first.

When we dared to leave the edge of the ice skating rink, Lisa helped us to move apart, held our hands and skated with us. I found it was getting easier for me to control where my legs went, and I began to attempt going faster. I even started to be able to control the direction that I wanted to go. Suddenly, all the main lights went off and they were replaced with disco lights that reflected off the ice. Disco music also began playing and soon enough my confidence increased and I started skating as if I was flying. I went around the rink a couple of times increasing my speed and confidence until suddenly I lost my balance and couldn’t control where I was going. I then experienced my first fall on the ice! However, I was not the only one; Li fell over 8 times but still enjoyed himself!

I really enjoyed the experience and it is an activity I would like to do as I would love to improve on my new skills."

ISC Citizenship Trip - Royal Courts of Justice

2013-02-07T08:24:00.001-08:00

"d’Overbroeck’s is an interesting college. The College staff always make sure we make the best of our studies in the UK and that our time is spent usefully. Most of the time we study for our exams in the classrooms on various sites, but the College also organises some educational learning experiences for outside the classroom. Yesterday was one of these experiences.

All the students from the International Study Centre went to London to the Royal Courts of Justice for a mock trial workshop and tour. The whole trip was related to our Citizenship Studies and all four English and Citizenship teachers came with us – Sandra, Nyree, Anna and Dave. The day before the trip, all the students read through the script and got to know the story and their notes. This meant that we were already aware of the case and the characters which made it easier to follow and understand.

The students who had roles within the mock trial took their parts seriously and you could see they were experiencing new feelings and emotions. The students got more confident as the trial progressed, interacting with the other characters and asking questions.

After the mock trial, we were then taken on a tour around the whole building. We were all very excited as this is not an event that happens every day. We got to view the some of the many courtrooms within the building and also see how different Judge’s clothing has changed from centuries ago, to the present date.

I can honestly say that this was one of the best educational trips so far and in my opinion, d’Overbroeck’s College should continue to organise this activity for students in future years.

-Vivian Decheva. Aged 16 and from Bulgaria

ISC Citizenship Trip to the Royal Courts of Justice

2013-02-07T07:59:00.000-08:00

"After getting off the coach we all stood back for a moment to admire the Royal Courts of Justice. It had a gigantic door with an impressive number of steps leading up to it. We then entered the court, which was incredibly big on the inside. Lamps were hanging on a long chain coming from the high ceiling of the building. At first we had to pass through security and then we all followed the guide that showed us around the place until we arrived in the room in which our mock trial was to take place.

In the mock criminal the suspects (a teenager and a young adult) were played by Alberto and Sarah. The play was interesting and the staff provided costumes and wigs like those worn in a real court case. The room in which we performed was also interesting.

There were a vast number of seats and shelves of books ranging from 18^th century to now. After the mock trial had finished, we had a tour of the court when we had the opportunity to see some real trials taking place and saw judges discussing with each other outside the rooms. "

by Luca from Switzerland

Student Profile: Julia

2013-02-07T01:08:00.003-08:00

Julia originally joined us for one year GCSE programme and is now studying A level Biology, Chemisty, Maths, Psychology and preparing for her IELTS exam in the Sixth Form.

“To study abroad has always been my dream and I always knew the UK was the best choice to accomplish it. My adventure started at the International Study Centre at d’Overbroeck’s. I must say, it was the best experience I ever had in my entire life. The pupils and teachers surrounding me were substitutes of my family back home. They helped me to achieve my goals in a friendly, home-like environment. I am eternally grateful to the members of the staff and friends who supported me.

Oxford, in my opinion, is one of the best places to study A-levels or GCSEs. It is a peaceful city where everything is neatly organised around you. As a result, you do not need to struggle to find anything. The family I live with is absolutely great. They are warm and nice people who always help me if I run into any problems, They prepare very tasty food and they try to maintain a balanced healthy diet for me and other students who also share the house.

d’Overbroeck’s is a place where you come to study and work hard to achieve the best you can. A place with a supportive and fun team of teachers. The best thing about being here is actually being here. As you can challenge yourself a lot. “

ISC Bowling Trip

2013-02-04T09:56:00.001-08:00

Last week we held our annual Bowling Night for the International Study Centre students.

