We are so pleased to be able to share with you all, our winners of Humanimal Trust's Creative Awards 2023!
Over 110 seven to eighteen-year-olds took on the challenge to get creative for this year’s British Science Week, which was centred around the theme of Connections. Entries consisting of visual art and written work, celebrating the connections between humans and animals, were submitted by children and young people not just in the UK, but in countries such as Austria, South Africa and South Korea.
Entries from each age category (7-11 years, 12-14 years, 15-16 years and 17-18 years) were judged by a panel consisting of Humanimal Trust's founder Professor Noel Fitzpatrick, world history author and storyteller, Christopher Lloyd, and publisher and editor-in-chief of What on Earth Books, Nancy Feresten, all of whom were extremely impressed with the standard of entries.
The winners will receive prizes, including bundles of books, a signed copy of 'Vetman' by Professor Noel Fitzpatrick and online shopping vouchers.
Joe Bailey, CEO of Humanimal Trust, said: “We were completely blown away by the number and quality of entries we received from children and young people around the world. From short stories and poems to artwork, photography and videos, the care and attention that was put into each and every entry was simply incredible and the love that these young people have for animals really came to life. It made our judges’ job extremely difficult!
“It fills me with joy that all of our entrants truly appreciate how much better life is together and that the future will be far greater if we take responsibility and show kindness, compassion and love for all beings.”
Rachel Jackson, Schools Education Manager of Humanimal Trust, said:“Through these Creative Awards, we really hoped to inspire future generations to think more inclusively and compassionately about animals in all forms, and to open their minds to the amazing connections humans have with animals. We are so delighted with the response to our first Creative Awards that we have decided to make this an annual competition and we’re already looking at ways to invite even more young people to get involved next year. We’d like to thank every single young person who entered – you’re all winners in our eyes and we can’t wait to see your entries next year.”
Thank you to everyone who entered the Creative Awards 2023 and we can't wait to share the other entries with you as each, and everyone, was incredible and we are so proud of the children and young adults who took part. From seeing the entries, we know our future is in good hands!
Winners of the 7-11 yr category
1st place - Marcus from Austria for artwork;
A Message from Marcus:
'Hello, I am Marcus, 8 years old, living in Austria. I painted this picture with markers, watercolor and
white acrylic paint as a highlighter.
I want to show the lonely, sad boy looking into the pond, and in reflection, he sees the beautiful world
shared by humans and animals. If we do not value animals’ life, then we will lose the beautiful world and
only get to miss it'.
CLICK HERE TO SEE MARCUS'S WINNING ENTRY
2nd place - Bernard from the UK for video;
A Message from Bernard:
'This is a stop-motion video to show connections between human and animal on a mental level and their impact (inspired by therapy dogs)'.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH BERNARD'S WINNING ENTRY
3rd place - Jessamie from the UK for a short story.
A Message from Jessamie:
When I was a little girl I knew in my heart what it was like to be all the animals that have ever lived, even those that are extinct or mythical. I know how they think and feel and smell. I plan to be a writer and vet in the future. When I was younger I wrote the first draft of this story - it’s sort of about me. Jessamie, age 9.
CLICK HERE TO READ JESSAMIE'S WINNING ENTRY
Winners of the 12-14 yr category
1st place Davonique from South Africa for video;
CLICK HERE TO SEE DAVONIQUE'S WINNING VIDEO
2nd place - Haum from South Korea for artwork;
A Message from Haum:
'Title: Harmony
In order to express the coexistence of humans and animals, I drew that a human girl plays the violin,
animals are appreciating the her performance and sing along with everyone, so that they look friendly.
And I painted the background with various colors using water color, and for the animals with color
pencils to look cute like cartoon characters. I wanted to show the beautiful harmony between nature
and human beings'.
CLICK HERE TO SEE HAUM'S WINNING ENTRY
3rd place - Aisling from the UK for artwork.
A Message from Aisling:
'My art piece is called "Boy on leaping lion". This is a digital art that I've created with my art pad, using Krita.
