Athena Route, a year 12 student at Mater Dei College in Perth, won the Caritas Australia Perpetual Trophy at the 2020 Angelico Exhibition for her artwork entitled “The Value of Intangible Memories”.
This year, there were 166 primary entries and 150 secondary entries from 56 Catholic schools across Western Australia to the Angelico Exhibition.
The Angelico Exhibition for Catholic Students is named after Fra Angelico, the Italian Early Renaissance painter, and is a prestigious annual event on the Catholic school art calendar.
Athena was presented the award at the Catholic Education Office in Leederville by Catholic Education Western Australian (CEWA) Executive Director Dr Debra Sayce, Catholic Arts Chair Darryl Winsor, and Caritas Australia Social and Ecological Justice Animator for Western Australia Paul Reid.
Only award recipients, families, judges, teachers and sponsors were present due to COVID-19 social distancing measures.
“My artwork comments on the value of intangible memories in everyday life,” says Athena. “These memories bring feelings of warmth and comfort, emphasising the value of the memories that people cherish.”
The Caritas Australia Perpetual Trophy is awarded to artwork which reflects the Caritas Australia guiding principles of human dignity, preferential option for the poor, solidarity, subsidiarity and stewardship of the earth’s resources.
The winning artwork also demonstrates the 2020 theme “Go Further Together”, which recognises the need for people to work together towards a brighter future.
"Athena's artwork was an incredible creative piece that really encapsulated the 2020 theme 'Go Further Together'," says Paul Reid, the Caritas Australia Social and Ecological Justice Animator for Western Australia.
Caritas Australia is a member of Caritas Internationalis, one of the world’s largest humanitarian networks in the world with 169 agencies operating in over 200 countries and territories.
Media contact: Jessica Stone on 0490 684 867 / jessica.stone@caritas.org.au or caritasmedia@caritas.org.au.