It was the first time Jasmine had been inside the Salle de Prix for a prize giving. The student body and staff were crowded into the semicircular space. The main attraction was the announcement of the winner of the Prix de Rome, which would be at the end of the proceedings.
She sat at the back, apart from the other students from her atelier, hoping she would be able to slip away unobserved when the session was over. It was impossible not to marvel at being in this room, gazing down at the brilliantly colourful hemicycle that followed the curved wall of the room. She shivered in the knowledge of all the great artists who had sat here on these wooden seats, waiting like her to hear the judgements on their talent.
The first honour went to Bernard Cathelin. The applause was deafening when he
