IT is a true case of art imitating life.
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Year 12 student Sidney Tulau, of St George Girls High School, put the finishing touches on her major HSC visual arts project this week.
The star of her piece is her grandmother Nora Moore, who was also the school's assistant librarian for more than 30 years.
Aside from a main portrait, Sidney Tulau painted close-ups of her grandma's eyes, ears and nose, to represent sights, sounds and smells experienced on her journey from England at age 16.
"I was inspired by black and white family photos for the senses," Sidney said.
"For the portrait, I was taking photos of her for about an hour, but then I took one when she wasn't looking, and this is the one.
"Her green eyes matching the leaves on the tea mug was actually an accident.
"When I said I wanted to paint her, she said I should find something better, but she's my favourite person.
"I wanted to do a good job so my family would like it.
"Mum has already put a 'bags' on it — even before I finished it she said she wanted to frame it."
Sidney's art teacher Liz Clark said she encouraged students to create art that related to their lives.
"We looked at the exploration of journeys this year and it's usually good if they do something that's very personal to them," she said.
"Creativity is so important in education.
"It is a disciplined process, and we practise this in visual arts by developing the students' imagination."