Twenty plus students along with three staff members made their way down the the Ozone Leisure Park in Oxford for an evening of fun and games.

The students were spread over four bowling lanes, from there they battled it out to find the ISC's top scorer.

This was a totally new experience for some students, who enjoyed finding the most suitable sized and weighted bowling balls and managing to throw the ball down the lane without it getting disqualified for crossing over the foul line or having a ball in the gutter.

For the more experienced bowlers, this was an opportunity to try out new skills and techniques whilst improving their speed and aiming for 'Strikes' and 'Spares'.

The clear winner of all 3 competitions was Iskandar Mammedzada from Azerbaijan who impressed us with super speeding bowling and tricks such as spinning and curving the ball.

After the bowling sessions had finished and the students had eaten, the battle continued in the arcade. From the basketball shootout, to the motorbikes, car rallying and the dance mat the students' had their fair share of fun. Nothing but smiling faces and energetic discussions on the mini bus drive home - the true sign of a successful evening out!

ISC Business Studies students visit Cibo!

2013-01-08T05:49:00.000-08:00

As part of their GCSE our Business Studies students have to research a local business and write a report on how to improve its competitiveness. For many international students this is the first time they have produced coursework and so is a very valuable project in terms of building the skills for sixth form and university. At the end of last term our students visited Cibo!, a very popular local Italian restaurant in Summertown, which is the subject of their project. They are pictured here with one of the owners, Antony Di Pinto, after they had been learning about the restaurant trade. Mr Di Pinto talked to the students about all aspects of the business and was kind enough to provide the students with some of Cibo’s excellent wood fired pizzas. Many thanks to him and his partner for their help and cooperation which was much appreciated. The students are now busy working on their reports which include recommendations on new ways the business might promote itself.

ISC Winter Celebrations

2012-12-19T02:19:00.000-08:00

Last week the students from the International Study Centre started off the Winter Celebrations by performing their annual Pantomime. All of the students were involved in one way or another, whether it being a main acting role, singing in the choir, performing in the band or part of our backstage crew. The students had less than 4 weeks preparation for this event which was held at the Old Fire Station Theatre in Oxford City Centre. Every Tuesday and Thursday after lessons, the students split into their groups to rehearse scenes or practise music or paint some scenery. There were even some additional rehearsals on a couple of Sundays as the students wanted to ensure they put on a good show. The pantomime was a complete sell out within days!. The audience was made up of supportive host families, student guardians , friends and staff. Iskandar and Fatima’s parents even flew over from Azerbaijan to watch this memorable performance. It was a fun filled evening of live music from our d’Overbroeck’s band, traditional Irish dancing and dancing toad stools! Not forgetting the leprechaun, fairies and elves, our fabulous dame Widow Twanky and our evil villain Lord Lir.

Student profile: Mattei Moreno-Gomez

2012-12-13T07:57:00.000-08:00

Mattei in make-up ready for his role as Evil Lord Lir in the International Study Centre's pantomime.

Mattei joined us age 14 from France. He chose to study at d’Overbroeck’s College because he felt there was “a real community feel and pleasant atmosphere that I didn’t pick up from visiting any other schools.”

Mattei is currently living with one of our host families in Wolvercote and says that the family “cares for him and makes you feel comfortable and at home.” Along with participating in many of the ISC trip and activities, Mattei enjoys spending his time at music and drama clubs in Oxford. Mattei’s future ambition is to perform on stage and/or become a music composer.

Mattei recently starred as the villain, Evil Lord Lir, in the ISC’s Annual Pantomime, whilst also playing Bass Guitar in the band. “Being involved in the pantomime was extremely fun. Everyone worked together really was and as a team we produced great results. The Old Fire Station was a great location.” Mattei enjoys studying at the International Study Centre which he calls “his own little family.”

Mattei plans to return to France once he has finished his GCSEs to complete his French International Baccalaureate and then hopes to attend a Music or Drama College.

At the moment Mattei is studying GCSE Biology, History, English as a Second Language, Geography, Maths, Citizenship, P.E and PSHE

Student focus: Ingrid Marin

2012-12-01T12:38:00.003-08:00

In the coming weeks we will be featuring some of our GCSE students to give you an insight into life at the International Study Centre. We start with Ingrid Marin.