My inspiration is about the habitats of lions shrinking due to humans needing the space to grow crops. I
wanted to express that people and animals can co-exist together. The photo shows a boy sitting on the
lion's back and they are leaping into the bright sun together, into tomorrow, into the future'.
CLICK HERE TO SEE AISLING'S WINNING ENTRY
Winners of the 15-16 yr category
1st place - Andrei from the UK for artwork;
A Message from Andrei:
Title - An Escape
'This painting is 120x150cm. I painted this on my bedroom's drywall with acrylic.
The mural depicts a young boy riding a horse bareback. The horse is rearing up dramatically in a flat
and empty field full of flowers.
I love this painting because it transports my mind elsewhere. Along the edges of the painting, I drew
cracks and bricks to give the impression that you are looking through a hole in my wall. This painting
allows me to escape boredom and monotony in my room by depicting this beautiful moment between
humans and animals just beyond my room's walls. To me, this painting is a constant reminder of the
beautiful relationship between animals and humans and the joy we bring each other'.
CLICK HERE TO SEE ANDREI'S WINNING ENTRY
2nd place – Rachel from the UK for artwork,
A Message from Rachel:
'Title - 'Saved' - I wanted to create a piece where I could capture the harsh realities of animal cruelty in the medical and cosmetic industry through art. In my piece, I have used fire to symbolise the destructive and harmful nature of the medical and cosmetic industry to show the detrimental effect it has on our animals. I have specifically chosen a dog to present this as I want the viewers to imagine their very own pets in this situation like the thousands of animals that are every day. In my piece, I have used a fireman to symbolise organisations such as the Humanimal Trust who fight this very issue, to symbolise the kindness of humans, to symbolise the beautiful connection we share with our animals'.
CLICK HERE TO SEE RACHEL'S WINNING ENTRY
3rd place – Eden from the UK for artwork.
A Message from Eden:
'The title of my piece is Parasitism. I wanted to portray the lack of symbiosis within the medicinal
fields, stealing health and knowledge from the wonderful animals around us and exploiting it for our
benefit. I built the base of my painting out of cardboard- all recycled- and built up in two segments. The
top is the tiger's domain, beautiful and elegant, surrounded in leaves, its biology and environment our
healthcare's basis. Below it lies a woman, dosing in a bed of pills. I want this piece to show how our
society lives in excess taking too much and not seeing the error of our ways, hence the closed eyes.
The pills themselves are made from packaging peanuts, and painted in the most iconic pill imagery, so
they are immediately recognisable. I hope this artwork conveys the inequality I feel in the relationship
of humans and animals, and my desire for change'.
CLICK HERE TO SEE EDEN'S WINNING ENTRY
Winners of the 17-18 yr category
1st place – Jasmine from the UK for artwork;
A Message from Jasmine:
'I wanted to show connections between humans and animals in my piece through the use of colour,
which I achieved through using coloured soft pastels. The lightest colour yellow is meant to show
highlights, red showing mid tones, and blue showing shadows. I decided to use colour to contrast
against the dark background, which I used charcoal, as well as white and grey chalk for. This colour
brought into our lives, as well as animals lives if treated kindly, is a magical and fulfilling experience of
unconditional love and connection'.
CLICK HERE TO SEE JASMINE'S WINNING ENTRY
2nd place – Apollo from the UK for artwork;
A Message from Apollo:
'Name of piece: Amalgam
For this piece, I solely used tonal pencils to create a drawing of this conglomerate image of a child and
sea life, and this sense of fusion accentuating the relationship between man and animal through this
hybridisation in the artwork'.
CLICK HERE TO SEE APOLLO'S WINNING ENTRY
3rd place – Daniel from the UK for artwork.
A Message from Daniel:
'Name : One and the Same the siphonophore is a symbol of connectivity, and I wanted to paint it as if it was the northern lights to
show the connections with humans and aquatic life. A figure is shown restoring a coral reef, the
connection of humans and animals in an optimistic lens'.