A2 Fine Art student Emily Collard was recently shortlisted for the 2015 Saatchi Gallery/Deutsche Bank Art Prize. Emily's artwork, along with 19 other shortlisted pieces were exhibited at a private viewing at the Saatchi Gallery in London on the evening of Tuesday 28 April, with the exhibition closing on 4 May. All judges attended – the panel is made up of Lauren Child MBE, writer, illustrator and creator of 'Charlie and Lola'; Catherine Goodman, Artistic Director of The Royal Drawing Schools; Alistair Hicks, Art Advisor to Deutsche Bank; Nigel Hurst, CEO of the Saatchi Gallery and artist Richard Wilson.

Emily commented on the evening of the private viewing, "It was absolutely amazing to see my piece hanging on the wall of a London gallery. It felt a little bit surreal, especially walking up to it and hearing what people were saying about it! The evening was lovely because everyone was really admiring the other work and seeing the variety of talent and ideas was very inspirational. Although I didn't win, it was a wonderful experience simply to be in the final 20 and I will always remember it for many years to come!"

Richard Wilson commented in a personalised letter to Emily, "It was a most enjoyable and eye opening occasion selecting for the Saatchi Gallery Art Prize for Schools Exhibition. I saw each work as an achievement, for they were all linked to fundamental qualities of thinking - such as flexibility, ambiguity or unpredictability, and the enjoyment of things hitherto unknown. It is a brave act to exhibit work. Congratulations for this creative display."

Kirsty Ratcliffe, Subject Tutor for Fine Art said, “The night was a real pleasure to attend and one that will stay in my mind for a long time to come. It was great to see real diversity in all of the artworks and Emily's painting looked fantastic within a gallery setting. Many people admired Emily's painting and as a department we are incredibly proud - being shortlisted from over 20,000 entries worldwide is a real achievement! Congratulations Emily."

Emily’s artwork can be viewed here.