Ingrid joined us at the age of 15 from Romania. Ingrid chose to study with us because she felt it was ‘a College that would fit my needs and provide a better education and a better future.’ She says that "d'Overbroeck's is an amazing school. The thing I like most is how the teachers make you love the subjects as much as they do and make you study because you want to not because you have to."

Ingrid is currently living at Bensons, our all-girls boarding accommodation and says she especially enjoys the "great food and environment."

Along with participating in many of the ISC trip and activities, especially Dance Club, Ingrid enjoys spending time with her friends in Oxford, which she describes as a ‘very beautiful city’. She also likes that "it is filled with students just like me, from all over the world."

At GCSE Ingrid is studying Maths, English as a First Language, English as a Second Language, Chemistry, Physics, Biology, German, Citizenship, PSHE and P.E.

Ingrid is thinking of taking Sociology, Economics, Maths and Politics at A level and hopes to go to study at UCL later on.

National costumes on display at assembly

2012-11-23T06:05:00.003-08:00

Kostya Tropillo, 15 from Russia

The ISC assembly today was organised by students belonging to King Alfred (one of the student houses at the International Study Centre). It involved students discussing their own countries and comparing national cultures.

Kostya delighted us as he came dressed as a Cossack in traditional Russian costume.

Kostya has managed to inspire all the other students to follow suit as they have all said that they will bring examples of their national costumes after they return home from the Christmas holidays.

We are very much looking forward to seeing all their outfits and learning more about different cultures next term at our International Arts Festival.

Latest photos from the ISC

2012-10-31T03:20:00.001-07:00

We have just had some new photos taken of some of this year's ISC students in their lessons and thought you would be interested in seeing some of them. More on their way soon!

Thorpe Park

2012-10-25T03:21:00.000-07:00

The students from the International Study Centre and the Sixth Form recently took part in the annual trip to Thorpe Park.

The total combined number of students reached nearly 80 students including 8 members of staff from across the College.

During the journey our in-coach entertainment consisted of various renditions of Happy Birthday directed at one of our ISC students, Lera, who was celebrating her 15th birthday.

Within seconds of entering the park, our students rushed to be the first ones in the queues for the rides!

The students enjoyed a fun filled 8 hours of adrenalin pumping rollercoasters, head-to-toe drenching water rides, arcades and amusements!

Despite Britain's unpredictable weather in the week leading up, we were blessed with not a single drop of rain and sunshine and clouds - what more could we have asked for?

All the students showed an exceptional punctuality throughout the day and were a credit to the College.

The Italian Job (ISC Style)

2012-09-19T05:14:00.001-07:00

At the end of last term, 30 students and five teachers journeyed to the Bay of Naples and Amalfi Coast region of Italy for the International Study Centre's first ever trip abroad. Our base was the tourist Mecca of Sorrento, but unlike the thousands of idle sun-worshippers, we were there to take part in an academically rigorous study trip. Our itinerary featured daily excursions to an exhausting range of historical and geological sites (and it was entirely incidental that a stunning beach was located only five minutes from the hotel!).

Apart from enjoying a quick dip in the Mediterranean every evening, we also managed to enjoy some incredible scenery, including the bizarre sulphur vents of Solfatara, where our geography teacher Jill Partridge lead us past jets of steam hissing from underground fissures. She also led us to the top of Vesuvius to enjoy an awesome vista of Naples and the archaeological wonders of Pompei and Herculaneum. While taking in the view, we had to keep one eye on the crater behind – Vesuvius is an active volcano and due to erupt again at any time!

Fortunately, we also had the opportunity to see Herculaneum up close the next day. Although smaller than Pompei, it is extremely well preserved and still large enough to keep you busy for hours. We then stopped at the Flavian Amphitheatre. Although it was closed, we could still get an excellent view from outside - luckily, ISC director Helen Wood was well informed enough to act as an unofficial guide.
Our final excursion was to the island of Capri, where we took a Riva ('the Ferrari of the boat world') trip to the rugged, limestone cliff formations. When the temperature got as high as forty, we were forced to take refuge in the cooling waters of a beautiful, blue cove. Definitely the highlight of the trip. Next year? Well, we never did make it to Pompei, so maybe we should just go back. On the other hand, I've heard that the South of France is pretty nice, too. And what about Spain? Wherever we go, it will be hard to beat the Bay of Naples.

