Wheelers Hill Secondary College Senior School Handbook 2020

VCE Visual Arts

Studio Arts

It is recommended that students have successfully completed at least one of the following subjects:

Year 9/10 Art, Ceramics, Photography or Media. 

Units 1, 2, 3 & 4

Course Description:      

This study enables students to express themselves creatively through art making and come to understand how to support and sustain their art practice. Students develop an individual studio process, and practice and refine specialised skills appropriate to particular art forms and media selected for art making. They analyse and draw inspiration from the ways in which artists apply studio processes in the production of their individual artworks, whilst developing an understanding of historical and cultural contexts in the production and analysis of artworks. Students develop and apply skills in visual analysis, including the use of appropriate terminology in relation to their own artwork and artists studied. They extend their understanding of the roles and methods involved in the presentation of artworks in a range of gallery and exhibition spaces and develop an understanding of professional art practices related to the exhibition of artworks to an audience, including the roles and methods involved in the presentation of artworks in a range of gallery and exhibition spaces.

The themes covered in each unit are:

Unit 1: Studio inspiration and techniques

Unit 2: Studio exploration and concepts

Unit 3: Studio practices and processes

Unit 4: Studio practice and art industry contexts

 

Assessment:                    

This course uses the following forms of assessment:

  • Essays or Reports
  • Analytical Tasks
  • Folio of Visual Artworks
  • Exams

Expected Skills:               

The students must be able to demonstrate and ability to use art media and techniques, research skills and the ability to interpret and compare artworks. This includes:

  • Generating ideas and develop individual subject matter from sources of inspiration, observations, experiences and artistic influences
  • Producing and evaluate finished artworks
  • Investigating, developing and refining materials and techniques appropriate to art making in a range of art forms
  • Using appropriate terminology in discussion and comparison of artist practices, influences and artworks
  • Using an exploration proposal to frame an individual studio process

 

Special Course Commitments:

Art gallery excursions and extra-curricular folio classes.

Visual Communication and Design

Successful completion of Year 9/10 Visual Communication and Design elective is recommended.

Units 1, 2, 3 & 4

Course Description:      

This study enables students to develop and apply drawing skills using a range of techniques to make their design thinking visible. Students develop a wide range of skills in selecting and applying media, materials, and manual and digital methods to suit design purposes, whilst following a design process to create visual communications. Students will complete a series of theoretical components in order to develop their understanding of how key visual communication design elements, design principles, media, materials, and manual and digital methods contribute to the creation of their own and existing designers visual language.  They will develop a capacity to undertake ongoing design thinking while conceiving, communicating and presenting ideas. These ideas will be be supported through an understanding of how historical, social, cultural, environmental, legal, ethical and contemporary factors influence visual communications.

The study is made up of four units.

  • Unit 1: Introduction to visual communication design
  • Unit 2: Applications of visual communication within design fields
  • Unit 3: Visual communication design practices
  • Unit 4: Visual communication design development, evaluation and presentation

Assessment:                    

The course uses the following assessment methods:

  • Design Briefs
  • Folios of drawings, ideas and concepts using manual and/or digital methods
  • Written and/or annotated visual reports
  • Oral and visual presentations
  • Exams

Expected Skills:               

The student must be able to:

  • Draw accurately from observation, develop rendering skills and use a variety of media effectively;
  • Use instrumental drawing to produce orthogonal, paraline and perspective views of objects;
  • Analyse and research skills developed as part of essay writing;
  • Explain the design thinking behind each of the visual communication presentations;
  • Use appropriate terminology
  • Devise and deliver a pitch that supports the presentation of final visual communications.

Special Course Commitments:  

Folio work will require preparatory work outside of the classroom. External excursions are also required to obtain observations of industry practices.