Students from Tauranga Girls' College will be publicly exhibiting their artwork next Thursday as part of the Tauranga Girls' College Arts Festival.

For some of the girls, it will be the first time their work has been on display in a public exhibition.

Art department HOD Megan Johnston says the annual exhibition is taking place at the new People's Gallery in The Historic Village, hosted by The Incubator.

'There will be a mixture of paintings and photography. We'll probably be including some sculptures too.

'This is real-life risk-taking for these girls, who will get feedback from the general public on their work and the vision behind it. Public exhibition can be very rewarding but equally can be challenging when people critique your dreams as well as your talent.”

She says around 40 students from Years 9-13 will be taking part.

'For some students this is also part of their assessment. For the senior painting girls, they have to present their work as an exhibition piece as part of their course,” says Megan.

The launch of the exhibition is at 4.30pm on Thursday, August 31 at the People's Gallery in The Historic Village. The pieces will be available to view until September 19 during the gallery's opening hours, with some of the artworks available for purchase.