On display at the Armory Gallery in Sydney Olympic Park, the artwork has now also beaten over 730 initially selected works to win a place in the ‘Touring 50’ – it will go on a regional city tour before being exhibited at the Art Gallery of NSW and then finally be permanently exhibited at The Sydney Children’s Hospital Westmead.
Zain said: “I really liked the view looking up through the trees crisscrossing near the school hall.
“There was a crackle of cockatoos perched there. After I drew it, I realised how nice it was and developed my drawing into a mixed media artwork. I used different types of paper and cardboard; some layers are coloured paper, some painted and some are a combination.”
Art teacher Sophia Alexiadis said they were proud of Zain who was an extremely talented student.
“Not only was he thrilled when his artwork was chosen to live permanently at the Sydney Children’s Hospital to cheer up sick children but his parents told me that Zain’s grandfather was especially touched and proud,” she said.
“Zain’s grandfather and other family members spent time at the Children’s Hospital when Zain’s uncle was a patient there as a child years ago and he still remembers the uplifting hospital art gallery.”
Artwork wins place at hospital to cheer up sick
IT started out as a simple playground sketch but now Chullora Public School Year 5 student Zain El Assad’s mixed media artwork, ‘A Crackle of Cockatoos in the Playground’, has been selected in the 2023 Operation Art competition.