Open doors & cream tea!

2012-09-17T04:21:00.001-07:00

On the first trip of this academic year our new students at the ISC took part in the Oxford Open Doors event on Sunday 9th September.

Students had the opportunity to see beyond the doors of some of the most famous University Colleges including Magdalen, Merton, New College, Queen's & All Soul's.

A walk around Christchurch College meadow and seeing the geese down by the river was also part of the fun on this sunny Sunday afternoon!

After an afternoon of visiting Oxford colleges time for some cream tea at Brown’s where students got to learn the etiquette of how to eat those lovely scones!

Gabby and Julia – a talk with our Lithuanian students at our International Study Centre

2012-07-03T09:20:00.000-07:00

"A couple of weeks before they took their GCSE exams, I had a chat with our two Lithuanian students about life in Oxford and studying at d’Overbroeck’s College. Both Gabby and Julia joined the International Study Centre (ISC) in September 2011 and have been fantastic students to have studying with us.

Their choice to come and study in the UK was based on recommendations and an appreciation that Britain is highly regarded in Lithuania and around the world for its great education system. So the next step was to choose a college and with the help of an educational advisor and some online research they decided to apply to d’Overbroeck’s because of its position within the top independent schools in the country and the immense support given to international students.

When asked to compare d’Overbroeck’s to their previous schools in Lithuania, the girls told me that they were impressed with how organized our College is and with the huge amount of information they absorb in the lessons. They love the fact that, here, they are only about 10-12 students in a class compared to 30 or more in Lithuania – and they both agree that this factor contributes a lot to their successful learning. They also love their teachers at the ISC because they are truly interested in the students and give them a lot of support in and outside of the classroom - something they didn’t use to have back at their schools in Lithuania.

Gabby (left) and Julia outside d'Overbroeck's College International Study Centre

Gabby and Julia are both hard-working girls, and very intelligent as well. We spent some time talking about politics in their country and the differences between Lithuania and the UK, and I was pleased to find two teenage girls that are very aware of the world they live in. They also seem to enjoy being in Oxford, and when asked about it they both agreed that it is a great city to study in because it is not too busy and not too big. They like the fact that they can easily meet up with friends for a walk or for lunch in the weekends, or even after doing their homework after dinner. They don’t have to travel far and everybody is within easy reach.

One important question that I was really looking forward to hear the answer to was how they felt about studying in the International Study Centre as opposed to studying with British students. Gabby and Julia confessed that at first they weren’t entirely sure what it would be like but now they cannot imagine having studied anywhere else. They thought that studying with other international students at this stage made their transition easier and a much richer experience in overall.

It was a very good chat, though it had to be quite a short one as they had to head back to class for their exam preparation. However, I am sure I will be seeing them a lot still as they have both been accepted to our Sixth Form. They will be starting their A levels this September, joining in with other successful students from our ISC as well as many new day and boarding British and international students.
Since our meeting, Gabby and Julia have graduated from our ISC with excellent grades all across the board. And, they both joined the ISC’s end-of-year exploration trip to Naples – something we will look to hear more on one of our next blog entries. "

Debora Brand

Trial by Jury!

2012-02-29T08:18:00.000-08:00

As part of a Citizenship Studies field trip to the Royal Courts of Justices in London, two students from the ISC were put on mock trial. For the event, students played the parts of defendants, witnesses, barristers, jury and judge - all in a real courtroom.

After the hearing, the jury decided that the two defendants, played by Larry Wang and Dmitry Zharkov, were guilty as charged. Judge William Edwards passed down the maximum sentence possible for the charge: a two year supervision order, with day release for schooling.

The event was organised by the NCCL, a charity dedicated to raising awareness of the law among young people. Johanna Gummel, NCCL Co-ordinator, said of the trial: 'There was definitely a split jury. Although most assumed the defendants were guilty, a few thought the evidence did not suggest that this was beyond reasonable doubt and took a long time to be convinced.'

After the trial, students then went on to a variety of other locations, depending on their subject choices. Art students visited Tate Modern, History students went to the British Museum and Business Studies students checked out the new Museum of Brands.

