We’re delighted to introduce our new Head of the Arts at the Duncraig campus, Lee Whitmarsh who joined us at the beginning of Term 1.
Lee came to Western Australia five years ago with his wife, son and dog from the UK where he had been teaching for 13 years.
“I started my career back in 2006 and I’ve been a Head of the Arts at schools across the UK and Australia”, said Lee. For Lee, teaching is, in part, a natural expression of his innate curiosity.
“I have a genuine interest in understanding how people communicate. I’ve always loved the way the Arts can bring people together and shine a light on the way we think and feel about our community. I enjoy being creative and exploring different ways of combining the Arts and I wanted to be part of a working community that does this. The work students and staff produce across the Arts has always inspired me and I wanted to be a teacher to support and guide students and staff on their own creative journey”.
Lee brings extensive international educational experience to his role at St Stephen’s School.
“I completed my Master of Arts in Art Education at Manchester Metropolitan University and my undergraduate degree at Napier University in Edinburgh. I have also worked for the Edinburgh Film Festival at an independent cinema, and I was lucky enough to be selected to teach on the Cheshire Schools Italian Residential Tour in Florence Italy. I have also worked with Microsoft Education which has enabled me to travel to Hungary and London as part of the Microsoft Educator Community and I love developing the use of technology in Arts education”.
Since coming to Perth, Lee has also been part of the Fogarty Foundation which is a WA-based not-for-profit, committed to giving all young people in WA access to a high-quality education.
“I was involved with the Fogarty Foundation in my previous school and enjoyed developing and building a new school and making connections with the great team at Perth Festival School Partnership”.
The Arts learning area includes Dance, Drama, Media, Music and Visual Art, but Lee’s personal background is in visual arts, illustration, film and photography.
“I loved my time at art college where I could work across different endorsements and take a hybrid approach to the arts. I love being an Arts teacher, it is a privilege to work with students and to give staff and students opportunities to explore the Arts in and out of the classroom. My favourite artist is Robert Rauschenberg, and I was able to see the last major UK retrospective of his work at TATE Modern London before we moved to Perth. I also love film and I am fan of the films of Wes Anderson and the Coen Brothers”.
Reassuringly, Lee believes that we can all be creative. 
“If students feel they are not ‘good at art’ I would say that they need to believe in and trust their own interpretation of the world. Everyone can draw, everyone can create, it’s all about communication and the beauty of the Arts is that we can support and guide all students to find their home and express their ideas be it as a musician, performer or visual artist. We can develop skills and techniques, but you need to believe that you can communicate how you feel in your own style and way”.
We’re delighted that Lee has come to WA and joined us at St Stephen’s School, and we’re looking forward to sharing in his passion for the Arts at our many events in the school calendar.
“We love living in Perth, it is exceptional and a wonderful place to raise a family and to explore. We feel very lucky to call WA our home and I am proud to be part of the St Stephen’s School story in our 40th year,” said Lee.