Burns Exhibition: Growing artists, building confidence

Published on 06 August 2026

Having work chosen for the George Burns Memorial Exhibition at the Forrester Art Gallery is a true marker of art class success at St Kevin’s College.

When Head of Faculty of the Arts Sara Plunkett tells her seniors their work has been selected for the Burns, they just get “an absolute buzz out of it. They think it’s amazing their work gets to go in the exhibition. They’re so proud of it”.

Sara, who teaches all visual arts at the school, builds the Year 9 and 10 courses around the exhibition, and the students love it.

“I call it exhibition art and the whole point of the course is to develop skills in visual art and, by the end of it, produce something that is worthy of exhibition. It is quite prestigious for them – it has to be well finished and really presentable for that gallery situation.”

Some of her students are so keen they turn up at lunchtimes to work on their projects because they want their work in the Burns exhibition so much.

“They were so excited about it. They were like ‘how can make this better, what can I do next’ kind of thing, which was really amazing.”

Sara said many of her students go on to study art at tertiary level. Former St Kevin’s College Art students have gone on to study tertiary courses throughout the country in Visual Art and Design, Architecture, Filmmaking, Screen Arts, Fashion and Textiles.

“And it’s not just visual arts that the Burns Memorial is growing in our community. It’s more than that. They start off it’s just a painting, or a collage that they’ve done as a class. That’s the beginning … But it builds.”

She knows teachers are busy and that entering the exhibition is another thing to organise in an already stretched schedule, but she loves it because “it really gives the kids motivation to make art – spend the extra time, come back at lunchtime, make it perfect”.

When her classes have the chance to visit the Forrester Art Gallery to view the exhibition  they always absolutely love it, she said.

“They love seeing the younger kids’ (Burns exhibition) work too.

“And (especially) now that they’ve got that new part (Forrester Gallery extension) – which is absolutely fantastic – it’s just another level.”

The 14-year teaching veteran shifted to Oamaru in 2007 from Auckland, and raised her children here. On a personal level, she said the Burns Memorial exhibition was amazing for her children as budding artists, giving them the chance to have their work shown in an art gallery. Right through primary school and high school, her children were involved in Burns.

“Just the prestige of getting into the art gallery, it just gives the kids such confidence.”

Importance of art

As an art teacher and someone who loves all forms of art, Sara believes the exhibition is really important. “I really think things like this are so beneficial for our community, and for the kids, especially the younger ones where you’ve got the whole class making art and it encourages teachers at primary school level to do art with the students.”

Sara said making art an everyday part of a student’s life at a young age is beneficial in many ways. It can help hand-eye co-ordination, provide time off screens, support fine motor skills, and more, she added.

Because of the use of technology and less hands-on play, such as building blocks or threading beads, children’s fine motor skills are not as strong as they used to be, according to studies over the past decade.

The studies, including Bakht et al. (2025) – Systematic Review (24 studies), show that when screen time displaces activities that strengthen hand muscles, co-ordination and dexterity, it can contribute to slower fine motor development.

Sara also sees art as a way to support mental health. “Personally, I find an art process of working with your hands is a really great way for you to be doing something while your subconscious does something else,” Sara said.

“You’re kind of keeping your hands busy and allowing yourself a more meditative state to deal with things. For some of our students who may not be as enthusiastic about other subjects, the art room and the arty subjects are really kind of like a haven for them.”

Burns is an extension of that, displaying the quality of work that comes out of those experiences in the art class.

“What is a community if it doesn’t have the arts?” – Sara Plunkett