Ceci n’est pas une Magritte!

A penetrative analysis of René Magritte's "The Two Mysteries" won last weekend's hotly-contested final of the 2011 ARTiculation Prize, which challenges sixth formers to give a short presentation on a work of art. The event, which is run jointly by the Roche Court Educational Trust and the University of Cambridge and was hosted by Clare College, Cambridge, marked the climax of two months of heats involving 38 different schools. Each entrant is asked to give a five to 10 minute presentation on a work of art of their choice, and is judged on his or her ability to give the listeners a deeper insight into, and enthusiasm for, the artwork in question. Saturday's final formed part of a wider conference for students from the schools taking part, in which they were treated to a day at the University of Cambridge learning about art and architecture, and gaining some insight into what life as a student at Cambridge is like. More than 100 students heard talks from Deborah Howard, Professor of Architectural History; and Rupert Featherstone, Director of the Hamilton Kerr Institute for Art Conservation. There were also tours of gallery and college art collections around the University given by current undergraduates, before the seven ARTiculation finalists locked horns for the afternoon's contest, which was judged by Sir Christopher Frayling, Professor Emeritus of Cultural History at the Royal College of Art. After two hours of talks which took in sculpture, surrealism, romanticism, realism, and works ranging from the 16th century to the present, the first prize was awarded to Richard Freeland, from Winchester College, for his talk on "The Two Mysteries" by Magritte.