ISC Bowling Night

2012-02-09T02:51:00.000-08:00

Wednesday was our annual bowling trip. 28 students and 3 staff journeyed to the Ozone Centre to take part in this tense, winner takes all tournament.

Unfortunately, some contestants fell at the first obstacle: acquiring shoes. Of course, you can't borrow those silly shoes that you have to wear for bowling unless you are already wearing socks! Fortunately, the bowling alley rents socks just in case of such emergencies.

World class athletes require high energy food to maintain muscles and replace energy burned during intense athletic pursuits. And so do lazy, 'couch potato' students. So our first stop was the snack counter, where we were shocked to be told, after ordering our nacho cheese Doritos, that we would have to wait half an hour to collect them. To kill time, we decided to start bowling.

Various interesting techniques were on display. Some of them were controversial, such as Dmitri Zharkov's 'rolling thunder' approach, whereby the ball is hurled as hard as possible in order to ensure maximum kinetic energy upon impact. Another unconventional technique was Amy Wan's 'dribble bowl', in which the ball is actually bounced down the alley, causing the maximum possible damage to the expensive, polished wooden floor.

Ultimately, 'rolling thunder' proved the most effective approach, as Dmitri won the highest score of the evening – a total of 97 points. Well done, Dima! Coming in second was Sai Chananithitham, with 82 points. Congratulations to Sai for attaining the highest score for a girl on the night.

Unfortunately, there are still some members of the team still in need of further training, as Yuyang Zhang only managed to attain 27 points. Punishment for Yuyang was being forced to wear those silly bowling shoes to school for the rest of the week! Dima, can you teach her 'rolling thunder' next time?

Out and About Club 2

2012-02-09T02:32:00.000-08:00

Wildlife Photographer of the Year - a trip to Science Oxford

The 'Out and Abouter’s' all trundled off to St Clements to be inspired by the best of the best in wildlife photography. Science Oxford is currently hosting this year’s exhibition in Oxford - a fantastic display of amazing photography which made us feel as though we had travelled to the ends of the ends of the earth.

Here is a sample of just a few highlights from the trip, the exhibition continues until the 10th March, and is well worth a visit!

'The Charge'

This charging herd of Muskoxen were captured on Victoria Island, Canada – Highly commended

'Pelican Perspective'

Bence Mate took this in Lake Kerkini in Northern Greece, winning the Eric Hosking portfolio award 2011

'Sleeping Infant'

Chimpanzees in the Mahale Mountains national park in Tanzania – Highly commended

Out and About Club

2012-02-06T03:22:00.000-08:00

On Thursday afternoons, Annie and a small group of students from the ISC go out and about in Oxford, to discover all of the cultural delights the city has to offer.

Recently they all went to The Ashmoleon Museum to visit the Kabuki Art Exhibition featuring work by Japanese artists Kunisada and Kunichika.

Kabuki is a popular theatre from Japan, which has been captivating audiences since the early 1600s. Kabuki theatre involves singing, dancing and colourful costumes. It has often been considered as being rather ‘bizarre’ and ‘avant-garde’.

Kabuki artists Kunisada and Kunichika have brought the sense of this theatre to life by portraying the famous actors in their elaborate costumes and make-up. The woodblock prints are brilliantly coloured, and really capture a sense of the main characteristics of each persona. The fine differences between characters are defined by the contrast in the tonality of colours used, as well as the diversity of clothing and especially their facial expressions.

ISC student Jack Hu decided that his favourite print was The Catfish Priest by Kunisada (1852)

Another favourite was 'The actor Nakamura Shikan IV as a fisherman' (below).

ISC Student Dasha Zhukova writes:

"'The actor Nakamura Shikan IV as a fisherman' shows an amazing actor who could play any role whether a villain or brave man or even beautiful heroines. This print expresses all Shikan’s roles, his eyes glow abnormally, and the picture presents us with the actor and helps us to be involved in this play. The print is a half-length portrait, not a traditionally full-length portrait. Its background is black, the artist shows us just the shoulders and the head of the actor. This print shows the best way of expressing the actor’s performances and also these new-format prints brought fans much closer to their favourite stars. "